Travelog Update

Calgary, Alberta

Today I saw a black man walking on the shoulder of the Trans-Canada Highway. He had a reflective diagonal stripe on his shirt, much like construction workers wear for safety. He wore a small backpack. It was late afternoon and he walked west against the traffic, carrying a large white flag with something handwritten on it. At 90 km an hour, we were well past before I could read what it said, but the image of that man stays with me. What kind of statement was he trying to make, walking alone at the side of the highway? What was so important to this man that he would strike out on his own to carry a message, and what was his message? Some would call him crazy to do a stunt like this, with little chance of getting anyone’s attention, or having an effect. It is for that very reason that I admire his courage to stand alone for what he believes.

18 September, Tuesday
Mosquito Creek Campground
Banff National Park

We have snow… at our campsite. As we reached the top of Bow Pass this afternoon, we were greeted with a brief flurry of snowflakes. Bow Pass is the highest road pass in the four mountain parks at 6,849 feet. We are not that high here at Mosquito Creek Campground, but the air is cold and any moisture that falls is in the form of snow. We traveled the Icefields Parkway today, a 230-km drive along the backbone of the continent. It was built between 1931 and 1940 by men left unemployed in the Great Depression. We spent time at the Columbia Icefield Center, eating lunch and looking at the exhibits. Everything was very commercial, with motorized glacier tours the big thing. Bob liked pressing the red button to hear the pika call, and the bugling elk (on a wildlife exhibit). I favored the four-minute silent film of early adventuring across the icefields with packhorses and dogs.

We are impressed with the care given to wildlife in these Canadian National Parks. Campaign promotions state: Wildlife…keep it wild! “ If you see a bear, resist the urge to stop. If that bear loses its wildness, it probably won’t survive.” They have National Park Bear Guardians patrolling roadways and day use areas, working to keep both bears and people safe. “Please know that we humans are far more dangerous to park animals than they are to us. We come here to recreate, animals live here to survive. As visitors to their habitat, we have to take special care in how we share the land with them.” Highway fencing along the Trans-Canada Highway where it transects Banff National Park helps to reduce vehicle-wildlife collisions, while new wildlife crossings will help maintain or restore wildlife movements vital to sustain healthy wildlife populations. The 24 existing crossings, monitored since 1996, have been used by 11 species of large mammals. There is no other location in the world with as many different types and number of wildlife crossings.


17 September, Monday
Jasper National Park

We have been on the road for a week now – passed the 1,000 mile mark. We left the Lac Le Jeune campground at around 9 am. Reached a small spot on the road called Avola. We needed gas and Bob pulled into a local station. A young man dressed in blue Bermuda shorts, grey t-shirt and wearing a floppy hat and work gloves jumps out, grabs the gas nozzle and says, “Fill it with regular?” It is a rare occasion to find service at a gas station anymore and Bob hardly knows how to handle it. So he goes inside the station and talks with a CN railroad employee. He tells Bob that 200 trains a day run on this track. That will triple when the Prince Rupert container port is completed. As we were leaving Kamloops, we watched a massively long trainload of doubled container cars roll past, most of the containers marked CHINA SHIPPING.

It was time for some lunch and there was a big sign nearby for the Log Inn Pub – “World Famous Burgers.” Well, why not? So we drive down the gravel road to the Log Inn. Two Harley Davidsons are parked out front. A big man greets us at the door, “How’re you doin?” We walk inside, assailed by the smell of cigarette smoke. There is a pool table, Harley memorabilia covers the wall, a bear skin rug is draped over a sectional sofa by the window. The riders of the Harley Davidsons are inside, all leather, bandanas, earrings, tattoos, and with long hair and beards. A couple is playing pool, they’re also tattooed. “What can I get for you?” the big guy says. Since we came for their “World Famous Hamburgers,” Bob says, “A couple of hamburgers.” The guy says, “Sure, they’ll take about 30-minutes.” So we sit down and wait. Maybe the hamburgers are famous for how long it takes to get them. We watch trains go by from our window table; two freight trains and one passenger train, “The Rocky Mountaineer.” Then we watched repairs being made to a yellow backhoe across the road. The hamburgers finally come… BIG, juicy, and grilled rather than fried. Despite the biker atmosphere, everything was spotless, energy-efficient light bulbs were in use, and a lifelike battery-operated puppy lay in a fluffy basket on a chair next to the door. Don’t know what that was all about! “Have a good trip,” the man calls out when we leave. He is from Alberta and just helping out the owner who is his friend.

We hear a weather forecast on CBC Radio – frost is predicted for some areas by morning and snow at higher elevations. As we drive closer to the Rockies, we see new snow on Mt. Robson. We pass the headwaters of both the Fraser River and the Columbia. And we stop at a park and a mountain dedicated to the inspirational Canadian runner, Terry Fox.

Marathon of Hope – Mount Terry Fox

“Terrance Stanley Fox (1958-1981), most commonly known for being "Marathon of Hope" runner, was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada on July 28th 1958. He was raised in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia and was very athletic beginning at a young age. In 1977, while studying kinesiology, Terry Fox was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer. As a result, his right leg had to be amputated six inches above his knee. Terry Fox always persevered, and during his recovery, he developed the idea for the "Marathon of Hope". The "Marathon of Hope" was to consist of a run across Canada to raise both money and awareness for cancer research. Terry Fox began his run on April 12th 1980 in St-John's, Newfoundland. In the beginning, he drew little attention, but as time passed, his campaign gained momentum as donations began to steadily mount.

On September 1st 1980, in Thunder Bay, Ontario, after 143 days and 5,373 kilometers, cancer was discovered in his lungs and Terry Fox was forced to stop his run. It was during his "Marathon of Hope", running 43 km a day through the Atlantic provinces, Quebec and Ontario, that he inspired a nation and people around the world. Terry Fox passed away on June 28th, 1981, one month before his 23rd birthday. His dream was to collect $1 from every Canadian. That dream was soon realized. To date the Terry Fox Marathon of Hope, which is held in 60 countries around the world with thousands of participants, has raised an estimated $250 million for cancer research. For his heroic efforts and perseverance, a mountain in British Columbia was named in his honor.

Jasper is a little spendy… or I should say, a lot spendy! Last night we paid all of $8.00 for our camping spot. Tonight we paid $196.00 at the Lobstick Inn, and were told we were getting a special deal at that. A lot to pay for the luxury of a hot shower and wireless Internet connection.

16 September 2007
Lac Le Jeune Provincial Park
(South of Kamloops)

The rain patters on the roof of the trailer. We have gotten our winter jackets out of the Jeep. I didn’t expect to do that so soon. We left Hope at 9:30 this morning, taking the Coquihalla Highway 5 North. We know we are getting into mountain territory because of the road signs… “High Mountain Road, Sudden Weather Changes, Be Cautious,” and “Steep Runaway Lane,” “Winter Driving Conditions, Watch for Snow and Ice,” and “Avoid Cruise Control When Road Is Icy.” We top the Coquihalla Summit at 1,220 meters. Clouds and mist. Everywhere you can see the spreading scourge of red – pine beetle destruction; some hillsides hold only blackened dead trees – the last stage – looking like a forest fire has just swept through. I can see trees other than pine with tinged with red. Later I ask a park ranger about this and he says that spruce trees are beginning to be effected also.

Outside of Merritt, we stop at a tourist information building… Bob wants to find out if there is a Tim Horton’s in Merritt – we have had no coffee this morning. There is a tour bus parked along the side of the building, its passengers clustered around a concession stand. The minute we pull up, people start staring at us, or I should say our trailer. Cameras come out. One man speaking broken English with a German accent asks me if he can take a picture of the Jeep and trailer. I say, “Sure, go ahead,” and leave him snapping away.

We’re in luck. There is a Tim Horton’s at the next exit to Merritt. Just as we are pulling in, two twenty-something guys running up the road say, “That’s so funky. I want one!” referring to our trailer. Fortified with Tim’s coffee and four apple toffee Danish, we get back on the road and head north. We decide to overnight at Lac Le Jeune Provincial Park. It’s close to Kamloops. We find a nice spot at the edge of the lake, unhook the trailer, and pull it up and around by hand… much easier than backing in.

There are chipmunks, Douglas squirrels, ravens, flickers, golden-crowned kinglets, woodpeckers and one lone Canada goose… I think he got left behind. Some inconsiderate people with a dog hike by, allowing their dog to chase after every living thing around. I finally say, “Why don’t you stop your dog from chasing all the wildlife. You should have him on a leash.” Bob adds, “It’s a park regulation that dogs be kept on a leash.” They didn’t even look at us, but we notice when they come back, there dog is nowhere to be seen.

Later the Park Ranger comes around to collect camping fees. We ask him about the pine beetle infestation. He tells us that until two years ago, this was a heavily forested park. Now all the campsites have a lake view! The mountainside across the lake shows the telltale red creeping through the green canopy. The Ranger says, “It has increased by ten percent since spring.” Spruce trees are dying too. Seven spruces by the lake are marked for cutting down this fall. Climate change is partly to blame for this massive infestation, brought about by human intervention such as suppressing forest fires, which is a natural cycle in healthy forests, and the logging companies in the past have replanted with lodge pole pine, which was never the primary evergreen in this area. There are three times the number of lodge pole pine that were here ninety years ago. The reason for planting them is that they are fast growing.

We decide to drive into Kamloops to see what it is like, so we can plan the day for tomorrow. My God! It is huge, and ugly. Everywhere are new, massive townhouses, condominiums, hotels with waterslides, motels, shopping malls with BIG box stores, housing developments terraced up the mountainsides. A big yellow plastic inflatable fish smiles from the rooftop of Joey’s Seafood Restaurant. There was nothing that made us want to hang around for another day to explore Kamloops. So we will keep going.