Last days in Canada, Part 4...Meeting family and Seeing the Lava Beds

What an opportunity we had to view Bear and Salmon Glaciers and to visit Hyder, AK. We sure do love the landscape in British Columbia and we've only scratched the surface. A return visit to B.C. will be on the list. On our final couple of days with Ron and Patsy we had the opportunity to meet their daughter, Jessica, and her family. The live near Terrace on a small acreage ranch/farm with several types of animals. We arrived at their home and were immediately greeted by their youngest granddaughter, Lauren, who was playing with some baby goats. Lauren would run around the yard with the goats chasing after her. It was quite a sight to see.

Lauren with the goats climbing on her

Glenda had to hold one. They were very soft and cuddly

Then one of their other granddaughters brought out one of the horses that they have on the property. If you know Glenda, she loves horses, so they invited her to take a ride. It was a tall horse and we had a funny time trying to get her up on the horses back but she made it.

Then we took a walk around the property and checked out the chicken coop where the rooster was strutting his stuff.

They have two donkeys too. this one was making a funny face as if to say "What are you looking at?"

Enlarge the photo to see his expression better. 

We had a wonderful visit and we got to know Jessica, her husband, Keith and the five children(3 girls and 2 boys). They have a very nice acreage and have even built a couple of barns and horse stalls by themselves. Quite an undertaking but they are so skilled and talented. They're raising they're kids the way we all should. Everyone pitches in to help around the ranch. They're a wonderful close knit family. It was a real pleasure meeting them.

On the way to meet Jessica and her family we made a quick stop at a beautiful city garden above the town of Terrace.

The garden had several different flower plantings and we enjoyed the scenery and beauty. 

Patsy and Ron

Our final day in Terrace was made up of a day trip to the Nisga'a Memorial Lava Bed Corridor and Lava Bed Memorial Protected Areas.

Nisga'a Memorial Lava Bed Provincial Park is a provincial park in the Nass River valley in northwestern British Columbia, Canada, about 80 kilometres north of Terrace, and near the Nisga'a Villages of Gitlakdamix and Gitwinksihlkw. 

 It is believed to be the site of Canada's most recent volcanic eruption and lava flow, a geological disaster that killed an estimated 2,000 people.

The source of the eruption was the Tseax Cone. Large lava flows dammed the Nass River and destroyed two villages of the Nisga'a people around the year 1700. Lava beds rise as much as 12 metres above the modern road.

Nisga'a oral histories record the names of the two villages destroyed in the eruption, Wii Lax K'abit and Lax Ksiluux. 

The landscape is amazing and to think that so much destruction was done to so many. Of course back in the 1700's there wasn't the kind of communications we have now to alert people of an impending doom. 

However there were some areas of beauty where life had come back in the way of lichen and plants and trees. 

Some areas had rushing streams and waterfalls. 

We stopped at the Visitor's Center but no one was there to open it up.

 We then moved on to a large lava field where there were holes in the lava called tree casts.

This is where lava engulfed a tree and was so hot it instantly incinerated the tree then cooled quickly leaving a hole in the lava.

Ron was looking back at me through one of the tree casts.

On our auto tour of the lava beds we stopped at one of the villages. I think it was the Gitwinksihlkw village. Until a new, more modern bridge to the village was built over the river this was the bridge used to get across. 

The new modern bridge

At each end of the bridge there were totem poles with interesting carvings. 

Very Native American

The village consisted of only a few homes and maybe a couple of businesses. Unfortunately they were in some disrepair. 

Such an incredible history and story of the area. In addition to our tour we did stop to pick up a few geocaches. Had to get my British Columbia souvenir. 

As we headed back to Ron and Patsy's home we stopped to visit the peeing tree in Rosswood, B.C. near Terrace. 

Rosswood is a kind of ‘last frontier’ in British Columbia. The community of about 150 people is located 37 kilometers north of Terrace where Kalum Lake Road and the Nisga’a Highway meet. Probably the most memorable landmark in Rosswood is the Peeing Tree. Originally called the ‘Magic Tree,’ some 40 years ago the tree was outfitted with a pipe connecting it to a neighboring stream, which it then grew around. Don Parmenter, the creator of the tree, remembers thinking “it would be so much easier to collect water if we just put a pipe in that tree.”  Since then, the tree has been a water collecting hotspot for Rosswood residents and, with the introduction of loggers into the area, the name slowly shifted towards the ‘peeing tree.’

Glenda and I took our turns at drinking from the tree.

The water was very cold and very pure tasting. No comments on this please. HaHa. 

 No auto trip of the area would be complete without a visit to the Rosswood General Store. The only store in Rosswood, and one of the last general stores in B.C. Beautiful drive, and interesting hard to find products. local honey, and other specialty foods. Gluten free and organic baking supplies.

On the way we enjoyed some of our last views of the surrounding mountains and look forward to making a trip back to B.C. again some day.

While visiting Ron and Patsy we also enjoyed going to some of their favorite restaurants with great food and libation. 

It was hard to say goodbye the next day but it was time to head back to the States. We'll be seeing them again soon in AZ this winter. We're so happy everything finally worked out to make this trip into B.C. In some ways the issues we had with the car and motorhome really worked out to our advantage. Always a sliver lining in a crisis. 

We left Terrace and stopped in Prince George overnight again and then back to Oroville, WA and the motorhome. We had a day to rest up before moving on into Idaho. Next post will be a compilation up to our stop near Yellowstone NP. We continue to move eastward to see family and friends. 

Canada Visit Part 3 Overnight Trip to Stewart, B.C., Hyder, AK....we saw Glaciers

We've been overwhelmed with the beauty of British Columbia and Ron and Patsy still had more for us to see. They wanted to really make our visit memorable so they thought an overnight stop in Stewart, B.C. would be fun and Hyder, AK was just across the border from there so we could do some border crossing and see some new sights. Hyder is a small community on the eastern fringe of Misty Fiords National Monument, at the head of Portland Canal, a town that may be in Alaska but identifies more closely with its Canadian neighbors just across the border in Stewart, British Columbia.

Hyder has a number of gold rush-era saloons, which are popular with visitors. The Glacier Inn is the best known and features an interior papered in signed bills, creating the “$20,000 Walls” of Hyder. Next door is First and Last Chance Saloon, and both bars are lively at night. There’s also the Toast works in Stewart, a restaurant that doubles up as a toaster museum with more than 500 models on display.

As we drove to Stewart, we made a short stop to view Bear Glacier. This was our first glacier viewing and it was pretty spectacular. This was a perfect prelude to what was to come later.

The sheer massiveness of the glacier is incredible. We would come back this way again as we traveled back to Terrace the next day. More opportunities to take more photos.

BIG CORRECTION FROM THE LAST POST...We did not stop at Meziadin Provincial Park on our way to Prince Rupert. Meziadin is in the opposite direction from Prince Rupert. We stopped at Meziadin on the way to Stewart, B.C. We saw the bears on the way to Stewart. That's what I get for not checking my map and facts before posting. Bad Memory. 

After our stop at Bear Glacier we had a short drive into Stewart. We stopped at the Visitor's Center and I found a geocache. First one in B.C.

We checked out a couple hotel/motels in Stewart and decided on the Ripley Inn. Very quaint hotel made up of small buildings that have been refurbished with hotel rooms. They look like old fashion rustic rooms and they sort of smelled that way too. Nothing really bad just old. We got settled in our rooms and it was time to explore. We drove over the border to Hyder, AK to have some lunch at a little outdoor eatery called The Bus. You cross the border and drive down the main road to a side street and there it is. Well, as luck would have it the weather that far north was unusually warm...like near 90 degrees. We got to The Bus and there was a sign in front saying "CLOSED, TOO HOT TO COOK". Well there goes that interesting stop. At least we got to see what everyone talks about in Hyder. 

So the alternative was to go to the Glacier Inn. Not a bad second choice. This is where you can get Hyderized. Getting Hyderized at the Glacier Inn in Hyder Alaska is taking a shot of 150 proof everclear alcohol with no smelling, no tasting, and only one chance. We decided not to get Hyderized. They have good food and interesting décor with all the dollars bills from around the world everywhere on the walls. Definitely $20,000 walls.

They don't allow any photography in the restaurant so this is what you get.  

After lunch  we headed toward Salmon Glacier. It's a 23 mile drive on the Stewart-Cassiar Hwy then a long drive up a very dusty gravel road called the Salmon Glacier Road. Salmon Glacier is the 5th largest glacier in Canada. There is a self guided auto tour as you travel to the glacier. The first stop is Stewart, B.C. then Hyder and on to the Riverside Mine, Indian Mine Viewpoint, Premier Mine Viewpoint, the Toe of Salmon Glacier and then the Summit. The mines were started back in the early 1900's. However no active mining is taking place now. The views just got better and better as we climbed higher and higher toward the Glacier.

Then as we rounded a corner on the road there it was. the toe of Salmon Glacier. The glacier extends for miles up the mountain as far as we could see.

Two young folks admiring the view. They were from somewhere in Europe.

The Toe of Salmon Glacier

Panoramic view

We continued up a little further to the summit and stood on the edge of the road facing the glacier. I for one could not take my eyes off the view. Such an incredible opportunity to see a wonder of our world. We lingered there for sometime taking tons of photos from every conceivable angle. It was very hard to leave the area. Once we finally started back to Stewart, we made a quick stop at the Fish Creek Wildlife Viewing area. This time of year the salmon are not spawning so we didn't get to see much in the way of fish or for that matter bear trying to catch the salmon as they head up stream. They  have a very nice boardwalk to safely view the salmon run and the bears that would be there.

We did see this beaver working at making a dam along the stream. He was carrying sticks from one end of the stream to the other  as he worked to build up his home.

After our glacier viewing we made it back to Stewart and took a walk on the Estuary boardwalk and enjoyed learning about some of the flowers and animals that inhabit the area. 

Cow Parsnips

After our walk we hung out in the lounge area in our building where our rooms were. We knew we had a busy day planned the following day so we turned in fairly early. Hard to sleep since the sun is still up at 10-11 pm.

The next day we got ready and had breakfast at the Toast Works restaurant that sits just in front of the Ripley Inn. Cool décor with all the toasters and kitchen implements surrounding you.

Once we finished breakfast we started back to Terrace only to stop again at Bear Glacier for more photos and spectacular views of the glacier, waterfalls and majestic landscape. 

Make sure you ENLARGE the photos for better viewing. 

On the way back we stopped at the Pioneer Chapel. With a Memorial to Fallen Loggers. 

The Memorial

We then stopped to see the ferry and personnel carrier across the one of the interior rivers.

The ferry is set up so the current from the river moves the ferry across the river back and forth. I can't remember the name of the river but it was pretty interesting how they engineered the use of the ferry.

A couple more photos of the wonderful B.C. landscape as we traveled back to Terrace. I certainly want to return to this beautiful area but with the motorhome next time. 

 We can't thank Ron and Patsy enough for showing us the wonders of B.C. We love where they live and fully understand why they love this part of B.C. A great place to be in the summer time.

We will be back someday. That's not all to B.C. so much more to see. 

Next post we see Ron and Patsy's daughter, Jessica and her family. They live on a ranch(farm) and have many animals. Glenda loved the goats and horses.

We also take an auto tour of the tribal land and a lava field. Hope you'll follow along.