Heading South

This past week consisted of a lot of driving and a lot of waiting. I'm in the little town of Hyder, Alaska now. I'm back to where the trees are tall and I'm hearing Stellar's Jays and Varied Thrushes, which I haven't heard since July. I don't think I'm ready for that yet. I actually might just head north again after I'm done here. I'll see how it goes.

I left off backup in Dawson City. I went to church there at the same place I went the week before. There were about 30 of us at the service the first time and fewer than 20 the second time. The pastor there was not much of a smooth speaker. At one point he stumbled over the word "Theologians", backed up and said "those guys who study the Bible". I really liked him though. What he had to say was well worth listening to. He also helped lead the music and collect the offering. I hope they're ministry does well.

From there I went south to Whitehorse. I wanted to get my truck at the Ford dealer there but it was Labor Day and everything was closed. Got to love those holidays. I relaxed and did some reading and tried again the next day. They said they couldn't get me in until the 12th. They also said not to worry too much about the recall and to take my uneven tire wear issue to a tire shop down the road. The tire shop said they might be able to squeeze me in at 1:00 so I killed time till then and brought it back. Then they said they could get it in for sure on Thursday. I figured that would be just enough time for me to run over to Kluane National Park to photograph some Dall Sheep, so I took it.


Conditions there were not quite what I had hoped for. There were a few clouds hanging around the higher peaks but not where the sheep were. I could have used some clouds to diffuse the harsh sunlight. I had also hoped that there would be enough snow on sheep mountain to bring them down to where I could get to them easily, but they were still pretty high up.


I was forced to pack a lunch and climb. It took me three or four hours, but I finally got up to where the big rams were. The view up there was wonderful.




These guys were hanging out near the peak of a high ridge. I'm glad I didn't have to go any higher.


The animals here are pretty much safe from hunters so they show very little fear of people.



Here's a view from the ridge.


On the way down I came across another group of rams. It looks like they didn't mind the harsh sunlight.



The big guy with his head down has fallen asleep. I guess he wasn't too concerned about me being there.



Here's the two big rams with Kluane Lake in the background.

In hindsight I would have liked to get some early morning or evening shots of the sheep but that would have required backpacking in. Aside from the extra work, the logistics of that would have been difficult. Maybe next time.

Camping that night was frustrating as it was. One campground was closed for the season and another was closed because of bears. I was fortunate to find one obscure little private campground that actually closed the next day. I was their last guest of the season.

The uneven wear issue was easily resolved Thursday and I was back on the road. I'm glad because a guy up in Inuvik told me I needed new tie rod ends. Good thing I didn't let him work on it.

That evening I headed toward Hyder to photograph bears. Some people told me that I would be too late to for the bears. I was a little nervous about that so I wanted to hurry down there. I did take one detour though. I took the road to Skagway to see White Pass. I had wanted to go over Haines summit again too but I thought it would be good to see some new area.


The pass had some very unique scenery but a lot of it was fogged in. I did got a couple shots along the way. Here you can see the tracks for the railroad that runs from Skagway to Whitehorse.

I finally got to the Cassier Highway heading south toward Hyder for the bears. I knew about the bears at my destination, but I was surprised to find so many on the way, right along the road.



I counted six altogether, like this ferocious looking beast munching on clover next to the road.



And this guy who had some obnoxious flies to deal with.

The Cassier has some great scenery itself. I gets really good when you turn off onto the spur heading into Hyder.


There are glaciers like this all along the road.


Hyder itself is an interesting town. It's just across the border from Stewart, British Columbia. Stewart looks like a nice well kept town but for some reason as soon as you cross the border everything looks run down. It feels safe enough but it seems like it could use a coat of paint or something. Also, in a lot of ways I feel like I'm still in Canada. The phone service here at the RV park is Canadian and washers, driers, and showers all take Canadian coins. I didn't even have to go through customs when I came into town. That seems strange.


I didn't get a lot of time at the bear viewing area last night, but I did see this one brown bear. The ones I saw along the road were all Black Bears.



The Brown bears around here are very dark. I mistook this one for a Black Bear at first.


I hope to get some more bear photography in this afternoon. This morning I plan to walk over to the local Baptist Church. The pastor there is also a ranger at the bear viewing area, and according to him there's usually some good food after the service. That will be nice.

Next week could find me back up in upper BC or I could just move over toward the Canadian Rockies. I might just have to flip a coin. A loonie or a twoonie maybe. Either way I'm sure I'll have some more photos and stories for you next week. Take care till then.

Steve