Dawson Creek, Canada to Nighthawk, USA

cabackroads-Dawson Creek, Canada to Nighthawk, USA

dates of travel: August 27th to September 1st 2016

The rain increased to the point it was steady and the decision was made that stopping was only an option if it turned sunny. I decided to pass on seeing the start of the Alaska Highway and decided to turn just two miles from its beginning. It pretty much rained all day. The road signs indicated interesting country just off the road, but the clouds were low and dark and visibility very limited.

Looking for a nice place for breakfast proved futile. Given Canadians tendency to enforce all sorts of silly rules such as NO BREAKFAST served after 10:30....and they did not believe that my watch said 10:29. Not good enough. No breakfast for you!!

A crowded, no parkling lot Tim Horton's ended up the breakfast place. They do serve doughnuts after 10:30.

The rain picked up after breakfast and the clouds continued to lower even more. The road to Carp Lake was tempting but it looked like the scenery would remain gray. So I decided to pass.

At this point it became a search for a place to spend the night. Whiskers Point Provincial Park on McLeod Lake had a perfect waterfront campsite for $25 Canadian. Done. Enough with rain. And at that point it cleared for the night, stayed clear for a few hours in the morning and as soon as I hooked up it started raining.

In Prince George it was grocery shopping. Several motels with hot tubs were eyed very carefully for vacancy's. The days of cold rain were starting to seep into the bones. The road won out.

Close to nightfall I pulled in to Ten Mile Lake Provincial Park. It was cold and rainy all day long. Pulling into the campground mosquitoes were added to the mix. The furnace ran on high, but a hot tube would have been better.

Next day, it was once again cold and rainy. But the farther south the road went patches of blue sky started appearing and finally it was a sunny day. I took Highway 24 and started looking for a camping spot. Lots of private land and some BC Forest Service lands. There was a campground at a good fishing lake named Crystal Lake. The price was right. No charges. It was a rough and crowded campground, but at least it was sunny. It stayed that way for two days. Then a threat of rain and it was time to move on.

From Crystal Lake I continued east on 24 and then south to Lac Le Jeune Provincial Park. This lake is a famous fly fishing lake, so I was hopeful that I might get to do some fishing and stay for a couple of days or more.fishing. However, the wind was blowing a gale and a half. So it was just a one night stand and a run for the border at Nighthawk.

Ah, the border. A nightmare for the past few years. I knew they were keying in on my birth in Venezuela and that was the reason for my trips to the little room. I kept asking why, but was never given an answer.

After Trumps inauguration he put in a travel ban from certain countries, but I never gave it a second thought. Then I was reading the comment section and one person asked why "nobody got upset when President Obama required extreme vetting of Venezuelans" at ports of entry.

A quick search of Executive Orders quickly found the reason for my delays at the border. Then to an insult to injury in the revised Executive Order President Trump added Venezuela to the list. Oh well, it looks like I should plan on spending at least an hour in the little room when I return back to the US. Looks like nobody is going to want to ride with me to Canada for a few more years.

I just need to remember to bring a book to read while waiting in the little room.