There are thousands of signs from all over the world posted here.
It is certainly quirky, but Watson Lake, Yukon is probably most famous for its Sign Post Forest. Started by a guy from the army while working on the Alaska Canada Highway, people from all over the world have added to the forest of sign posts. It was fun to walk through it and read so many signs people have hung. I met a couple from outside Toronto that wanted to hang a sign in honor of the guy’s father. His father traveled all over Canada as a trucker, but had yet to visit Sign Post Forest. They planned a trip to visit it, but the father died before they could begin the trip. So, the son and his wife traveled to Watson Lake so the son could hang a sign in honor of his father. I too a picture of him and his wife standing next to their newly hung sign and he took a photo of me standing under the Sign Post Forest sign. One of the fun things about traveling is to meet people and learn about their stories.
There is an amazing variety of signs posted here!The next time I visit, I will be prepared and bring my own sign to hang!
I had a wonderful time traveling through Yukon to Watson Lake. What impressed me most was the wildlife I saw during the trip. I started driving before 6:00 am to see more wildlife and not have as many people on the road.
This guy was checking me out while pretending to look straight ahead. I loved the horns on these Thinhorn sheep.I loved the texture of this guy’s horns!They were curious about me and I was curious about them.
This guy moved to the front to protect the herd as I walked a bit closer to take their photo.
I think this is the first caribou I have ever seen in real life in the wild!I yelled hello to him and he turned and gave me a brief stare.
Although I also saw a black bear and moose, they did not cooperate for photos. The moose scampered into the forest when I slowed the motorhome. While the black bear was not too visible until I had already passed him. I will still work to get photos of these to creatures.
I am very happy to start driving on the Alcan Highway!!
I made it to the first leg of the Great Alaskan Highway!! More commonly know as the Alcan (Alaska Canada) highway. This is mile 0 of the highway between Dawson Creek, British Columbia and Fairbanks, Alaska.
It is sort of odd because I have driven 2,884 miles since this trip began when I left Arizona, with a detour through part of California. Now that I reached mile 0 of the Alcan highway, I still have a long way to travel. Fairbanks is 1,523 miles away!! I am more than halfway to Alaska, but it is not “just around the corner.” Alaska is a long way away, but I have very much enjoyed the beauty traveling through Canada.
This was a very important road to be built around World War II.
This is a fun mile marker to finally reach!Dawson Creek visitor center even gave me a certificate for reaching the beginning of the Alcan Highway!
I was so startled that this elk was eating dinner at my campsite!!
I was reading a novel in my campsite in Jasper National Park, we I looked up and realized there was a huge elk eating dinner in my campsite. I slowly grabbed my camera and she posed for several photos.
She was gracious and posed for a photo in front of our motorhome!She was so quiet, I did not realize she was right next to me!!She was simply enjoying dinner, regardless of me.Here I maneuvered to to get a different angle and she thought I was getting too close so she walked toward me to get me to back off. I quickly scooted into the adjacent campsite.
This is Bow Lake. Very beautiful while still frozen!
Canada continues to amaze and inspire me. Today I drove between Banff and Jasper. This road is called the Icefields Parkway. Early in my RV travels I started meeting people and often RVers would say that the drive between Banff and Jasper is the most beautiful road they have ever traveled. I cannot disagree with this assessment. The photos below speak for themselves. It is simply one marvel after another. When you think there cannot possible be a more beautiful scene, you suddenly catch your breath again. God’s creativity is a marvel to behold.
Another view of Bow Lake with the sun breaking through in the background.I love the light shinning on the mountain!The mountains are beautiful surrounded by clouds!I love this river flowing in the foreground with so much greenery!The snow runoff produces gorgeous waterfalls!The wispy clouds highlight the rugged mountains!This mountain was in the shade, but moved into the sunlight just as I was driving by. I pulled over quickly to see the features in the mountain!I love the contrast between the snow and the mountain structure!This is Athabasca Falls. My campsite is quite near these falls.These falls create quite a bit of mist. Take the photo quickly before the lens is covered by mist!Flow baby flow creates quite a roar!Water flows mightily with the snow melting!It is soothing to stare into the falls!The flow of water is intense!
I had a wonderful trip to see Emerald Lake! I left the campground before 6:30 am and drove for an hour in order to catch the morning light shining on the lake and the nearby mountains. I was absolutely beautiful! I was told that the minerals brought down by the glaciers produce the beautiful green color in lake.
This is my favorite photo of Emerald Lake.I loved finding different viewpoints of such gorgeous scenery.I was captivated by the colors of the green lake, blue sky, and white snow in the mountains!It was a bit windy for a perfect reflection.Boats could be rented to enjoy the lake.As the sun went higher, the colors of the lake shifted to a deeper green color.The nearby river also has the green color.These rapids were powerful and impressive!The Canadian scenery is incredible! I found myself just staring at so many beautiful areas!This is “Natural Bridge” and has an impressive flow of water through it!
In planning my trip through Canada and on to Alaska, one of my major bucket list items was to visit Moraine Lake and Lake Louise. I have heard that Moraine Lake is the most photographed lake in Canada. For weeks and weeks I have had a reservation of the shuttle system to see these two lakes. I woke up very excited today.
Truly beautiful! I need to visit again when all the ice is gone and it is a sunny day.
I first visited Moraine Lake. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, although it is June 8th, Moraine Lake was still mostly covered with ice. I guess I simply must schedule another visit later in the summer. However, despite the ice and the clouds, it was a gorgeous site to behold!
I enjoyed climbing around the trail and looking at different viewpoints of Lake Moraine.I loved looking at those rugged mountains!The color of the water where the ice has melted is awesome!
Lake Louise was certainly not a disappointment! Although it was sprinkling rain and cloudy on the mountain peaks, it was still beautiful to see.
Lake Louise was gorgeous!The water was so clear!!It is easy to understand why Lake Louise is so popular!The huge mountains are beautiful!I loved all the colors!
It has been said that the Canadian Rockies are prettier than the Rockies within the US. From what I have seen in Banff National Park, the Canadian Rockies are much more majestic. It is difficult to capture all the beauty of this area in a few photographs. Visiting here has truly inspired me!
The Canadian Rockies are amazing!I love the morning light on the mountains!
Banff is a beautiful town with gorgeous trees and snow capped mountains in every direction!
I had a wonderful time visiting Banff today. It is a very beautiful town! It is inside the Banff National Park, the first Canadian national park. I have heard many comments from friends that have described this area as one of the most beautiful settings in all of north America.
This fellow was enjoying the cool rain while eating lunch. I noticed him while walking to Bow Falls.Bow Falls is surprisingly loud! The force of the water was impressive! It was only a 20 minute walk from downtown Banff to reach the falls.It was a chilly and rainy day to enjoy this beautiful area.This seemed like my kinds of place, located in Banff!The views from my campground, just outside of Banff, are amazing. I loved the mountain views in every direction.This is looking in 180 degrees opposite from the previous photo. I loved this rugged mountain! It was very cloudy and I waited for the mountain to peek out among the low clouds.This was looking 90 degrees from the previous two photos. I was startled with all the different beautiful mountain views from my campground!
It is wonderful to visit Alberta for the first time!!
I have always enjoyed my previous visits to Canada, but visiting Calgary has been extra special. This is my first time here and I enjoyed seeing the rolling green hills as I crossed the border and drove north to Calgary. It is a very clean city and the foliage is quite green. I could enjoy living here in the summer, but the winter seems like it would be too intense for me.
I remember watching the ski jumping competition and this tower. Note the Olympic rings on the top of the tower!Although the sides are a bit broken down, I remember the pipe competition at this location.I enjoyed seeing the bobsleigh and luge track!This is the bobsleigh and luge track from the outside. It is sort of difficult to see from the outside, but this is curve 13 going into curve 14. I liked this stature honoring the athletes and Olympic competition!The Winter Sport Institute was an interesting place to visit.They converted one of the ski slopes where people can “race” down the slope in a sort go-cart contraption. They had a great time!
After finding an ATM to withdraw some Canadian cash, I headed to one of the locations where the Olympics were held in Calgary in 1988. I enjoy watching the Olympics and it was interesting to see locations I recognized from TV in person. I met a couple from Arkansas that were here as part of a RV tour trip. They told me where they were staying and laughed when I told them I just arrived and had no idea where I was going to spend the night. Stay flexible and enjoy everything around you!
It is interesting to drive and try and figure out directions and get diesel in the metric system. I converted the motorhome speedometer to km/hour because I want to be extra careful not to speed. However, I am lost when a road sign says 85 km to a city, or the GPS tells me to turn right in 300 meters. After a few days I will get used to the distances, but it was a unique experience locating an ATM in a new city with street names that are new too. Another unique experience is buying fuel. It is priced as Canadian dollars per liter, so quite different from US dollars per gallon. When I used my credit card to buy fuel, I had to approve a possible $250 Canadian dollar transaction. It worked fine, but that large dollar amount was a bit unsettling.
I found a casino that allows RVs to park for free. It was super nice because they had a flat grassy area designated for us to park. I went into the casino to buy a couple drinks with different types of Canadian whiskey and watch the NBA finals game.
The weather here is quite different. A cold front moved in, and it has been raining off and on all day. It was 54 degrees in the motorhome when I woke up. Goodbye short and hello long pants and sweatshirts. I guess that beats 110 degrees any day.
I do not want to drive today. I have had several long driving days getting here. Today I want to rest and relax and plan my next adventure. Tomorrow, I have a reservation for a campsite in Banff National Park. I am very excited to see the Canadian Rockies in person!
Fiesta on Wheels 