Quesnel

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Keeping a blog updated while traveling is a real challenge. I find I am so tired by the end of the day that I just can not string words together. This entry is a summary of the time we spent in Quesnel from June 28th to July 3rd. Some may ask- why so long in Quesnel? Easy answer. I have family there and it has been three years since I spent any time with them.

Julia and I arrived in Quesnel just in time for dinner and my brother Matt did not disappoint! BBQ ribs, grilled veggies, baked potatoes and loads of bread for Julia😊 We were happy to get our pj's on early and have a quiet evening.

We spent most of the time hanging out at my brother's place and venturing into town to the local McDonalds to get WiFi. One of our 'major' outings was to Barkerville, the 'gold rush town.' http://www.barkerville.ca. It was great to visit to some of my favourite stops along the way and that is the Jack O' Clubs lake and Wells. It was COLD for June 30th and we even drove through a bit of a snow fall. We enjoyed panning for gold and Julia managed to get some in her pan.

Canada Day we went to the local park and then headed out to 10 mile lake. Along the way to the lake we stopped for a hike in Pinnacles Park and saw the hoodoos. Everywhere we went, we took time to enjoy the beautiful sights along the way. Mostly though, this was time for us to enjoy being with our family and we loved every moment.

A few highlights - some low lights:
- There is a drive through liquor store in Quesnel. This is something we found to be very amusing, especially when we saw a young kid driving through on a bike. Wonder if he got served?
- The gold pan at the entrance to the city is REALLY HUGE. Yes- we took our picture there.
- Tim Horton's employees in small towns around Quesnel are really polite and on the ball
- We think it is totally awesome that the McDonald's in Quesnel has free WiFi.
- Not so cool that there was no internet where we stayed ....hmmm...actually it was okay! 😊 Good to disconnect sometimes.
- There is a fire hydrant walk through the town. 20 hydrants painted to look like different types of people that are representative of the city. Ooops...we didn't take pictures.
- Panning for gold is harder than it looks...and the water is darned cold! A heated rock is a lovely way to warm hands after a successful 'pan'.
-Living close to the highway can be tough at times. The family pet - 8 month old dog, 'Speedy', was hit by a car and died the last evening we were there. It was heartbreaking.
- Local talent abounds in Quesnel. We went to a production at the local highschool that was really fun! Put on by a group called 'YES' (Youth Entertaining for Service), this show was called 'Rock On' and featured music from the 50's to present time. This group raises funds and awareness to help prevent teen suicide.

We left Quesnel this morning (July 3rd) and are now in Lillooet where we are spending only one night before heading to WHistler. I could have done the trip in one shot but I do not want to rush the drive on Hwy 99. Apparently this stretch of highway is spectacular and I plan on enjoying every moment of it!

A few notes about Lillooet. Beautiful but don't come for the food. At least not at the restaurant attached to the Reynolds Hotel where we are staying. Yuck. Truly horrible and no warm and fuzzies from the staff. Lillooet is not a destination spot but our room is clean and spacious. Us 'Bland' girls like clean rooms with tv's and nice bathtubs😊

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