Smiles and Miles on Our Trips : A CURVY WOODEN BRIDGE OVER TROUBLED WATER – Leaving Dawson Creek, BC heading to Fort Nelson, BC - Thursday, May 4

Thursday, May 4, 2023

We left this morning around 8:10 a.m. from Tubby’s RV Park in Dawson Creek, BC and drove for 7-1/2 hours including our stops (for a total of 304 miles). The day started out cloudy at 48 degrees, and soon the sunshine peeked out and we reached 75 degrees before the end of the day. We are continuing on the Alaska Highway (BC Hwy 97 North), which we will be traveling on for quite a while.

Not long after we left the campground, we took a short side trip down the Old Alaska Highway and made our first stop at the historic Kiskatinaw River Bridge at kilometer 31.9. This three-span timber truss bridge has an amazing nine-degree curve that Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) engineers designed to accommodate the highway’s steep change in grade on the west end and the need to land at a notch in the cliff on the east end.

We walked across the curved bridge, and what a beautiful bridge it was . . .

You could see the weathering of the bridge planks in some areas.

And the view of the Kiskatinaw River was spectular.

Mel making his way across the bridge, and then taking a picture of the river below.

At the time it was built, it was the first wooden curved bridge built in Canada. The construction of this bridge began in 1942 in order to replace the temporary crossing built by the United States while building the pioneer road. It is a 531-foot wooden curved bridge with timber truss construction that took nine months to complete, and is the only original timber bridge built along the Alaska Highway. It originally had a weight limit of 25 tons, but today you can’t drive across it. There have been landslides in the area and they have shut it off to through traffic.

Back on the road again, we stopped at the Taylor Visitor Center. Taylor has a population of 1,500 and an elevation of 1,804 feet, and is nestled on the banks of the majestic Peace River.

At the visitor center, we stopped for more information and took pictures of the “Gold Panner” and the replica of Sir Alexander Mackenzie’s canoe.

Mel with the "gold panner" statue.

Above is a replica of Sir Alexander Mackenzie’s canoe. Adjacent to the visitor center, is an Alaska Highway historical sign that identifies Mile 35 as the first main Army camp for the 341^st Engineers during construction of the Alaska Highway.

Next we made a brief stop at Fort St. John, which has a population of 21,523 and an elevation of 2,275 feet. The original Fort St. John was established as a fur-trading post knawn as Rocky Mountain Fort in 1974, making Fort St. John the oldest white settlement in mainland British Columbia. In 1942, Fort St. John became field headquarters for U.S. Army troops and civilian engineers working on construction of the Alaska Highway in the eastern sector.

On our way to Fort Nelson, BC, we stopped briefly in Fort St. John to get gas at the Petro Canada station.

We then continued on until we stopped for lunch (sandwiches and chips) at the Wonowon historical site of the Blueberry Control Gate used during World War II.

Suicide Hill, located at “Mile 148” on the Alaska Highway was our next stop – and this hill is known for being one of the biggest obstacles that they had to overcome while constructing this section of the Alaska Highway. The treacherous climb back in that day took many lives. There is a sign there that says, “PREPARE TO MEET THY MAKER.”

Looking at the pictures I took while we were on the road, you can easily understand where this road "Suicide Hill" got its name.

Our next stop was at the Sikanni Chief Bridge, which was the first bridge completed on the Alaska Highway in 1943. This bridge burnt in 1992, but has been reopened – we could see a few metal pilings from the old bridge.

We finally got to Triple “G” Hideaway RV Park and Campground in Fort Nelson, BC and decided to stay for two nights ($47 CA for each night for a total of $98.70 CA).

I needed to try to get some of my blog posts caught up and they had great Wi-Fi I could use. Mel did a couple loads of laundry while I was catching up on my blog.

We have always said that things are bigger in Texas – but the mosquitos here are gigantic for sure! As soon as it turned dusk, they would attack with vengeance.

Fort Nelson, BC, located at historic mile marker 300 on the Alaska Highway, is the gateway to the beautiful Northern Rockies. Fort Nelson has a population of 3,500 and an elevation of 1,383 feet. Fort Nelson was established in 1805 by the North West Fur Trading Company. The current town site occupies what was the fifth fort site established by the Hudson's Bay Company. The Canadian government constructed an airport in 1941, as part of the Northwest Air Staging Route. Construction of the Alaska Highway followed in 1942, with about 2,000 soldiers based in Fort Nelson.

Tonight around 7 p.m., we had pork chops and sweet corn for dinner.

Friday, May 5, 2023

HAPPY CINCO DE MAYO!

This morning we had breakfast and we left at around 9 a.m., however we were back at the camper by 10 a.m. It was a cloudy and hazy morning with the temperature at 48 degrees which reached 69 degrees toward the end of the day.

We only drove three miles today, but our first stop was to fill up with gas at the Fort Nelson Husky gas station. We then drove over to the visitor center in Fort Nelson to get information or see if there was anything to see and do in Fort Nelson.

Not being too successful, we went over the Fort Nelson Heritage Museum to see if it was open. But it wasn’t, so we looked around at the implements outside and then went back to our camper.