Road to Tok, Alaska, July 5, 2011

We are leaving Haines Hitch-Up Campground. The lady in the office came out to wave us goodbye. Very nice campground. We headed out early in the morning and got on the Haines Highway which took us to Haines Junction where we connected with the Al-Can Highway. The most beautiful drive is from Haines to Haines Highway. Drove right alongside the Chilkat River and the Chilkat Range of mountains. Very good roads. We stopped at some scenic viewpoints and took pics but there is no way to capture the beauty of this area. You will have to see it to believe it. We even saw a phone booth all decorated with flowers! Crazy.
We went through Canadian Customs about 40 miles out of Haines. They asked lots of questions and came in the rig to check out our wine. We went through just fine. That stop took several minutes but it was no problem. The road started climbing up through Chilkat Pass(3,510 feet elevation). We got above the trees. There were some lakes and creeks and some snow and high peaks. We even saw swans! It started raining along this stretch when we got higher elevation. It was still fantastic to see. After passing through that part of the Haines Highway we went from British Columbia to Yukon Territory. From this place until Haines Junction we saw bears! Five in all! They were not together just by themselves on the side of the road. We think 2 black bears and 3 grizzlies. The roadside was also full of flowers…purple, white, yellow and even some bluebonnets!
We made the turn on the AlCan with no problem. It was right before you enter Haines Junction. We didn’t have far yet to go to the campground and the roads were OK. We saw a couple of cyclists…not together but on their own. We had seen a young man on each of our ferry rides who was riding a bike. Wished I would have asked him where he was going but I didn’t. Can’t believe someone would travel all through Alaska on a bicycle!
We had some construction on the highway just before our campground. Went through with no problem. We are camping at Cottonwood RV Park on the shore of Kluane Lake near Destruction Bay, Yukon Territory, Canada. Very nice lady at our campground. We have a site facing the lake. I need another word for beautiful…but it is beautiful. We’ll be on our way again tomorrow and hope to make it safely through any rough roads. We’ve heard all kinds of different stories about road conditions but feel sure we will see some tomorrow.