Prince Rupert–on the wet west coast.

After spending a relaxing night by the Willow River east of Prince George, BC, we cruised on into the city, published the last blog post from the Tim Hortons, as well as checking out the visitor centre, Wholesale Sports, and fueling up at Canadian Tire @ $1.03/L.  There was also time to check out a short hiking trail overlooking the river and the city.  By the time that all was through we didn’t have to drive that far before looking for another overnight spot.  We spotted the sign for the Cobb Lake rec site, and headed a few km north off the Yellowhead Highway to find it.

 

Unlike most forestry rec sites that tend to be small and primitive, this one was fairly well developed with about 15 sites along the lake shore as well as a boat launch.  Because it seems to be a very popular site and the long weekend was approaching, I managed to get one of the last sites.  Mixed blessing; it was one of the few sites without a lake view, but more privacy than any of the rest.  We’ll take that any day.  There was even lots of dry wood around for a small fire.  There was a resident rabbit, and Hailey was immediately on the hunt!  It’s hard to be a great hunter when wearing a harness attached to a leash though!

Although the campground was ‘full’, there were few people around in the morning, many having placed their rigs simply to reserve a spot for the long weekend!  I however, had no desire to be part of a long weekend crowd, and departed the next morning, likely creating a battle for the newly vacant spot!

We checked out various communities along the way including Vanderhoof, Burns Lake, Telkwa, and Smithers.

Spent one night visiting friends near Telkwa and missed another friend living there.

 

The next night found us still westbound, this time a bit west of the Kitwanga junction.  After a few failed attempts to find a suitable spot, we squeezed our way through a narrow trail lined with thick cedar branches, then down a steep, and slanted trail down towards the Skeena river.  At the bottom, the spot opened up into a spacious, flat, quiet spot that you would never ever get to in a larger camp unit.

Down at waters edge of the fast flowing muddy river, there was a nice private beach and the perfect spot for another evening fire.

The access ‘road’ was iffy at best and any sign of rain in the night would have required an immediate departure before it got too slippery.  Even so, 4x4 low range was in order in the morning to facilitate the return to the pavement.

A few more hours driving in the morning and the road ended at the Pacific ocean in the city of Prince Rupert, a major west coast container and shipping port.

Upon arrival, the weather was uncharacteristically warm and sunny, so I took advantage and hiked the Butz rapids trail, down to the tidal reversing rapids that occur on the channel surrounding the island that the city is built on.

In spite of the arrival of near constant rain, I spent a fair amount of time down on the waterfront watching the various water and aircraft coming and going.

 

Blog post not really finished, but we found some rare wi-fi, so sending it off into space!