Visiting a Cemetery on Halloween

We stopped into the historic cemetery in Tomslake, 20 minutes south of Dawson Creek on the day before Halloween.

This beautiful place is more than just a cemetery. It contains the cultural identity of the small Sudeten German Community whose members immigrated here in 1939 to escape persecution and death in Hitler's Germany.

A museum has been built to house the many artifacts donated by the community to tell the story of the journey to a new life of freedom in a new land.

The original Roman Catholic Church is now part of the museum. We stood on a stool and peeked in the windows. Nothing fancy, just hand built pews and some old pictures on the wall. Plastic flowers in a vase on the alter.

There is an impressive commemorative stone and bronze monument to the immigrants and their new home in Canada. It is quite emotional to read what the community went through for freedom. They came on huge transport ships and each ship and the date it sailed from Liverpool is listed along with the list of family members on the roster.

The cemetery itself is beautifully maintained with a simple rural backdrop. Entering through the iron gates was like entering a history book. The names on the granite headstones are mostly German and date back to the early 40's. I was struck by the short lives of many of the people laying to rest there.

Peaceful.

Visiting a Cemetery on Halloween

Chilling Out at The Sukunka River

One of the prettiest places to go for a weekend of camping, especially in the fall, is the Sukunka River, about an hour and a half west of Dawson Creek.

We went in early October when the fall leaves were at their colorful peak. We found a great place to camp a short distance from the road that is right on the banks of the river.

The Sukunka is also well known for some great waterfalls. They are beautiful and easy to get to as well.

Getting to the Sukunka is a bit of an adventure itself because all traffic must share the road with coal trucks going back and forth. The road is radio controlled, so the best thing to do is wait for a truck going the same way you are and get in behind it. Stop when it stops and go when it goes.

The Sukunka is in bear country so it's really important to be smart. We are very careful with our garbage and cooking methods and very watchful as well.

The fishing is great! The river is awesome and the setting is spectacular! A real favorite!

Chilling Out at The Sukunka River

Mother Natures Peace Country Patchwork Quilt

Friends from Oregon told me that one of the things they love the best about their visit to Dawson Creek is the square block of fields that stretch from horizon to horizon. She said it reminds her of a big patchwork quilt.

I agree. Even after living here my whole life, I still admire the panoramic views of green and gold fields, separated by dirt roads and hedges of trees.

No matter the season, it does look like a patchwork quilt. The view is especially spectacular in the July Canola season. The yellow-est yellow imaginable, all set out in perfect squares as far as the eye can see.

I also appreciate the soft browns of late fall when the crops have come off and the fields are getting ready to rest for the winter. The grain left by the harvest machinery makes easy pickings for the wildlife that lives so close to us.

Mother Natures Peace Country Patchwork Quilt

The Scoop on the Alaska Highway Road Conditions

• Do we need 10 sets of spare tires?
  
• Will our windshields get smashed out by rocks?
• How many miles of gravel will there be?
• Is there still muskeg?
• Do we need to carry spare gas?

These are the questions that came up around the fire with our friends who were on their way up the highway this year. They had heard horror stories from people who had traveled the Highway years and years ago.

The Alaska Highway is a fairly smooth road all the way from Dawson Creek. BC to Fairbanks, Alaska. It is pretty much paved all the way.

The ongoing issue is that every year the ground freezes and thaws and the pavement ripples and heaves and cracks in spots.

Maintenance crews are constantly repairing the road and you will have periodic waits while flag people get you through safely.

You will undoubtedly come across patches of loose gravel and occasional rough spots but as long as you are well prepared to begin with, you will be just fine.

The road is a pleasure to drive.

The Scoop on the Alaska Highway Road Conditions

Yield the Right Of Way... to Moose!

It seems like more often than not when I'm driving the back roads of the Peace River Country and up & down the Alaska Highway in the fall, I see moose and deer.

Yesterday I came around a corner and had to stop my car for Mama and Baby who were taking their time crossing the road in front of me. Once I stopped my car, they stopped as well. They did not seem afraid of me in the least.

I just happened to have my camera with me and they obliged me with several minutes of photo opportunities. Once they sauntered over to the field on the other side of the road, they started grazing in the oats stubble left by the harvest.

It was getting dark when I took this photo and if you look closely you can see the light from my headlights shining on their long legs. I am confident I will see this pair again over the coming months and I just hope that their lack of concern for vehicles does not cause them harm.

Thankfully, it is a common practice here for the highways departments to clear the roadside ditches of shrubs to make it easier to see the wildlife. We are all used to scanning ahead in the ditches when we drive.

Driving carefully is a must!

Yield the Right Of Way... to Moose!

Power & Serenity on the Mighty Peace River

When we need to take a break from the daily routines we head down to the ClayHurst crossing over the Peace River 45 minutes north of town on the Rolla Highway and enjoy the fresh air that sweeps down with the water through the valley.

The Peace River is an interesting body of water. Up river is the W.A.C Bennett Dam and all the water that flows is first collected in Williston Lake and then goes through the turbines of the dam to generate hydro before being returned to the river.

The week this photo was taken, the river was low. The bottom of the boat ramp was 30 feet or so above the water. The river seemed calm and steady. We watched several river boats come and go.

We took our folding chairs, a small picnic and relaxed while afternoon turned to evening, listening to the sounds of the water and the almost eerie cries of a couple of hawks hunting on the far banks.

The following week, BC Hydro released more water from the Dam and the boat ramp that had been so high on the beach was completely submerged under water. What a difference! There was a completely different energy. What had seemed like an almost lazy river had become a fast torrent that had risen way up under the bridge. The water was full of logs and debris as it rushed along.

Awesome!

Power & Serenity on the Mighty Peace River

Peace Country Gold & Canada Geese

This is the most beautiful time of the year to live in or visit the Peace River Country.

The leaves are all shades of red, orange and yellow. The wheat has been harvested and big golden bales of straw sit glistening in the sun.

The Canada Geese are gathering by the thousands in the fields to fatten up on the grains left by the machinery. It's quite a site to see a few thousand geese converge on a field while driving to work.

Huge flocks fly overhead and if they are low enough you can hear the honking and sometimes hear the sound of their wings swooshing the air.

We just had a beautiful full harvest moon and fall equinox within days of each other. The air is cooling, the sky is clear, the stars are out.

It doesn't get any better than this.

Peace Country Gold & Canada Geese

Alaska Highway History: Surviving (or not) the Cold

My Dad came to Dawson Creek to work on the Alaska Highway as a civilian in 1942. He operated heavy equipment along side the American soldiers.

In what was one of the earliest and coldest autumns ever recorded, Dad said the equipment took a real beating that year. The temperatures froze lubricants, seized transmissions and snapped axels. Equipment had to be kept running 24 hours a day, shutting them off was out of the question.

Wrecked and abandoned vehicles were a common sight on the sides of the road as it grew in miles. The combination of the brutal cold weather conditions and the scarcity of spare parts meant many were left to rust where they broke down.

A lot of the creeks that had to be crossed were swift water and resisted freezing even in the harsh cold. Often rushing through the interior of the smaller vehicles, cold water drenched men and steel alike. The underside of any vehicles that crossed became immediately ice coated and had to be kept moving or else the ice would lock the wheels within seconds of standing still.

The cold temperatures not only froze the equipment, it brutalized the men too. Dad said one of his friends froze to death alone when his bulldozer broke down and no help was available. Many of the men who worked the road experienced frostbite that year.

When you travel the highway you will see the rusting relics of the abandoned equipment. A fitting tribute to the effort it took to build the Alaska Highway.

Alaska Highway History: Surviving (or not) the Cold