The Alcan Home: Last Day Muncho Lake, BC to Dawson Creek, August 2010

We stayed in room 3 at the Double G. There was a note pinned to the door that read “Reserved for David Russell”. The room was unlocked, and there is no key. As we packed up our bags to leave, I realized that I truly am married to a giant!

Dave barely fit through the doorway without hitting his head. Inside our room, was a little better, and the only thing he had to watch out for was the light fixture! LOL!

I love it here at Muncho. I could live here forever.

Dave thinks I’m crazy because you literally are out in the middle of nowhere. But, Muncho Lake is known for its beautiful deep green and blue waters. I think it has something to do with copper oxide leaching into the lake.

There is no electricity here. The double G runs on a generator that is turned off at night. But, I don’t care! I love the isolation and the mountains and the lake. I feel comfortable here, soothed, calm and relaxed. The lake is 7 miles long and about 1 mile wide, with the deepest point being 730 ft! Can you believe it?! The mountains surrounding the lake are about 7,000 feet high causing the lake to flow into the Trout River and then into the mighty Liard River.

The highway along Muncho Lake required considerable rock excavation by the Army in 1942. Horses were used to haul away the rocks. The original route went along the top of the cliffs, which proved particularly hazardous. Portions of the old road can be seen high above the lake.

I think Dave likes it here too, because he was immediately off pishing birds in the trees! LOL

He heard YWARS, Orange-crowned, Wilson’s, Yellow-rumped Warblers, White-crowned Sparrows, Boreal Chickadees, and Bohemian Waxwings. Can’t you just hear him saying all these names as he’s pointing them out to you?!

As we left Muncho Lake, we came upon this small flock of Stone Sheep, one of 5 races of North American Big Horned sheep, found typically in the Yukon and the Northwest Territories.

The highway follows the Toad River east for several miles and the views are breathtaking!

As we reached Summit Lake, there were more Stone Sheep on the road.

We got to the Super 8 in Dawson Creek at about 7:30pm. We made it! We’ve driven the Alaska Highway up and back. What a great feeling! We celebrated with steak dinner at Solas Restaurant. Yummy! I slept great.  We'll be home in 3 days now.  What a great summer!