Jim & June's Odyssey 2008 10 12
Trip Start
Aug 25, 2008
1
9
57
Trip End
Ongoing
Hope,
British Columbia,
Canada
Monday, October 13, 2008
The drive from Princeton to Hope goes through the Allison Pass. It is VERY scenic and quite a driving experience with several 9 degree hills that are miles long c/w runaways, if required. Our motor home handled everything superbly - no overheating, the Jake-brake purred like a kitten and we effortlessly passed a lot smaller vehicles while going up hill. The cliffs are straight down (and probably a ½ mile down). Luckily for June, the mountains were mostly on her side but the "Oh-Shit" handle was firmly in her grasp none-the-less. Exasperated with my Saskatchewan parrot, every time we were approaching a hairpin turn I reminded her to "Go comb your hair!!" It worked.
Along the way we saw an entire mountain flattened by copper mining - the area is HUGE and rock-haul trucks are about the only other traffic in the area. When driving through the E.C. Manning Provincial Park we touched the overnight snowfall at the 1600 meter level; at lower down however, the forests are so dense that no sunlight ever reaches the ground.
So far, throughout BC, we've seen tree stumps all over the place. Every square foot of BC has been logged at one time or another. Roadside billboards express the devastation reeked by the Pine Beetle but surprisingly (or through ignorance), we have not been able to identify any areas depicted on their maps. Increasingly frustrating are the billboards promoting the requirement and benefits of 'Controlled Burns.' Very frequently, these fires get out of control then get classified as "lightning strikes." Additionally, while traveling in BC - everything costs about 20% more than Alberta - loaded burgers = $8.99 vs. $6.99 but the service is friendlier, genuine and the kids act smarter.
In Hope, we stayed at the Coquihalla Campground. It is the best place we've stayed thus far - large campsites surrounded by huge fir/cedar/spruce trees where its difficult to even see your neighbor, bordered by the Coquahla river and a couple babbling brooks where the Coho and Chinook salmon are spawning. The fish are a lot bigger than we expected - probably 30 inches long.
A personal note from June: Woke up this morning and noticed the arthritis in my right hand was quite painful and the joints stiff - also, my right elbow was tender to touch. I think over the past few days I spent a lot of time "white knuckling it" by holding onto the chair support on the passenger side of the motor home. I'm sure Jim is getting annoyed with my constant reminder to "slow down" but I just can't help it - I am very nervous on these winding, mountainous roads. We sit so high in the motorhome and the window gives you a real bird's eye view of the canyons and sheer rock drop-offs. I just realized that in the past month that we've spent in B.C. we've gone through the Crowsnest Pass, the Roger's Pass and the Allison Pass. I'll never complain about how boring the road is in southern Alberta or Saskatchewan again! Right now, it would be a nice change.... I must say I'm a little apprehensive about going along the Oregon Coast. Maybe I'll be used to it by that time.
Toured:
Hope Slide - It occurred in 1965 and is so large that it completely covered a lake with 80 meters of rock. Jim remembers going through this area in 1966 and driving right through the middle of the slide - before it was cleaned up. Now, a new highway skirts its perimeter and the viewpoint is ON the slide area.
Hope Information Center - It was busy and the young hostess was awesome. With her congenial and courteous voice - depicting all the traits of a TRUE tourism representative, she never repeated herself but was very informative. We will be forwarding a few words of commendation to the Chamber of Commerce regarding her professionalism. We like it here, already.
Downtown Hope - In addition to the murals depicting historical events, Hope is called the "Chainsaw Sculpture Capital of Canada" and there are lots of them. Amazing life-size and exquisitely colored bears, wolves, martins, raccoons, fish, famous characters, etc are completely carved from one tree trunk. Unbelievable works of art! A beautiful town surrounded by majestic mountains.
Fraser River basin - Located at the W end of Warren Ave, there are several monuments, epitaphs and noteworthy inscriptions that historically depict the scenic view before you - you can imagine why battles raged for this region in the last 10,000 years. It is spectacular and if you were a warrier in those days, "Worth the battle scar."
Othello Railway Tunnels - Unbelievable engineering and construction feat through solid granite built in 1915. The walk through the five tunnels and connecting bridges over the meandering/turbulent Coquihalla River c/w the view of the 300 ft cliffs above you is worth the experience.
Hells Gate - Took an air tram ride down to the canyon and over to the other side of the Fraser River. Simon Fraser mapped the area and wrote that this is "a place where no human being should venture, for surely we have entered the gates of hell". The river roars through a narrow gorge at 25 mi. per hr. at twice the volume of Niagara Falls. In 1913 the CNR tunneled its way through the Rockies with 6500 Chinese laborers. An average of three were killed per mile trying to get the job done. Accidentally they triggered a slide that narrowed the passage and threatened the annual salmon run but after thirty years of research the BC gov't constructed a bypass to circumvent the constriction and help restore the salmon migration to the Adams River. We toured the museum, watched a film explaining the life cycle of salmon, had a coffee and fudge made at the fudge factory (to die for - one layer of Irish Cream, one layer of orange ?? booze, then topped with a layer of Kahlua). We staggered across the suspended bridge above the swirling current (it takes 5 seconds for spit to hit) of the Fraser River then took the gondola back to the parking lot. Well worth the $16.00 ticket price! Tony & Stan, you're the math guys - how many ft/sec does spit fall?
Boston Bar - A dieing town - garbage streets, abandoned lots, forgotten sawmills, candle shops, native gifts, potpourri stores (yuk), old-old houses and surrounded by a reserve c/w absolute junk i.e. upside-down cars, shaggin'waggins' and chesterfields strewn all over. We even interrupted a drug deal going on in the middle of an intersection - a little black box ½"x½"x1" for $10 - dunno what! Seems like a major railway switch yard is the mainstay so if you ain't working for the railroad, you ain't workin. It also looks like most of the logging contractor's equipment is rusted out and hasn't been working for quite a while. The town is best viewed at 100 km/hr.
Alexandra Bridge - A historic site a short hike (about ¾ mi.) from the road south of Boston Bar. It was a really nice walk this time of year as the trees were just starting to turn color. The bridge was completed in 1863 to accommodate the gold field activity in the area and was named after Princess Alexandra of Wales. We walked across it but still wonder - Wherezit go? There was no trail on the W side of the Fraser River.
Yale - The 1858 Gold Rush started here when one guy by the name of Hill dug his heals into the gravel while making camp and came up with a nugget between his toes - it was the richest find in all of BC. Within 1 year, the town went from 150 to 30,000 residents. Local Indians wanted all the squatters out so they got vicious, beheading 52 miners whose bodies were found in "Yale's Eddie" after one confrontation alone.
Comments
10/18/08
Hi There,
Your odyessy is great! You are doing so much, what a great way to keep everyone updated on where you are at.
Take Care
Terea
gravity
Superb commentary. Love it.
Distance traveled (feet) due to gravity is 16*t^2 (t = seconds). So a smooth dense marble falling for 5 seconds would travel 16*5^2 = 400 feet. Air resistance and wind would slow spit down, so the distance would be less than 400 feet.
... Stan