Driving the backwoods of Canada, Skagway, and Woody Harrelson
I crossed the border into Canada on April 13th, the border officials searched my van for something incriminating, but came up empty; guess I looked like I was up to no good. I pointed the van north from the border and began the long trek through Canada to reach Alaska. It’s an interesting time of year to be in the Great White North. On the downside, most tourist sites and museums have not yet opened for the spring season. Parks, campgrounds and hiking trails are packed-in with deep snow, so unless you have a pair of snowshoes, and I don’t, there isn’t much to do.
On the plus side, the country is incredibly beautiful and I had the place pretty much to myself. Some favorite sights along the way included winding roads through pine-covered valleys, which sit in the shadows of snow-capped granite peaks. Watching Bald Eagles soar over frozen lakes, while I stood by the roadside lost in the immense silence of the place with no other cars within a hundred miles. Roads can be odd places when there isn’t any other traffic on them. They feel forgotten, and I could almost imagine that the world I knew so well has disappeared and I was journeying on some long lost track lost in time.
I stopped a night in Cache Creek and the next day drove through lots of snow to reach Price George. From there I decided to take the more remote route to Alaska, if there can be such a thing. West on highway 16, then north on highway 37, will bring you out once again to the Alaskan Highway, saving about 130 miles. Route 37 proved an interesting drive, just a ribbon of concrete moving through pine forests and along mountain steams where moose would graze a few feet from the road. The road was an interesting mix of pavement and gravel. I would be driving along at a nice clip, come around a corner and hit a gravel section a few hundred yards long and then the road would go back to being paved. These transitions between gravel and pavement were often fraught with large gaping potholes that would easily swallow a tire; I learned quickly that if I didn’t want to bounce my head off the ceiling, I had better slow down for the transitions.
Generally, the traveling was uneventful. I would wake up in the morning, write for three or four hours, eat lunch, and drive in the afternoon for a few hours. By early evening, I was looking for a place to park for the night and cook myself dinner. I spent the evenings reading or hanging out at a local bar or café watching hockey playoff games, if I could find one that was. A simple and easy lifestyle – man it’s great to be on the road.
On April 18th I crossed the border once more via the Chilkoot Pass and descended from a world of winter with drifts and blowing snow to the town of Skagway, Alaska. Rebuilt to resemble its Klondike gold rush counterpart, the buildings sport wooden facades and plank sidewalks. A kind of Disneyesque world designed primarily for the cruise ship trade. Great thing was the cruise ships are not running yet, so I ended hanging out with all the locals. I had a great time and met many great people. Everyone was super friendly unlike lots of places you go in the States, where everyone is lost in their own world and they don’t have time to meet anyone new.
Woody Harrelson, Holly Hunter, and Robin Williams were regulars around town and in the bars; they were filming a movie up on the pass and were staying in town for the week. Only bad thing that happened was my jacket took a walk out of the bar, the first night I was in town, along with my digital camera and sunglasses that were in the pocket. So far, it hasn’t turned up, but the crack Skagway Police Department is on the case. Thus, no pictures in this update – sorry.
Overall things are going great. My writing is really picking up momentum – I am averaging about seven pages a day, and had two ten page days last week – almost unheard of. I hope to return home with a first draft in my pocket.
Until our paths cross once again…