Critter Day

Travel Day

• Watson Lake, YT to Fort Nelson, BC via YT-1 and BC-97 (The Alaska Highway)

We were no more than about 10 minutes out of Watson Lake when we saw this fellow marching along beside the road.

"It's a long, long road, with many a winding turn..." Lyrics from The Hollies song, He Ain't Heavy.

That haze in the air is more smoke from nearby forest fires.

A little further along, we met another solo buffalo, walking along beside the road.

As we approached Coal River, the smoke became heavier and thicker.

Once we passed Coal River we came upon this herd of cows and calves.

A last look at the Liard River, the separator of the Rockies from the Yukon Mountains.

Then we saw this little guy digging up the roadside, looking for ants and grubs. He seemed to be doing pretty well at it.

There was road construction a little further along and it was there that we found this herd of Stone Sheep. They were liking minerals off the rocks exposed by the constructions.

Yep, I'm pooping. Go ahead, take my picture. See if I care!

Another look at the group. Yes, that is a male in the middle.

We decided to stop by Muncho Lake so I could do a bit of fishing.

As we pulled over we caught sight of this loon. He took off as soon as we stopped.

Katherine got out my fishing gear for me and I tried my luck.

As I was fishing, a Momma duck brought the babies out for a swim.

While we were parked, we began to hear rocks tumbling down the hillside across the road. We decided it might be unwise to park and fish in an avalanche area. We headed out.

No sooner were we back on the road towards Fort Nelson than we saw another black bear rooting about for dinner.

Are those clouds out there or is that forest fire smoke? You try to figure it out.

Another picture. Clouds or smoke? Well, it was clouds. There were no signs of forest fires after Coal River.

We arrived at Fort Nelson. That symbol for the town is actually a bear. Apropos!