May 14, 2013 Crossing into British Columbia

May 14, 2013 Crossing into British Columbia

We stopped at the Bellingham Alaska Ferry Terminal in hopes of getting more information on the ferry system. Sometimes the gods smile on you and we fantasized that someone had canceled their place on the ferry and we would take it up to Valdez. The ferry office wasn't even open! Since it isn't busy yet, they only open a few days a week. We did meet up with a Big Foot TCer from Tennessee and spent about a half hour trading places to go and things to see. They had taken the ferry before and said it was a great way to go.

We walked around the old part of Bellingham and enjoyed the architecture and parks.

We crossed the border at Lynden, WA with no problems at all. The customs agent didn't even ask any unusual questions this time like "Do you keep your camper locked?".

As soon as you cross, you take Route 1 which is the Trans Canada Highway. At Hope we changed to the Coquihalla Highway which is Route 5. It climbs steeply into snow covered mountains but it is an excellent road even though a truck route. We hit slush, rain, sleet and temps down to 37F but the truck handled it fine. The scenery through here is gorgeous with tall mountains, narrow rock cut valleys, cattle ranches, rivers and the ever present fir trees.

We stopped in the Kamloops Visitor Center for information on the British Columbia Provincial Parks. As the day progressed, we tried three of them but all were closed. I think we are just too early to have the usual amenities around. We ended up in an awful campground in Ravelstoke but we got laundry done and the entire inside of the truck and camper cleaned. The outside of both are now muddy again from road grit but car washes are few and very far between.

Tomorrow we head for Lake Louise in Alberta with high hopes that we can find a comfortable place to stay within walking distance of town. We need to stretch our legs and rest for a day or two.