6/4/25

A Day of Rest

Good morning, my friends! We're feeling energetic this morning, having taken a much-needed day to chill yesterday. There were almost no other campers in the campground, and so I got Smitty out for a walk early. He's always a little nervous going out into a strange world. Eventually, his curiosity exceeds his fear, and then it's fun going for a stroll with him. He sniffs and looks and listens, and I enjoy watching him act like a cat.


With us being among the last to get through the wildfire section before the road was closed, the campground was nearly empty. Then, the road reopened and a lot more people showed up. I'd say there are about a dozen other campers here now. I was glad I got Smitty out before all the other Mans and their woofies showed up.

Along our way we saw pretty bluebells.


And he had a good sampling of this righteous Catnada weed. No worries...weed is legal here. Just don't try taking it across the border.


As we walked along, I noticed this hank of fur...coarse in texture. 


My guess was bear. I asked Smitty what he thought it was. He told me it was all that remained of the grizzly bear he killed earlier. It was a furrocious battle, to hear him tell it. Of course. (Smacks forehead.) What was I thinking?

The weather has warmed and the rain has stopped for the time being. We were able to sit outside comfortably. The air was filled with floating dandelion seeds. And with dandelions British Columbia's wannabe provincial flower, it wasn't surprising. It's the official flower of the military brat, and so I always take pictures of them when I see them.


We went for a short walk around the campground. I was amused at this campfire pit. It doesn't look like any fires have burned here for a long time.


We sat outside for a time. Mike listened to music, and I did some slow-stitching. Smitty joined us on the veranda. He was keeping an eagle eye on the woofie across from us.


I'm working on the second block for Raggedy & Friends. It's a small block. Sadie added her paws for scale.


I want to back up to yesterday's post for just a minute. I had so many pictures from the day's drive, I forgot to post a couple of them. First, we wondered about these trees. They're tall, but very skinny. I have an idea these might be cypress trees. When I traveled in Italy, I was told the Italians planted cypress around cemeteries and religious structures because they grow tall and reach toward heaven.


Also, I was fascinated by the geology as we passed through the Stone Mountain/Muncho Lake area. I took the picture below to show you how the rock has twisted over millennia, forming a sort of corkscrew. Look just below center in the image below to see what I'm taking about.


So today's drive will take us to one of the spots I've been looking forward to in the way I looked forward to taking this picture at Dawson Creek.


We'll cross the border into Yukon Territory today on our way to Watson Lake and the Signpost Forest. Our sign is ready.


We have two nights there. We'd originally planned just one night, but then we learned about the Northern Lights Space & Science Centre. They put on a one-hour planetarium show, and so we'll try to make that. There are showings hourly throughout the day. Also, we'll do some laundry and pick up a few groceries while we're in Watson Lake. 

Our drive today will be short. It's going to be a good day. Pack your snacks and buckle up. We'll be on our way soon. Hopefully, we'll see more wildlife today.

9 comments:

Pamela Dempsey said...

Oh, I love your 50-50 Oregon sign! Good job 👏. And kudos to Smitty for his grizzly bear takedown. The Northern lights museum sounds very cool, wish I was there.
We finished our prescribed Azithromycin yesterday but still under the Covid weather. Don’t have energy for much. Feel like making some Covid Voo-Doo dolls, wish I knew who made us sick…

Magpie's Mumblings said...

I'm very glad that bear fur was taken care of by Smitty - imagine if you met that thing face to face!

piecefulwendy said...

I look forward to hearing about the sign posting. Glad Smitty got some adventuring in as well!

Kate said...

Sounds like you had a great down day. So glad Smitty got out for a walk. I've been trying to convince Grad Girl to see if her cat will work with a harness. It would be nice to get her out and about when they travel. Maybe she will have some time to do that now that she's done with the defense.

Sara said...

The 50-50 sign is awesome!! This next stop definitely sounds interesting. We've been able to see the northern lights in SD this past week - except I'm too lazy to drive miles out into the country to get away from city lights, late at night.

Ioleen said...

Glad to hear Smitty got out for a walk and he fought off a grizzly. So brave is Smitty. I found the northern lights mysteriously scary. Beautiful but spooky. Love your 50/50 sign.

karen said...

Smitty, you are awesome. Your curiosity pose is quilt worthy.
Those mountains look cold and unyielding. Burrr.
Your sign is pride. attaboy, girl. I am enjoying this trip. I always enjoy your trips. Good summer school.

kc said...

Such a brave boy Smitty is!! Did you smell the fur? Grizzly has a peculiar (and strong!) odor. Good thing you took the road when you did, sounds like it got a wee bit sketchy after you went through. Those rocks are way cool, never seen anything like that before!!

Lyndsey said...

Well done Smitty, thank goodness you are brave enough to fight a big bear and win. I love the twist in the mountain.