Day 11: On to Toad River Campground

Day 11 started with a bang, 39 degrees with a light rain, we thought it was going to snow. However, later in the day it warmed up to a cool 47. We thought of our truck camping friends in the Northeast who would consider this a nice day??? What we considered a cold and damp day turned out to be one of our best days so far on the trip. We enjoyed beautiful, beautiful scenery and some wildlife. We stayed North of Dawson City in the Pink Mountain campground the night before (see previous post). It was an average campground that had a lot of workers from the oil fields staying there. We slept in and finally left mid morning and enjoyed another leisurely drive up to Fort Nelson where we decided to have lunch in a restaurant that was listed in the Milepost, Mama’s and Papa’s Café. (The Milepost is a must directory for anyone traveling the Alaska Highway. It lists almost every place on the 1500 mile journey) While enjoying bowls of delicious salmon and crab chowder in the crowded café, a gentleman asked if he could join us. We introduced ourselves and he told us his name was Earl Brown. After a bit of conversation we found that he was a field editor with the Milepost. We considered it an honor to have lunch with Earl and listen to some of his stories he shared about his experiences while researching the Milepost. Today we saw 1 deer and 1 bear while driving to our next stop which was Toad River Campground (Toad River was recommended to us by some friends that made the trip last summer). They were right-very nice campground on a lake. Shortly after setting up, we had 3 moose and several beavers show up right at our back door. One thing I haven’t mentioned is the people we have met along the way. This has been one of the highlights of our trip. Both fellow campers and the local people we have met have been a treasure.

View from the Alaska Highway

A view of the Alaska Highway North of Ft. Nelson.

Another view of the Alaska Highway North of Ft. Nelson.

This moose along with 2 other moose were right in back of our campsite.

There were several beavers in the lake we watched for a long time. This one decided he wanted to check us out.

Gypsy sitting on the back of our camper looking for more moose.

This is one of the pull outs on the Alaska Highway where many people stay for the night. I asked if it was legal and the most common response I received was as long as it is not marked with No Overnight Parking it is okay. That's not an official answer, but the one most people state is the law???

Our site at Toad River Campground. Right behind the camper is where we watched the moose and beavers.

This is a campsite at one of the Provincial Parks along the Alaska Highway. Most are 12 dollars a night. No site hookups; however, they do have water available and clean outhouses and picnic tables. These sites are very nice.

Another view of the highway.

Mr. Bear was enjoying the roadside flowers.