Well, after getting up at 4:30, we went to the ferry dock and lined up. They loaded cars first, so I drove the Hummer and parked it in the belly of the boat. Everyone else went next,and finally they loaded Jimmy and the bus. Needless to say, we were the biggest thing on the boat, so they had Jimmy back in, the very last thing, so he would be the first one out. I had to take pictures, of course....it looked pretty dicey!The ferry boat ride was very pleasant....we had a nice breakfast on the boat and, less than an hour later, we pulled up at the Haines Dock. Jimmy stopped at the first fuel pump and put about 50 gallons on the bus, then we went and checked in at the Haines Hitch-up Campground. It's probably the nicest we've found since we left Montana. We found satellite TV and satellite internet, right away, then Jimmy got out the Road Hog and we went exploring the town. We first went to a couple of garage sales (nothing cool), then we went to a big bar-b-que at the local firehouse, a few shops, hardware store, fudge shop (YUM), took pictures of some of the many different kinds of flowers, then back to the bus.

Well, on Thursday we pulled into Skagway, The RV parks to choose from were not too great, but we tried the Garden City...(the TV cable was out, no grass, gravel, sardine can, muddy where someone had missed with their dump water...UGH!

Then we drove down Broadway (the main street where the cruise ships drop off tourists, for shopping.) It was located between mountains, so there was no chance of satellite TV or internet. We drove around to the other campgrounds.,one was at the base of the mountain and the other one was even worse, but had trees. However.....we did have cell phone service! After we went to dinner at the Bonanza Bar and Grill (not like the steakhouse we all know and love) we went home and went to sleep. Friday, we got up and Jimmy decided to wash the bus, then we went and made reservations on the ferry to Haines (we had to be in line at 5:30 AM!). After we got our tickets (we figured the cost of the ferry to go 13 miles was about the same as driving 380 miles) we went shopping. Several fur shops...Jimmy wants a jacket...just so....haven't found one that he likes, yet. Jewelry shops, for me, of course.....Bookstore, , souvenir shops, lunch at a restaurant specializing in (get this) Italian/Mexican foods and steaks. ha!ha! It really wasn't too bad, tho'. When we got home, I found 1 local TV station...a combination of PBS,CBS,NBC and local news. The signal was pretty bad, but at least it was something! Had to get some sleep, 4:30 wake up call came early!

Well, this morning, we slept late.(not easy with the midnight sun) We moved across the street and took the roadhog to Archie's for lunch. Great burgers and milkshakes, then we went to the Northern Lights Centre (kind of like a planetaruim or the Omni theater) Then we took off driving. We stopped at Mukluk Annie's, just north of Teslin. Free RV parking and a big breakfast in the morning. Great scenery along the way. We still have TV on our bus satellite dish...I don't know for how long.....the big dish on the hummer, still gives us phone and internet service. Nikki loves the frequent "walks" because she investigates everything! Jimmy, of course, had to work on the satellite, on the roof of the bus.....but all turned out well.We plan to be in Skagway, Ak., tomorrow, for a few days. A friend from Fort Worth, Alan, called, he is up here, in Alaska,with some of his friends on BMW bikes. Hopefully, we will run ino them, somewhere, and have dinner,etc.

Today, we have settled in Watson Lake, Yukon. We left Toad River, drove until we got tired and stopped in a pullout on the side of the road, for the night. When we got up, we drove on to Liard Hot Springs. We encountered a couple of 9% downhill grades.....a little steep, considering the steepest ones in the lower 48 are usually 6%. We stopped and had lunch at a really cool lodge, right by Muncho Lake. They had a nice restaurant....we had the "bushpilot's burger". $15.00 apiece! Everything up here is more expensive...the exchange rate is just about the same....but they are going to get their pound of flesh!With a stop at Muncho Lake..a favorite of the locals...we pulled into the Strawberry Fields Campground......beautiful, but big mistake....couldn't turn around. We had to unhook the hummer to get the bus turned around then re-hook. The dogs loved playing in the ICE-cold water,though. Plenty of wildlife ......Bison, bear, big horn sheep......all along the road! We pulled into the Watson Lake campground about 8pm.....it's really deceiving...you drive and drive, because it's still light. Plays hell with my sleep schedule, though!Tomorrow we are going to the Northern Lights Theater...more later

From the Wal Mart parking lot in Fort St. John, we started driving
to Toad River, about 375 miles. Along the way, we ran into some road construction....about 5 miles of gravel road...all in all, the roads are no worse than the freeway through Louisiana. They did start winding around through the mountains a lot, we saw a mama bear and her 2 cubs on the side of the road....also some deer and elk.
Then we stopped at the Toad River Cafe, for dinner. Neat little place, it felt like we were in Elmo (like the TV show....Men in Trees). Pulled onto a turnout on the road, with a shot for the satellite, between the mountains, still have HD TV, the little "In-Motion" dish barely works, but the big dish on the hummer still gives us telephone and Internet.

We left Grand Prairie and made it through Dawson Creek and "Mile O" of the Alaska Highway. Stopped in Fort St. John, at the Wal-Mart, to get provisions, and to watch the NASCAR race. We plan to go to Liard Hot Springs on the way to Watson Lake, tomorrow...where we were told by several people, to watch out for bears! Jimmy is going back into Wal-Mart to get some bear repellant!!!

Spent the day in Grand Prairie, even had lunch at Tony Roma's! Jimmy got a tarp that we are going to stretch across the front of the Hummer, so that any rocks that get thrown up while we are towing it, will just bounce off.......washed the bus and the Hummer again, today. (sigh) The road all the way here was really nice, wide two lane with shoulders, but the RV park we are at, it at the end of a 4 mile "country" road. I think it was paved at one point, but now it's gravel. We have lost the satellite internet, but we are slightly east of the "footprint"....we will be going to Dawson Creek, then Fort Smith tomorrow...not sure where we'll stop, yet...still have the TV so I have to see the NASCAR race!

Well, we decided to go a little father North, after all, so we are now in Grand Prairie, Ab. just short of Dawson Creek. We are probably going to stay here, for a couple of days...there's a Costco and a Home depot, so we can get the proper suff to protect us from rock chips, etc. Tomorrow, we will go exploring the town and I'll put up a picture or 2.

Well, we finally made it to the Municipal Campground in Grande Cache! Nearly 300 miles! (not bad, considering we stopped several times, and Jimmy had to go back and get his cell phone.)
we got in our space and got settled, just in time for sunset...about 11 pm...Mountain Standard Time. The sky was amazing....pink and blue all over! We're getting near the land of the midnight sun! The road, all the way here, was pretty descent....2 lane, smooth....however, no shoulders. We plan to stay here a day or two, we are still getting satellite tv, etc. so, we have to have reception, so I can watch the race, Sunday! Jeff Gordon and his wife Ingrid had a baby girl! Maybe he'll win this one for her!

Then, we drove on up to the Columbia Icefields to see the Athabasca Glacier and if it had changed much in 5 years. Got some great pictures on the way, miles and miles of giant snow-topped mountains with Glaciers. Then we continued on toward Jasper, saw a bear on the side of the road, eating, then saw an elk on the other side, a few miles later, munching on the grass. We passed Sunwapta Falls, where the White River is.....(particles of the glacier make it white),then came upon Athabasca Falls, where the 23 metre waterfall has the most powerful flow to be found in any of the mountain parks. Jimmy got a quick shot of a cute little chipmunk, I got a picture of the bus with their cute outhouses!!

Today, We left Johnston Canyon and went North to Lake Louise. We had been there in 2002 with the Marathon "bus bunch", but wanted to see it again. We pulled into the parking lot and Jimmy realized his cell phone was missing. I called it several times....no ring anywhere....so he unhooked the Hummer and got the Road Hog out for me, so while he went back to our campground, I went exploring. After I got back to the bus, I called his phone and he answered! Sure enough, it was on the ground, near the back of where the bus was parked. 30 minutes later, he was back and we decided to go eat lunch at the Chateau. (Fairmont). We had a wonderful Vidalia Onion soup, I had quiche and Jimmy had a great Curried chicken wrap. Then we had a killer Chocolate Fondue with fruit!

In honor of everything being green, up here, I decided to write in green!Anyway, today we drove to the RV park, uh, campground (we found it 3 miles down the road) (there are no plug ins or anything.....just a place to park....and they take your money, as a friend said), but it is really pretty with huge trees everywhere, so we figured...no satellite tv or phone.... but lo and behold....1 campsite had a great shot,So here we are!

After we got settled in, we drove into town. We recognized a lot of it from when we were here in 2002, but the main street with all the shops, is all torn out, so they can re-do it.

We hit the local McDonald's (really upscale, even had a nice rock fireplace with a fire going in it), then the grocery store, before we went back to the bus and cooked steaks on the grill.

BUT>>>on the way, we saw bighorn sheep, a beautiful elk and some cute little antelopes, I think. Tomorrow, we're planning just to chill, and Jimmy is going to work on an air leak on the bus.

Sorry, I missed a day.....Yesterday, we drove up through Banff National Park, saw lots of wildlife, and stopped off for a great hot springs pool experience at Radium Hot Springs....The water comes in at 114 degrees and is cooled to 103...then they also have a "cool pool" at 84 degrees. Then we headed North and saw a Bear! on the side of the road! Spent the night in a turnout area, where the tour busses pick up people.(Couldn't find the Rv park in the dark with 75 foot trees everywhere!) Then,the next morning, for whatever reason possessed him, Jimmy decided to wash the bus! Using our own water from our tank! If I miss out on a shower because of this!!!!!???