The Life of Karyn: Edmonton to Whitehorse

We woke up early Saturday morning-moving day-to finish all of the last minute packing and cleaning and get on the road. It was 9:36 when we pulled out of the driveway and were on our way-but wait-Ryan forgot his sunglasses in the bathroom, so I took off running down the street to get what had been left behind. It was easier than to turn the 17 foot UHaul Truck around while it was pulling a trailer carrying Blue Lightening! I got the glasses, and again, we were on the road!

Our first stop was in Atcheson, just out of Edmonton to fill up with gas and get some breakfast, as all of our food was already packed up in the truck by then. By the time that we got going again, it was almost 11:00 and we still had a seven hour drive ahead of us-so much for making it there by five! With a few quick sight-seeing stops along the way, one being in Mayrethorpe to see the Fallen Four Memorial Park, our next stop was in Fox Creek to have lunch with Amber and Jason, Ryan's sister and "brother-in-law". We got some groceries while we were there and filled up with gas again. We departed Fox Creek at 4:00.

We had our entire trip planned out, and were planning on spending Saturday night at Charlie's Lake Campground, just out of Fort St. John. However, right when we got there, black clouds started rolling in and the rain came down! By that time it was about 9:00 and it was getting dark, and we decided that our best option would be to get a hotel room that night, so we found a $69/night hotel room and moved our stuff in. The hotel was older, but clean, and it had a Lounge attached to it. After showering and talking to our parents, we decided to go down to the Lounge to get a bite to eat, but it was closed. Then somehow, I am unsure how, we ended up in a stripper bar located next door. It was alright, but definitely not how I had envisioned spending the first night of our big adventure!

Sunday morning was another early start. We decided to start off early again, as we were taking longer than planned to get from Point A to Point B. We definitely couldn't cruise in the rig that we were driving! Sunday was shorter, and alot more scenic. The drive through the mountains was absolutely amazing, and we took advantage of many of the truck stops to stop and take pictures. We were not in a hurry, and told ourselves that we were going to see everything that we wanted to see. As we travelled North, the gas prices increased exponentially it seemed! There were many times along the when we would find ourselves thinking that we should have filled up a few gerry cans in Edmonton. The highest price that we saw was $1.75/l. Needless to say, we drove right on past! Of the many sights that we saw on Sunday, Muncho Lake was my favorite, with its clear blue water and glass-like surface.

We reached the Liard River Hotsprings at about 6:00. This night was beautiful, and we were able to set up our tent and camp for the night. We had an amazing supper and went for a dip in the hotsprings, which were a bit too hot for my liking-I much rather enjoyed them in the winter. We then had a bit of a bonfire, and went to bed early to be well rested for our last day.

Monday was pretty uneventful. Ryan and I were both tired by then, and were anxious to get to Whitehorse. Again, the scenery was great and we saw some wildlife along the way. We made it to Whitehorse in about 7 hours where we were greeted by Ben and Jessica, our friends and now landlords. They made an amazing fondu supper for us, and all of us, along with Tim managed to get everything unpacked that night! It was a great trip, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I am now happy to be back in Whitehorse which will be our home for a while!