(August 3 – 10, 2018) Stewart, BC

After a three-night stay at Iskut, BC, we headed on down the Cassier Highway, BC-37. At the Meziadlin Junction, we turned on the Glacier Highway, BC-37a, towards Stewart, BC. This route took us by Meziadlin Lake and through a narrow ice-carved valley with spectacular glacier-dotted mountains along the way. Waterfalls cascaded off the rocky slopes, a river foaming with rapids paralleled the road, and glaciers pushed down side valleys.

Arriving in Stewart, we checked into the Bear River RV Park for a seven-night stay. This was a lovely, relaxing, forested park just on the outskirts of town. Since we were visiting at peak travel season and this was a popular destination, we made reservations at this park – and we were glad we did. 

Upon arrival we found the park was fully booked by two caravan outfitters with over twenty rigs each. Without reservations we would have been turned away, as were several other visitors ahead of us (who were referred to municipal dry camping lots in town or a small campground in Hyder). Thankful that we had reservations, we settled into camp to relax and begin to explore the area.

Stewart is a small town at the head of the scenic Portland Channel and just a few miles from the US border and Hyder, Alaska. We enjoyed day trips around Stewart and scenic drives back along the Glacier Highway to view the many roadside waterfalls and glaciers.

Around Hyder, Alaska

We took several day trips across the border to Hyder, Alaska. The short drive from Stewart to Hyder passes the Stewart shipping terminal and a large logging operation where rafts of logs await processing or shipment.

As mentioned, Hyder, Alaska, is just across the US/Canada border. The crossing from Canada into the US at Hyder is easy as there is no border checkpoint. Returning to Canada does pass through a checkpoint, but there is little traffic and the crossing goes quickly. (Just remember to take your Passports and pet vaccination records!)

Hyder is a small semi-ghost town with few residents and many abandoned buildings. Scenery is spectacular, with steep, craggy mountains towering over the town on one side and expansive views of the Portland Channel on the other.

On our first day in Hyder we visited the small marina and seaplane base outside of town and then headed through town towards Salmon Glacier. Along the way we stopped at “The Bus”, a well known small seafood grill in town.

The Bus is literally an old school bus converted into a grill. A husband and wife team run the diner – he cuts up the day’s catch of fresh fish and she grills it up. The Bus has a small outdoors seating area, as well as indoor seating in a side building. The grill is dog friendly so Jasmine and Pepper could join us in the outside seating. The meal was delicious and the halibut doesn’t get much fresher!

More Tire Problems

As we were about to leave the The Bus parking lot, I spotted what looked like a rock or a piece of metal embedded in tire tread of our Toyota Tundra pickup. The sudden hiss of escaping air when prying at the foreign object (which now looked like a roofing nail or rivet) was a good warning to just leave it alone and look for a tire repair shop. The tire was still well inflated – apparently just a very slow leak.

Cutting our day trip short, we returned to Stewart and inquired about a tire repair shop at the visitor center and grocery store. Stewart is a small town with few automotive services, but like any small town tends to be self sufficient on vehicle repairs.

As anticipated, we were given the reference of a local man who runs a tire repair shop out of his garage. Calling the number, we scheduled an appointment for the next morning and then returned to camp. Luckily the tire leak was so slow that there was no problem waiting until morning and then driving the few blocks to the address. The elderly gentleman running the shop quickly and efficiently examined and patched the truck tire. (Turned out to be a rivet that had punctured the tire.) Fifteen minutes or so and good to go. Awesome! 

Salmon Glacier and (No-Bear) Bear Viewing

With our tire freshly repaired we took a drive out to the Salmon Glacier. From Hyder we followed a well-maintained gravel road to the glacier overlook. Steep in places, the road winds through glacier carved valleys and past historic mines, crossing from Alaska back into British Columbia along the way. The scenery along the drive is dramatic, with glacier-barnacled mountains all around, roadside waterfalls, and deep valleys with rushing streams.

The view of the Salmon Glacier was just amazing – such a massive river of ice flowing down from a larger ice field. Sad to think how fast the glacier is melting and retreating up the valley due to the warming climate. We were lucky to have such a nice day to see the glacier in all of its fading glory – the area is often socked in with cloud cover and bad weather.

Another day we took a drive back to the Fish Creek Wildlife Observation Site – a well known bear viewing area – hoping to see bears feeding on the spawning salmon. The bears were a no-show, but we did see some spawning Pink salmon and lots of other tourists. Like other areas we visited this summer, the salmon returns were poor and late this year – attributed to colder water temperatures from increased snow and ice melt, as well as over-fishing. 

All in all we had a great time visiting Stewart and Hyder and it was with some sadness that we packed up to move on down the road. Our next major destination and final stops in Canada for the season was to be Jasper and Banff National Parks. Stay tuned…

That’s all for now. Safe travels and enjoy the journey!