One of the best things about writing something like this is hearing from so many friends.  I really appreciate hearing from you and hope that these emails will continue to be of interest.  For those of you who missed any of the first reports and would like to see them, they all can be found a here.

  *     *     *

Check out the map below.   The lowest circle is Bend, Oregon where we started.  The highest circle is Tok, Alaska. That is a distance of 2200 miles.   It wasn’t until we got about 800 miles south of Tok that we  finally reached the kind of scenery and wildlife that we had been hoping to see.  It is a long drive – but we are starting to see the rewards.

The first hint of it came at Toad Lake that was pictured in the last report.  We had some glimpses of high mountain ranges up until  that point, but  things started changing as we headed north.  The mountains rose majestically in front of us, and then we were surrounded by them.  Wildflowers covered the roads, and we started spotting wildlife.

But first – before we get to all of that stuff- it worth a minute to pause at Watson Lake, a place you might as well drive right through (there isn’t even a lake by that name) but for something referred to as the Watson Lake Sign Post Forest

Travelers from around the world have been bringing signposts from their hometowns to this location since 1942.  Today there are over 77,000 signposts in this area.  I’ve seen pictures of it – but they can’t really do it justice.  I thought a video might work better so click here for a link to the video.

Over the next few days, we entered the heart of the Canadian Rockies and were treated to great scenery and wildlife.  In the Liard River Valley, we were able to see a herd of wood bison, an endangered subspecies of the American Bison.

Zeke normally barks at anything, but he was very quiet as the bison walked past the car, some within 5 feet. Smart dog

Towering over us, were the mountains of the Canadian Rockies, and along the road were numerous rivers, ponds and lakes.  Occasionally, we would spot a black bear ambling by the side of the road, or tundra swans in the water.

One of our favorite spots was Kluane Lake, a very large lake that stretches over 50 miles alongside the ALCAN in the southwest area of the Yukon.  Although we couldn’t see it ourselves, it is a lake that is in trouble because the glaciers that feed it are disappearing.

We have now crossed the border and are officially in Alaska.  We will be heading on a road called the Glenn Highway/Tok Cutoff  which traverses southwest from Tok toward Anchorage.  We are heading for the Kenai Peninsula and will be there is a few days.