Tag: Cassiar Highway

Posted on

Road Trip, Day 2

Our starting mileage from the gas station at Dease Lake was 104135.8. I got $80 of gas at Dease, where it was $1.63/l. I gassed up again at Hazelton, where the price was a bit better, $136.9/l. We used 48.8 l to get to Dease Lake from Junction 37 and 136.6 l to get to Hazelton. Our mileage for the day yesterday was 566.1 km.

The highway from Dease Lake to the Junction with the Yellowhead Highway was considerably better. There was a centreline and fewer frost heaves and pot holes. There was still plenty of scenery, which the Cassiar does have in spades. If you were taking your time, and not travelling between destinations, you could get a lot of great pictures.

It was raining in Dease, quite hard at times overnight. It did rain a few times as we went down the road and at one point, we did have heavy rain on the drive.

Tanzilla River, near Dease Lake, BC.
Tanzilla River, near Dease Lake, BC.
Road warrior.
Road warrior.

 

The area around Gnat Pass Summit was quite nice and that’s where we say the first bear of the trip. It was a big boar, solitary so you can guess the gender, and one of the biggest black bears I’ve seen. This guy tipped the scale at probably 400 pounds and was right by the highway. We went about half an hour down the road and saw a juvenile on the highway edge, answering the age old question about what bears may or may not do in the woods. About 200 m from there, we met a cyclist heading in that direction, so I waved him down and pointed out the bear. He figured he’s wait a bit before carrying on for some reason…

 

About an hour later, we saw a sow and two cubs. She was tiny, probably only about 125 pounds. All three watched us pass them on the road.

Moose meadows, near Gnat Creek summit.
Moose meadows, near Gnat Creek summit.
Rest area, Bob Quinn Lake.
Rest area, Bob Quinn Lake.

We stopped for a snack at Bell II crossing. The lodge is quite nice and the prices, particularly for refilling my coffee thermos were pretty decent. Then, it was back on the road again.

Nass River.
Nass River.

We eventually got to Brian and Pat’s place in the Kispiox River valley about 7:30 or so. They have a really nice place, although I do understand why they’re widening their driveway at the moment. We had a wonderful dinner, roast beast smoked and cooked on the BBQ with fresh veggies. After a bit of a visit, we settled down for the night and slept the sleep of the just.

Brian and Pat.
Brian and Pat.
Posted on

Road Trip, Day 1

After packing the camper over several days, we finally left this morning. We were slightly delayed getting out of Whitehorse, owing largely to me forgetting to register the vehicles and having to wait until Monday morning to do that.

Our starting mileage was 103462.1 km. I got gas at Junction 37 Services (108.61l/437.9 km, or 4.03 km/l). It’s not as good as we got on our first trip to Faro, but not as bad as last time. I suspect our mileage is largely dependent on who fills the tank and how much gas actually gets put in it.

The Alaska Highway is in really good shape. There was only one minor construction area between Whitehorse and the junction with Highway 37 and you missed it in a hurry. However, the first 85 km of the Stewart-Cassiar Highway were terrible. There were lots of frost heaves and this was the most winding part of the road. The speed limit is 80 km/hr., but there is no way you can actually drive that fast. After Km 85, it did get much better until about 25 km before Dease Lake.

The first stretch was so bumpy some of the plates actually fell, opening the cupboard door and exploded on the floor. Some sweeping was called for on the side of the road.

This last run for the day was on even worse highway. There are many frost heaves, gravel patches, and pot holes. Drive carefully through here if you are coming this way. I’m left to wonder that the rest of the Stewart-Cassiar will be like for tomorrow’s drive. We have about 500 km to go on it.

Our daily travel mileage was 672.9 km. It’s not a bad day per se, but I didn’t get as much sleep as I could have last night and I am more than happy we got this far. We stayed at Dease Lake RV Park, which is right in town, or as in town as Dease Lake has. The park is basic, with a full hookup site with pull through costing about $28.

Yukon River Bridge, near the rest area west of Whitehorse.
Yukon River Bridge, near the rest area west of Whitehorse.
Cassiar Mountains.
Cassiar Mountains.

 

Cassiar Mountains.
Cassiar Mountains.

 

We got into the RV park about 8 PM, counting in the time it took to level and hook up the camper. We waited a bit before making supper and then went to bed.