Alaska–Day 34

Wow, what a beautiful day!  Our drive from Fort nelson to Liard River Hot Springs Provincial Park may have been the most spectacular yet in terms of both scenery and wildlife.  We saw eight black bear, including one mama and baby.  The baby was so small, it was hidden in the tall grass, except when it stood up to look around.  Unfortunately, it never stood up when the camera was clicking.  Early in the day, one ran across the road in front of us.

Just before we reached the park, we saw two bears quietly browsing in the tall grass and dandelions.

We drove through incredible mountain areas.

One business along the way took lessons from Wall Drug or Burma Shave, I believe.  We kept seeing signs advertising fresh hot cinnamon rolls.  We couldn’t resist stopping at Testa River Services to get some.  We weren’t the only rvers attracted by the signs.

Canadians are serious about warning drivers about wildlife along the roads.  These are just a few of the signs we have seen in the last couple of weeks.  To date, we have seen all the animals except bison.

We got our first good look at some caribou.  Their horns weren’t very developed.

Later, we saw several on the road.  They grudgingly moved so we and the 18-wheeler could move on.

 

We also saw stone sheep along and on the road.  In fact, we probably saw two dozen of them, at least.  Their horns are like those of big horn sheep, but that species doesn’t live this far north.

This baby was the smallest we saw.  Even after we stopped right next to it, then drove away, it didn’t move.  We sure hope it made it safely through the day.

Seven-mile long Muncho Lake, known for its deep green and blue waters, is amazing.  We had seen it eight years ago when it was cloudy and windy, so we weren’t too impressed. But Tuesday there was no breeze blowing, so the reflections were amazing.  Honestly, these are photos we took, with only very minor tuning in Picasa.