Wednesday wasn’t a very memorable driving day. I set off in snow and very cold conditions that were not conducive to stopping. I had hoped to take the ‘old’ Alaska highway to the curved wooden bridge over the Kiskatinaw River, but the turn off was onto a muddy road. I was worried about getting stuck and decided this would be a stop for the return journey.

Similar story at Charlie Lake where the entrance to the memorial was closed. It was at Charlie Lake that twelve soldiers were killed in a sudden squall. They had attempted to cross the lake with an overloaded pontoon filmed with supplies for the building of the Alaska highway. Five men were heroically saved by a local trapper.

Charlie Lake

I gassed up in Fort St John and then stopped at ‘Suicide Hill’ a very steep section of road on the original Alaska Highway that was prefaced with a sign that said Prepare to meet thy maker!

I stopped for the night at a turnout about 30km shy of Fort Nelson. I did about 400km, none of which were particularly inspiring. In this stretch of the Alaska Highway, services are still quite close together and the land is very open. I’ve felt more isolated en route to the Ottawa airport!

overnight at a turnoff about 30km from Fort Nelson