British Columbia, Canada – September 2024
There honestly wasn’t much time between the second Arctic Ocean trip and my next notable one. This time I was taking Kati along the Cassiar Highway to Stewart, BC, and then to Prince Rupert, BC.
The notable things in between were mostly limited to picking up a couple of hitchhikers from Dawson City who were also going to Whitehorse.
The French Hitchhikers
Aff and Oliver were part of a group of four who had canoed on the Yukon River for eight days. They had just finished their trip and spent two more days in Dawson City.
They were going to spend a couple of days in Whitehorse before finishing their vacation in Vancouver. They were charming, originally from the southeastern coast of France, and firefighters there.
The language barrier prevented some nuance from getting through. My understanding is that French firefighters get a decent bit of time off, along with reduced-cost vacations or flights. That is how they ended up canoeing on the Yukon in Canada, which seems like a pretty good use of vacation time.
Car Troubles?
After dropping them off in Whitehorse on August 30th, I continued toward Watson Lake on the Trans-Canada. There was a bit more traffic, but it was an easy road and fairly well maintained.
I spent the night at a pullout near Teslin Lake. When I started the car the next morning, the BRAKE warning light came on.
Restarting the car didn’t fix it. Uh oh.
I checked the fluid levels. The brake fluid was a little low. Hopefully I didn’t have a leak. I tested the brakes in the pullout lot, and they seemed fine. They still worked normally once I got back on the highway.
In Watson Lake, I looked for an auto parts store. The gas stations didn’t carry brake fluid. The auto parts stores appeared to be closed for the Labor Day holiday.
Oof.
I finally found a general store off the beaten path that carried DOT 3 brake fluid. It also had DEXRON III-compatible ATF, which I needed because the power steering fluid was a touch low.
Topping everything off made the warning light go away. Whew. I kept an eye on it after that. The brake system in good condition is probably important when towing.
Picking Up Kati
My next stop was a rest area just south of Meziadin Junction on the Stewart-Cassiar Highway. After waking up, I did the needful at the Hazelton Visitor’s Center. Leanna dropped Kati off for our little mini vacation.
We headed to Terrace for supplies and errands. We spent the night at a rest stop just east of town on the Yellowhead Highway. It was busy with traffic, but it worked in a pinch.
From there, we headed toward Stewart.
After so many long travel days, I slowed the pace. Rather than push from Terrace to Stewart in one day, we stopped at Bonus Lake Recreation Site on the Cassiar.
We enjoyed the lake and the quiet. It was also a good opportunity for me to hermit a bit and be lazy.
The Tiny Town of Stewart
If you’re ever on the Stewart-Cassiar Highway, do yourself a favor and head toward Stewart. The drive alone is worth it. The view past Bear Glacier is gorgeous and makes for a great picture opportunity. Despite the “No parking” signs, it seems everyone does it.
The town is quite, uh, quaint. It’s adorable. There are bed and breakfasts, homes, three restaurants, a bar, a bakery, and a visitor center. There is also a lovely little boardwalk near the water.
No bets on what is actually open among those.
While Stewart is a pretty town, I’m not sure it’s worth more than a couple of days for a visit. Kati enjoyed it. I think she could see herself living in a small town without all the through-traffic of the Yellowhead or Stewart-Cassiar Highway.
I’d like to say I could tell you how Hyder, Alaska was. It is only accessible through Stewart. Kati didn’t have her passport, though, and I didn’t want to leave her alone in town all day. I’m sure she would have been fine. I wanted to spend time with her.
Maybe another time, Hyder.
After exploring town and having some lovely fish and chips, along with free Wi-Fi, we headed to Clements Lake Recreation Site for the night.
We woke up on September 6th to construction noises at the recreation site. Since Stewart was so small, I made the executive decision to head toward Prince Rupert. It took two days, but we made it on September 7th.
Prince Rupert
Prince Rupert had fantastic restaurants. It also had far fewer free and out-of-the-way places for my camper setup to park itself. We ended up at a rest area heading toward Ridley Island for the two nights we spent there.
While Kati preferred Stewart as a place to live, Prince Rupert was much more my speed. It was a more active town while still being fairly small. There were plenty of restaurants, a few bars, and a brewery. It also had a social scene with more events and people (locals?). Stewart felt more focused on the tourism industry and tourists.
After two days in Prince Rupert, Kati’s vacation was coming to an end. We had a lovely time visiting the ocean, chatting, walking around, and letting the wind blow us where it would. Then it was back to Hazelton to drop Kati off on September 10th.
I stayed in the area for a couple more days. I enjoyed the views at Anderson Flats Provincial Park, which must have just recently opened. It was gorgeous camping right where the Skeena and Bulkley Rivers merged. Much more preferred than Seeley Lake. And free!