Yukon and starting to mosey on southward.

Haines Junction and Area

On our last post, we had just rolled into Haines Junction, Yukon.  This is a community of about 800 residents that has evolved from a construction camp for the building of the Alaska Highway, into a vibrant, slightly eclectic, and clearly northern town.  It is situated at the junction of the Alaska and Haines highways, and is the gateway to stunning Kluane National Park.  It is at km 1632 on the Alaska Highway.

Because of the National Park connection, a lot of retired Park Wardens that I worked or trained with still live here, so there was lots of visiting and catching up to do.  Most of the guys get together for coffee once a week.

 

I spent the best part of a week in and around the area, exploring on foot and bicycle.

There is a very large modern information and cultural center at the edge of town. 

(photos taken from Google Streetview) 

One thing you notice, traveling in the north, is the amazing variety and types of vehicles you see.  While trucks and RV's dominate the highway traffic, many of them are towing boats, trailers, quads, and have all sorts of miscellaneous gear strapped all over.  Clearly, some people are moving north, for the season, at least, and many others just want to have every toy they own along for the trip.  Some have extra spare tires, extra fuel cans, surf boards, fishing poles, you name it!

This pickup, spotting in Haines Junction looked like it was loaded down, and then some. 

We spent a couple days exploring along the highway north of town.

We spent one night on the shore of Sulphur Lake, in the company of a nice Kiwi rv couple.  He couldn't believe it when I told him that this lake was likely covered in ice only about  6 weeks previous!

Later in the evening, this little class B pulled in and parked right between us!

 Watched a couple of moose swim across the lake in the morning.

We toured on northward along the shoreline of Kluane Lake, as far as Destruction Bay.

Overnight camp spot along the edge of Kluane Lake.

Not really sure this sign was really required!

  

Whitehorse again

After about a week in the Haines Junction area, it was time to head back towards Whitehorse.

An old girlfriend and I found this spot on the Takhini river back in 2009, and I stayed there again when passing through in 2017.  Nice to find it still available, and as scenic as ever.

 

As luck would have it, a gal who also worked in fire lookouts near me in Alberta lives nearby, and I finally got to meet her in person!  She's the author of 3 books, and articles in various magazines.  Her writing has been widely published in Canadian Geographic, the Globe and Mail, The Narwhal, and other publications.

I met up with another retired park warden in Whitehorse, then toured Miles Canyon suspension bridge, just out of town.

Carcross  

Next on the slow route towards home was a short detour down to the Carcross area.  It was late in the day, so we continued on southward looking for an overnight spot.  Gave a pass to several mediocre options, and found ourselves back into BC for a ways, before finding an ideal spot on Tutshi Lake!

Re-entered the Yukon on the way back up to Carcross ...

Carcross weather was a bit on the damp side, so didn't stop and was just left with dash cam shots!

We did see the only grizzly of the trip - on the way to Tagish.  He was just laying in the ditch, feeding on greenery, but there was a car stopped, so no photos were taken.  

Sadly, there was a dead moose that had been hit on the road :-(

Bridge over the Tagish river.

 We passed back through Teslin, and almost to Watson Lake again, before turning off southbound on the Cassiar highway for the return leg. Fuel prices were not that extreme at the Junction 37, so topped off the tank at $1.63/litre for diesel, and truck said it now had a range of 969km!  Just a few kilometers to the south it was back into BC.

 

The Cassiar highway is a bit narrower and more winding than the Alaska highway, but it also has less traffic, so we slowed the pace quite a lot.

 This post is getting a bit long, so I think we'll end it here and save the rest of the return trip for the next post!   

WE'LL BE BACK! 

ZZXXXZCCXXXXZ - CAT on the keyboard! (Bailey's contribution)

North - to the Yukon!

“Camping, Comrades & Criminal Activity (Sort Of)” One man’s journey through BC, forest fires, and a brush with the law… over a camping permit.

 Well, C&R—you win.
It’s been a month, the camping weather paused for breath, and apparently I’m due for an update. So, here’s what I’ve been up to: trees, travels, reunions, and the criminal underworld of expired camping permits. (Yes, really.)

 

BC or Bust

With spring creeping in—trees just starting to green and weather dancing between “brisk” and “barely tolerable”—it was time to hit the road for British Columbia. The first mission was a bittersweet one: a celebration of life for a friend and former colleague from my Jasper National Park days. A long drive, so we broke it up with an overnight stay in one of our favourite local spots along the North Saskatchewan River.

The gathering was a great one, filled with familiar faces, stories, and the kind of reconnections that only happen at events like this. A sad occasion, yes, but good to see so many friends.

What Next? Turn Back, or Turn It into a Trip?

Predictably, we didn’t head home.
Despite a drizzle-filled morning, we aimed the rig southward, further into BC. A short detour brought us to Helmcken Falls in Wells Gray Provincial Park—a must-see spot if you enjoy 1) waterfalls.

Then it was off to Bridge Lake, where an RV friend took us bush cruising—exploring trails, hidden lakes, old cabins, and (you guessed it) more waterfalls.

Reunions & Rivers

From there, it was on to Kamloops to reconnect with a college classmate and his wife, followed by a scenic roll through Kelowna, landing at a previously-loved camp spot along the Kettle River.

Despite being nestled in trees, Starlink kept us connected. (Though with the residential plan, I have to change my “address” every time I move. I assume I now technically reside in at least 14 locations.) 

We followed Highway 3 eastward along the US border, and just past Grand Forks, found a peaceful logging road with scenic switchbacks and U.S. mountains on the horizon. Free real estate, if you don’t mind the elevation gain.

Mountains, Ferries & Familiar Faces

From there, it was a blur of mountain towns:

• Castlegar

• Slocan Lake

• Across the longest free ferry in the world over Kootenay Lake

• A surprise pulloff overnight along the lake’s east shore (new to us, wonderfully quiet)

 , 

 

We stopped in Creston for a quick visit with another college buddy, then made a pit stop at home—to mow the grass, naturally, and host a mini RV rally in my yard. I think the neighbours briefly thought I’d opened a campground. (Still awaiting the licensing paperwork.)

Wild Horses Couldn’t Drag Us Away (But We Went Anyway)

The next adventure was a local one: just a few miles west, searching for wild horses with friends who’d arrived in their own rig. They took photos, I watched—and later stole a great picture from the local paper. (I’m calling it “collaborative wildlife photography.”)

 

My Descent into Crime (Sort Of)

Then things took a dark turn.

I headed to Abraham Lake—one of my favourite spots, about two hours from home—to meet some high school and RV friends. Beautiful scenery, no cell service, and one small problem: You need an annual permit to camp.

I checked my records and... gulp... my permit had expired a week earlier.

Now, without cell service, renewing the permit was tricky. I tried anyway. Repeatedly. I sympathized with Al from the Bayfield Bunch, who has fought with apps, phones, and online systems.

I even saw an officer one day, checking campers nearby. He looked in my direction… and moved on. Maybe he saw Bailey (my intimidating feline sidekick), or maybe he sensed I was one of those polite, apologetic campers who wouldn’t make good prison material.

Resigned to my fate as a camping criminal, I started researching tattoos that would help me blend in behind bars. (Leaning toward a small tent with barbed wire.) Then, in a last-ditch attempt to avoid prison meals, I called the help desk. Their hold music was comforting, and eventually a nice woman informed me:

“Sir… your permit is still valid.”

Turns out I’m not an outlaw. Just bad at paperwork. Back to being law-abiding... until next time.

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Jasper, Fire & Perspective

While in the Abraham Lake area, we drove into Jasper, which suffered a devastating wildfire last summer. I’d driven the main highway post-fire before—it looked intense but familiar.

This time, we took a secondary road that had just reopened. The change was shocking. What had once been a dense forest corridor was now a wide-open, fire-swept landscape. A stark reminder of nature’s power—and how fast things can change.

Final Thoughts

From emotional reunions to waterfalls, permit paranoia to scenic mountain routes, it’s been a wild ride—literally. RV life continues to offer adventure, connection, and the occasional existential panic over government documentation.

Thanks for sticking with me—and for the not-so-subtle nudges to post. You know who you are. 😄

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