In that group of bison was this cow and calf. She kept a close eye on our passing.

6/30/05. First, let me state that these posts are sometimes a bit late from when they actually happened due to the availability of internet along the way. To help clear this up, I usually start out with a date. If there is no date, this means that the picture is part of a group. I am actually using this photo to of a raodside view traveling along the Alaskan Hwy to make the date thing clear in my posts. Hope you enjoy the buffalo, as we did.

May and Gerry look on the herd as it starts to continue on with it's grazing.

Gary prepares to throw some feed out to the ranch bison herd while we get ready to take a lot of pictures.

Gary feeding some of his prize elks.

A muskoxen on the Sewell Ranch. Surly beasts, they brook no messing around from tourists.

Alongside the "dining area" was a pond with a couple of paddle boats. Mom and I took a spin and here is my trademark foot in the photo while paddiling picture.

Here Dellene and Gary get ready to open the chow line. Her cooking was good enough to warrant buying her cookbook.

6/28/05. Today we headed out to the Sewell Valley Wild Life Park. A privately owned game ranch. Gary and Dellene Sewell put on a wonderful game supper of exotic foods in an outdoor setting. Yes the skeeters were here also, but we were prepared and well coated with repellents. A great day for this event, very relaxing.

6/27/05. Also in the center of Dawson Creek is this beautiful restoration of the Alaska Hotel. Very colorful.

Here is the bridge with Mom taking a stroll across for a better look.

Outside of Dawson Creek to the north about 30 miles is the Kiskatinaw Bridge built on the original Alaskan Highway. This is the original bridge and is still in use today. Remarkable for both its sturdy wooden construction and the degree of bend in the bridge, this is an incredible site. One word of note, bring bug repellent, the skeeters will carry you off here. And the little black flies are no fun either.

Here is the actual Mile Post 0 in the center of town.

A little marker to give some info about the Highway. The highway used to be called the Alaska-Canada Highway, but is now simply referred to as the Alaskan Highway.

And here is the Group photo. We had some passing motorcyclists take the pictures for us. I don't think they new what was in store for them as we had about 15 cameras set up for them to take pictures with. They were good fellows and did a great job. The 3 of them had just turned 50 and this was there birthday presents, to travel on bike to Alaska, not take our pictures.

6/27/05. We make it to the beginning of the Alaskan Highway. Here Mom, Christa and I pose for the obligatory picture. The real Mile Post ) is downtown in the center of an intercection at Main and 10th st. This is put up so visitors can take their pictures in safety.

While at the Northern Lights RV park, Wanda meets a new friend of her own. We took to calling him "Bear", turns out his real name IS Bear (go figure). Gentle as he could be, he does take you aback the first time he approaches. He was a really big pooch.

While in Dawson Creek, we made some new friends from Ontario, Fran and Keyes. They are headed the same way we are, so the chances of our paths intertwining on the road are pretty good. Hello guys, hope your trip is a success. Maybe we'll get to come out your way in the future.

6/26/05. Arrived at Northern Lights RV park in Dawson Creek, British Columbia (BC). We are here to finally pick up the Alaskan Highway, get our pictures taken at Mile Post 0, get 3 nights rest before starting the real trip.

Always the character, Ted strikes a pose for the camera. Quck, hide all your valuables.

While we were at Sherk's, we had the opportunity to have a hotdog roast and s'more melt. A blazing fire on a cold wet day is always a comfort. Throw in some friends, a cookout, and happy hour, you have a complete recipe for good times. Gerry looks on as roast develops.

6/25/05. Continuing onto the next stop, we arrive at Sherk's RV Park in Valleyview, AB. A good little stop over point for further destinations.

The chow was good including the Rhutabega (sp?) pie. Frank was good enough to take this picture for me. We're at the back table. As you can see, our group fairly filled the place.

Entering the Rochfort Bridge Trading Post.

6/25/05. When traveling, we take time to stop and see interesting sites along the way. One of these sites The Longest Wooden Railroad Bridge in the world. Sorry did not get a picture of the bridge as there was not a look out point big enough for all the rigs in the caravan to pull over and sight see. Instead, we went a half mile down the road and and ate at a little cafe and gift shop. Here we are exiting the rigs and heading in for a lunch break. Pictured are Roger, Kathy, Kathy, Peggy, and all the way in the back making sure I get him in the shot is Frank.

Also inside the West Edmonton Mall is a full sized water park complete with an indoor beach, waves, and water slides. What a place to drop off the kiddies while taking your time to shop at liesure.

6/23/05. Yesterday we arrived in Edmonton, AB, but the trip was long and I was to tired to come into town until today. I think the whole purpose of this visit was to see the West Edmonton Mall, supposedly (and I believe this) the largest mall in the world. Here you see the lagoon display with the Santa Maria replica taking center stage. Though the ride is now a closed exhibit, you could still see the submarines that travelled on tracks showing an undersea fantasia. Complete with live animal exhibits, this was a real looker.

Fellow caravaners enjoy the Oh Canada show. We had a great time.

Here, Michael (center) performs in one of his onstage personas. Very talented with a great singing voice. If you're in town you have to catch this show.

Our server, Michael, was one of the stage entertainers, and though he forgot to bring me my beer, I don't hold against him due to the terrific performance he and fellow servers put on.

5/22/05. While in Canmore, we didn't just look to the natural beauty of the surrounding landscapes. We also took time to absorb some of the local culture. A great experience was the "Oh Canada, Eh" review dinner theater. Good food and some really great laughs, this bit of entertainment is sure to do the spirit some good.

Here is the Hot Springs resort. Very pricey, I could barely afford to look.

Another veiw from on high within the Banff provincial park. We took a sky lift to get to the top of a mountain behind the hot springs resort. I tried to capture the light rays filtering through the clouds, but my photographig skills are no match for the beauty this view afforded.

6/21/05. Somethings are beyond words. The photo does no justice to this view in person.

Mom standing in front of an overlook of a river and surrounding mountains. The river is the Bow and runs all through the valley.

While at Banff, caravaner Bruce is caught in the act of filming us. Of course this opened him up for a revenge photo.

After a short climb, caravaners Ray and Donna, look out over a view of te nearby river. Of course the view behind them is just as amazing.

Once in the Banff park, you follow winding roads with every turn giving a glance of natural wonders.

6/21/05. As soon as we were settled, we lit out for the town and provincial park of Banff. This is the stuff we traveled for, beautiful views and pristine waters.

6/21/05. Arrived at the Restwell RV park in Canmore, Alberta.

These are the ski jump ramps. Best thing was the ability to ride the lifts back down after looking inside the ramp structures and finding out all the good stuff about ski jumping. The park also has extensive bicycle trails for the amatuer and olympic hopefuls alike.

6/20/05. Here we all are taking the basic group picture.

While at the park we took a tour and the guide was informative and entertaining. Deion loves to ski and skateboard, when not doing those things he travels and films others skiing and boarding.

6/20/05. Today, we headed for the Olymic Park in Calgary. A cool place (really). They have training facilities for winter athletes who train here coming from all over the world. An innovative use for the park after the 1988 winter olympics.

The gardens were really outstanding and hard to describe with just a few photos. Basically, the gardens cover 2.5 acres of the upper mall floors. Litterally thousands of plant species are displayed thoughout the gardens. Very peaceful. If I lived in the city, I would probably hang here for lunch.

Getting ready to enter the Devonian Gardens in the top of the TD Mall building, Christa and fello caravaners, Wanda and Ray, pose for a quick pic.

Here we are downtown Calgary. A beautiful town with really friendly people.

6/19/05. Once on the train to the TD building downtown, fellow travelers Bruce and Ted are on the hunt for tourists. Hope they are able to find some.

Circa June 19th. Sorry about being late to update the blog, but we have been without internet since this date. Here we are all headed downtown Calgary to see the Devonian Gardens located in the TD building. We're trying to sort out the train schedules with SMART member Wanda leading. Should be an interesting excursion.

Fort Nelsen, BC.

Gerry and I await the arrival of the rest of the caravan in Fort Nelsen, BC, at the 5th Wheel RV park. This was an overnight stay and you can get an idea of the conditions most apparent at this park.