June 14, 2010
Day 10: Kleanza Provincial Park to Kitwanga
The forecast was for rain in the morning. So, I took the opportunity to sleep in. I eventually got going at 11am.
A couple of kilometres before the turnoff to the Cassiar Highway there was an elderly couple stopped by the highway. I stopped to see what they were looking at. There was some debris in the river that they were wondering if it was the remnants of a friends airplane crash from 30 years ago. They told me there used to be an emergency airfield across the river. They wished me well as we both went on our way.
I stopped off for a snack at the gas station at the base of the Cassiar Highway and had a snack before heading the last few kilometres to Kitwanga where I was planning to camp. There was a choice of campgrounds - an RV park with services and a municipal campground. The municipal campground had a handpump for water. The municipal campground was free so I stayed there and went looking for the shop in town. When I asked around, it turned out that it had closed a couple of weeks ago. Kitwanga has been experiencing hard times recently. The only industry in town closed down 27 months ago. The general store I was looking for was owned by a grandfather and run by the grandson. The grandson was killed in a motorcycle accident and then the grandfather died a couple of weeks ago. As a result, the town's general store closed down. I hope they can recover from this tragedy.
I had a good chat with the neighbours in the campground. They are two couples traveling to Alaska with their RVs. They stopped here because of some problems with one of the RVs and are waiting for a part. Ken would like to ride his motorcycle to the Arctic Circle. They were good company.
I was warned a couple of times today about bears in Meziadin Lake Provincial Park. The caretaker in the park where I started the day said there were a couple of bears there. A lady in Kitwanga who was out walking here dog said there was a mother bear with cubs there.
Endpoint for the day:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=55.11324,-128.02295&ll=55.11324,-128.02295&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1
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Today's ride: 93 km (58 miles)
Total: 754 km (468 miles)
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