Canada-The Crossing Southbound

The very start point of the Alaska Highway… 1,390 miles from Dawson Creek (BC) to Delta Junction (AK)

Time flies and it is hard to believe that we have been to Alaska and that it is time to leave the northernmost point of the journey and initiate the expedition to the southermost point of adventure… Florida!!. And if you wonder what the distance is between Anchorage and Key West in Fl, it is 5,117 miles or almost 9,000 km. But, let’s remember we are not going straight to Florida!! No, no we are not… we will visit the North East and South East before ending our expedition at Key West.

But for now, let’s enjoy the ride through Alaska, Yukon, Alberta and parts of British Columbia.

Once you leave Alaska it is back to Kilometers and diesel in liters (expensive by the way compared to the US gas and diesel prices).

The initial plan was to leave Anchorage and stay one night at the RV park in Glenallen , then the following day cross the border to an RV park near Destruction Bay. Unfortunately the management didn’t honor the fact that we made the reservations 2 days earlier and they cancelled the reservation!! So we had to call Pioneer RV Park in White Horse (Yukon) and stay one night. This was the longest leg we have ever driven!! 15 hours; I’m glad it was all daylight.

It is very interesting to see how the geography begins to change…… from green forest to perfectly shaped mountains and lakes in British Columbia.

After staying one night at a campground in Dawson Creek, it was all excitement as the next destination was one of the two main national parks in Canada, Jasper ( the next after this would be the very famous Banff). After setting up Scotty at Jasper Gates RV, it was my turn to get some lunch prepared!

I have to say, Scotty has been so resilient!! So many miles, good and not so good roads, ups and downs on hills and this coach is just smiling!! very strong bus.

We are trying to understand the way Canadians live their vacations and a few things come to our minds: for them camping is at the top!! Be it a tent, or a Class C, or a trailer but not so much a Class A Diesel Pusher. They love camping in the mountains, by the lake, they do a lot of dry camping as well. Another way to spend vacations is by staying at Cabins…. very popular!!. But a big difference that we have seen in the Canadian campgrounds compared to the ones in the United States is that the electricity delivered comes at 30 AMPS, not at 50!!. That means that only one A/C will work… and it has been HOT!!

These ones in particular have an interesting story

So, before arriving to Jasper, we were told that the main difference between Jasper and Banff is that the former is more “naturist”, more quiet, less crowds. The latter is well advanced tourism, more mature, very busy and expensive!! And we couldn’t agree more!!!

The pamphlet that you are given at the Information Center in Jasper is well written and explanatory: there are lakes, water falls, trails and Glaciers; you just need to split the activities as you like. We had 3 days so we decided to take it easy the first day; the second day we’d do glaciers and water falls and the third day would be lakes and preparation for departure.

The force of nature is astonishing!!

Claudia seemingly enjoys putting her feet in the freezing stream!!

We couldn’t pass the opportunity to see a Glacier closely so off we went to see the Athabasca Glacier…. and here’s the thing…. this monumental piece of ice has been shrinking over the years at an alarming rate!! Since the records began back in 1844, the Glacier has retreated more than 1.5 kilometers!! See the sequence of pics taken on site

Global warming has caused this effect and this is just one of the glaciers that have diminished in area over the years.

See how the car park looks like in a normal day as vacations time is in full swing

The following day was lakes and trails. Attention here: we have been very mindful on the innate danger of walking on the woods of the American northern hemisphere in regards to the risk of an encounter with an animal, bears in particular I’m talking. We have heard terrible stories about bear attacks resulting in fatalities. To be honest this has prevented us from walking freely as we do it in Scotland or Spain or any other country in Europe for that matter.

This is a typical example; we decided to walk “The valley of the 5 lakes”; it was supposed to be a short walk to hit the lakes but it happened to be a brisk hilly and isolated path surrounded by nature, very beautiful in itself!! But then we realized we were alone; thanks goodness 2 German girls bumped into us and told us to come back. As Claudia says, those are the angels that come from heaven to guide you on the right track!!.

Valley of the 5 lakes

And it was time to visit the most famous of all National Parks in Canada: Banff!!!

So, Scotty was ready to go

The journey from Jasper National Park to Banff is one of the most beautiful drives we have ever done. We couldn’t wait to see the town and surrounding area!!

Quite a picturesque town!

The famous picture of Banff in winter

It was funny to organize our adventure in Banff…. first of all what an ordeal to find a campground in the area!!! No one would accept such a large RV (40 ft coaches aren’t really something you see often); we lost the fight and ended up in a nice campground in Mossleigh, near Vulcan, AB, 2 hours away!! . But it wasn’t just the size of the RV that made it hard to find a site!. It was the Stampede!! something we had no idea about… 10 days of rodeo, party, festivity in Calgary. Nearly 200,000 visitors flock to town to enjoy themselves.

Party time!! Calgary Stampede is here

It was time to socialize and see old friends like Nathalie, her husband Edd and son Andy who live in Calgary.

And supper with lovely couple Bob and Helen whom we met last year back in Corpus Christi, TX.

So, back to Banff: beautiful in one word, a town with matury infrastructure to serve the millions that visit the park every year all year round. People come here not only to camp in the green nature nut also to attend meetings, conferences, honeymoon, etc. Lots of walks, lakes, trails.

Since 1885 a park that has been visited by millions, now a World Heritage site.

Back in 1,883, three railway workers by accident found the thermal springs that eventually led to the creation of the first National Park of Canada.

After walking on the mountains, hiking Glaciers, watching nice sunrises and sunsets, it was time to plant the tree for Canada!!

The tree ( a pine tree) was planted at the very nice Jasper Gates RV park.

So, having finalized the crossing to Alaska, memories have been made, unforgettable experiences lived and lots of miles driven…. lots!!!

Time to head back to the US entering the border through Montana!!

Thanks for reading!