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Stewart
The busy High Street.After a late morning rise we ventured into the wilds of Alaska as we drove the short distance into the ghost town known as Hyder. The town of Hyder is located 2miles from Stewart and used to be a settlement for miners and prospectors. It is surrounded by majestic glacier crowned peaks as high as 6000ft and boast some of the largest glaciers in south east Alaska. We crossed the border and parked some 200yrds away to take pictures of what was left of the town. A few gift shops, liquor store where one can get hyderised - a term for what the local booze can do to you, and an art gallery, all of which were closed for the season. Looking at the style of buildings it was easy to imagine what it looked like in its hay day.
After our 15 minute long photo session we decide to continue on our self guided tour. As usual I was navigating and informing Liisa of where we were on our little tour into untamed country! Half a mile up the road we noticed a gift shop with its lights on and the sign open. We were surprised that this gift
Stewart
Ripley Creek Inn on the High Street. shop was opened when all the others were closed, anyway we were glad for an opportunity to get at least one souvenir with Alaska written on it. As we entered the shop, our American vendor was so pleased to see us as we were probably the first tourist she’d seen in 6 months! We browsed around the shop for 20 minutes and were hard pressed to find anything worth while buying, but we suspected that she had opened the shop especially for the only tourists in Hyder, we tried desperately to find something among all the tacky items to buy. Finally our eyes seized upon some somewhat faded fridge magnets with local mountain scenes with Alaska written on it and decided to buy those.
We continued our tour along the rugged, potholed gravel road, the snow was banked high on either side covering all the numbered points of interest which were detailed on our self guided tour and we wondered how far along the route we would be able to go. Our trusty 4x4 handled the crater sized potholes with ease, though I did experience the occasional whip lash! Our first point of interest was called Moose Pond, so
Stewart
The High Street. we eagerly approached it hoping to see moose, but as we read the guide we realised that there are lots of wild life to see there but no moose as it was named so by a fraternal organization… the search for moose continues.
Higher up we came across a bear viewing platform over Fish Creek, the snow was so high it almost completely covered the entrance and the platform so we were not able to take a walk along it. In the months of July - September it is the prime viewing spot to see grizzlies and black bears feeding on the spawning salmon. We were told that it is an amazing sight to behold so we will definitely have to return, there is so much to experience in this country one really needs to visit during all the seasons to see it all. As we continued further up the trail the road became rougher and narrower with sheer drops down one side and steep rises on the other - prime avalanche areas. The snow was also banking up as high as the vehicle in long stretches, it was with some trepidation that we continued up the road in
Stewart
Ripley Creek Inn. our pursuit of Salmon Glacier the fifth largest in Canada and the highlight of journey up this treacherous road. As we climbed higher and higher we hoped we wouldn’t meet a vehicle, particularly one of the big trucks we had seen driving up, coming in the opposite direction as by now the passing spaces were very infrequent and the road was only wide enough for one vehicle to fit through comfortably.
Our fears were only too soon realised. As we were getting closer to the toe of Salmon Glacier we met a very large truck barrelling towards us on a bend. Luckily we heard him before he saw us so we stopped much sooner. He was not in the least bit gentlemanly and stood his ground until Liisa was forced to reverse down the road. We both thought that that was very thoughtless of him especially as he was probably much more familiar with the road, it would have been more sensible for him to back up! It was just as well the vehicle was in the hands of a skilful driver otherwise we may have had a stand off, as Liisa competently backed the vehicle up into as
Stewart
Ripley Creek Inn and the chicken coup. tight a space as possible before he came flying down along side, almost taking our mirror off (no wonder he didn’t want to reverse as he was having difficulty driving forwards!) and told us that we should turn back as there were helicopters and people up there doing something on the road, and that the road was covered with snow further up. We were in two minds whether to believe him or not but thought that it would be wise to take the advice. So close but yet so far.
He advised us to reverse down and turn our vehicle around on a tiny spot on a bend with a sheer drop on one side, but we though better of that and decided to drive up the road to find the nearest turning place. We discovered that the chivalrous truck driver had literally passed a turning space not even 20 yards back from where he had stopped, but still insisted on Liisa backing up! We turned around and headed back to Hyder, and driving past the gift shop, we noticed it was closed. Just as we had suspected, someone must have called ahead and told her that there were
Stewart
Ripley Creek Inn and The Old Brothel dating back to the early 1900's. some tourists in town - so open up! Entering Canada again at the Canadian custom stop, the lady customs officer recognised us from the day before so she just stopped to chat with us and make sure we didn’t have any stowaways in the backseat, firearms, or more than $10K with us (we wish)!
We stopped for a late lunch at the Silverado Café, this was recommended to us by the hotel owner but we had also been given advice from the one of the staff at Bell 2 lodge that that was the second best place to eat in town, as the best place to eat was closed for the season. Our chef and waiter was a balding grey haired gentleman with a kind face. He looked terrified of Liisa and I, either that or he was disarmed by our beauty! His hands shook badly as he laid the table and brought us our water. I decided to try and put him and ease with one of my brilliant white smiles, I think this frightened him even more and he ran back into the kitchen. Well I suppose as he hasn’t seen any tourists for six months, we
Stewart
Gail taking five on the Ripley Creek Inn porch. would have to give him time to get back into the swing of things. Once he had sufficiently composed himself he took our orders of a grilled cheese sandwiches with onions and tomatoes accompanied with fries and a root beer of course! The service was quick and food surprisingly good, so we decided to return there tomorrow for breakfast.
In order for us to walk off our meal, we went next door to the small supermarket and wandered up and down each isle examining the items for sale. Considering this is a small town, there seemed to be a wide variety of stock, although on closer examination there were a few items out of date, such as a packet of Oreos that we were planning to buy. We picked up our essential items to tide us over for the next few days; a case of A&W rootbeer, water, a book and a People magazine.
The evening was spent watching DVD’s - The Firm and Johnny English (rather lame), and viewing the amazing sunset hitting the snow capped peaks.
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Margaret
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Thanks for the trip!
It has been great accompanying you these past few weeks on your Canadian adventure. The photos are terrific and the commentary interesting. Many memories have been revived---David driving all night to Okanagan soon after we arrived in Calgary for one. I'm off on my adventure to China on Friday. Enjoy the rest of your time. PS This travelblog site is vastly superior to the one you used at Christmas.