The Cassiar Highway and Hyder

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The Cassiar Highway is a wilderness road that runs from Watson Lake in the Yukon Territory south through the western part of British Columbia, and terminates at the Yellowhead Highway, a major east/west highway running from the seaport of Prince Rupert to Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Cassiar takes you through 450 miles of rugged mountains, lakes, rivers and streams, passing through some of the most beautiful scenery on the planet. The road is paved most of the way, although much of the pavement is in poor condition, and 50 or 60 miles was gravel. The map shows a couple of small towns along the route, but they must be tiny, because we never saw them. It is not a place where you would want to have car trouble. We made the trip in a caravan with two nice couples we had met in Haines who were traveling in motor homes. We really enjoyed their company, and it was nice knowing we were not alone out there. We spent two nights along the way, camping in provincial parks beside gorgeous mountain lakes.
There is a 40 mile long spur road off the Cassiar running west over to the border towns of Stewart, BC and Hyder, AK. These are old mining and logging towns situated at the eastern end of a narrow 90-mile waterway leading to the Pacific Ocean. This is the heart of grizzly country. For that reason, the campground where we stayed in Stewart did not allow tents or soft-sided RV’s (popup campers), and had posted signs advising people to be careful walking around the campground after dark. Very comforting, right? Well, the first morning there, I came out of the bedroom to find the front door standing wide open. We had forgotten to set the dead bolt, and apparently the door had not been fully shut. If we had left any food out, we probably would have had company during the night. I don’t know if a 900-pound bear could fit through the door, but I’d rather not find out. We are more careful about locking up now.
Hyder is known mostly for the nearby Salmon Glacier and for a really neat observation bridge overlooking a creek where the grizzly bears come to catch salmon. It is an interesting old town. There are no paved roads, and most of the buildings look like they are out of the late 1800’s. There are a couple of restaurants, including a great pizza place, and a bar where you can get “Hyderized” by downing a special cocktail with undisclosed ingredients. We passed on getting Hyderized, but it was a very interesting place. We had a good time poking around Hyder, and it was the perfect ending for our visit to Alaska. It’s a great place to visit and we’ve had a wonderful trip. Maybe again someday?

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Photos

The Cassiar Highway
Not a lot of traffic.

Boya Lake Provincial Park
Our first overnight stop on the Cassiar Highway.

Jade Cutting
In this tiny settlement out in the middle of nowhere they mine, finish, and make beautiful jewelry and figurines from jade.

Scene along the Cassiar Highway
There were several stretches of gravel, although most of it wasn't too bad.

Lake Kiniskan Provincial Park
Our second overnight -- another beautiful lake.

Downtown Hyder, AK
Nothing fancy. What you see is what you get.

Hyder Gift Shop
Not quite as glitzy as Skagway.

Post Office
Mail goes out on Mondays and Thursdays. No one was sure how often it comes in.

Two Male Grizzlys Giving Each Other the Eye
These guys get pretty territorial, especially when food is scarce. The fish were plentiful this day.

The Glacier Inn
Come here to get Hyderized.

Our Friends and Traveling Companions
Jim, Becky, Paula and Dennis