Our long day-from Edmonton to Fort Nelson.

Yesterday we left Edmonton to head out for our adventure on the Alaska Highway.  We would be spending a lot of time in the Jeep to get to Fort Nelson for the night, so before leaving town we needed to burn off a little energy.  Since we hadn't gotten a chance to see the Legislative building the day before because of the rain, we bravely headed off to find our way without google maps(even though I paid extra for minutes and data on my Verizon plan, I can't seem to get data to work anywhere!).  I had looked at the map on my phone while we were still at hotel and it seemed fairly easy to find, so off we went. 

We found our way downtown and successfully parked near the capitol grounds.  We jumped out of the Jeep ready to explore.  The skies were dark and it started to sprinkle as we walked toward the grounds so I knew we’d have to make a quick trip.  What a shame that was because the grounds were beautiful.  After a 30 minute walk around, we jumped back into the Jeep and found our way to the highway and we were on the road.

 Just North of Edmonton, the scenery began to change from flat prairie lands to more rolling prairies and then soon after that, the number of trees began to increase.  It was rainy periodically for several miles and then the rain turned to sunshine.  We made a quick stop in one of the small towns along the way to grab a quick bite and let the dogs get out to stretch their legs, and then it was back on the road.

Soon we approached our “Moose Row,” the stretch of road which they claim to be regularly crossed by moose, however, the entire trip, we only saw one moose.  I was upset with the false advertising!

After a nice stretch of sunny skies, the rain started again and we were getting some pretty good down pours.  We drove for miles and miles in the rain.  I was hoping it would slow down before we reached Grand Prairie because I was hoping to getting the girls out for another walk.  By the time we reached Grand Prairie however, not only had the rain not stopped, it hadn’t gotten worse.  I guess they didn’t mind much though.

To top it off, a stretch of the highway we were supposed to take was closed and we ended up on a very interesting detour.  I wish I would have gotten a couple of pictures sooner, but I was too busy driving through muddy roads!  The detour literally took us through farm roads that would normally be traveled by tractors and trucks.  Boy was I happy to have a Jeep!

We finally made it through our detour and out of the prairie lands of Grand Prairie and the rain began to slow down.  By this time we were all ready to get out of the Jeep and stretch our legs again. It had been a long drive already and we still had a long way to go. 

We were excited to finally make it to British Columbia...we were inching closer to our destination for the night.  And then we reached Mile 0, the start of the Alaska Highway in Dawson Creek.  I loved the statue of the guy pointing the way...but I couldn't get a very good picture while I was driving.

We continued on our journey toward Fort Nelson.  We passed through many small towns along the way, but my favorite part of the highway was just the open road and watching the landscape begin to change.

I also thought some of the things we saw along the way were just plain funny!  Who would think  you could get Chinese in the middle of nowhere?

As I shared last night, we finally arrived in Fort Nelson where we stayed at the Legendary Fort Nelson Hotel.  After a long day, it was nice to get out and explore the town a bit.  Fort Nelson is a nice little town with a lot to offer.  There are several restaurants including a Chinese restaurant and a Sushi place...and a Dominos if you want a pizza delivered.  They have a small college, a skate park, a movie theater(with one screen), and some small shops to explore.  If you ever travel the Alaska highway, I recommend you spend a day there.

The girls are still being amazing travelers and they even let me sleep in this morning(with the exception of Imke's 4:50am potty break).  I even beat them out of bed this morning and made it to the cafe in the hotel just in time for my complimentary breakfast.   After another walk around town, we were off for more adventures on the Alaska Highway.  

Fort Nelson

Today we drove from Edmonton, Alberta to Fort Nelson, British Columbia.  It was our second longest travel day of the trip,  but we made it to Fort Nelson with two hours of daylight left, so we got in a good walk.

The girls were amazing travelers today through lots of rain and too little time outside of the car.  At times it felt like the rain was torrential and the temps fell into upper 40s. Eventually the skies did clear up and we had a beautiful sunny drive for the end of our travels. 

We reached the Alaska Highway and the scenery is much improved from the flat prairie lands.  It is absolutely beautiful and not at all what I expected. 

We are staying at the Fort Nelson Hotel tonight.  Unfortunately there are issues with the wifi in town.  I was lucky enough to get it to work on my cell phone, but cannot get it to work on my laptop at all.  Writing an entire blog on a cell phone is not going to work, but I wanted to check in and give an update for today.

Tomorrow we head into the Yukon Territory.   I'm hoping the wifi there will work so I can share more of our journey from today and tomorrow. 

Good night from a really long way from home!  

Our first Provincial Capitol

Hello from Edmonton, Alberta Canada!  It is 10 pm MDT as I write this and it is still daylight out.  As a matter of fact, sunset in Edmonton today is at 10:03pm.  There was just a marvelous orange sky outside of our room which as a really great way to end the day.

The clouds have now moved back in, but I thought I'd share my view as I sit here writing this.  It's not a very exciting view, but I just can't get over how light it is still.

After a late night last night, we started our day early this morning in Regina.  Our first stop was the Saskatchewan State Legislative Building.  This was our first visit to a Provincial Capitol.  As we got out of the Jeep to explore the grounds, we were pleasantly surprised.  There is a beautiful little lake and park surrounding the grounds so we took a nice long walk. 

Peaches was extra crazy this morning and kept trying to drag me into the water, so we moved away from the lake and into the park.  The best way to deal with her when she's in one of her unruly moods, is to move away from what's distracting her and making her work on her sit stays, so that's just what we did.  I should have paid better attention to the historical significance of these spots, but at least I got some cute pictures!

After a good walk, we headed back to the capitol grounds and I found the perfect spot for our picture.  The girls were patient and sat nicely for the picture.  This was good practice for Juneau!  Just seconds after this was taken, Peaches found her way into the fountain for a swim.  Silly girl!

As we headed back to the Jeep, we took a quick walk around the garden  in front of the building.  I couldn't resist getting this picture of Imke on the move.

As we continued on our travels through the prairies, this was pretty much the view for most of our drive.  Lots of flat land for as far as the eye can see.  

This was part of my view, too.  Peaches definitely knows how to make herself comfortable!

After lots and lots of miles of driving, we finally reached Alberta.  We made a quick stop at the visitor center to pick up some maps and other information and to give the girls a chance to explore a bit.

Lloydminster is part of both Provinces and was one of the larger towns that we drove through today.  We had to stop to get a picture to prove we made it to Alberta.

We arrived in Edmonton to stormy skies.  Although I had planned to get out and explore a bit, the rain put a bit of a damper on that plan.  The girls were pretty happy to just hang out in the room and watch the world through the window.

So after our day of travel, I decided to order delivery and hang out in the room and watch the storm roll through.  It was nice to sit back a relax for the night.  Imke enjoyed watching me eat my dinner.  She's so pathetic.

It's been a nice night relaxing and preparing for another long drive tomorrow.  After hundreds of miles of flat prairies,  I did notice a subtle change to more rolling hills as we got closer to Edmonton.  I think we are in for big changes tomorrow.  

Traveling through Prairie Lands

Tonight I am writing to you from Regina, Saskatchewan.  It has been a very long day.  As a matter of fact, today is the longest day of driving we'll have for the entire trip. Since we left home yesterday, we've driven about 1375 miles through 4 States and 2 Canadian Provinces (and I've still managed to get in over 12,000 steps each day too!).  I'm so proud of the girls and how well they have been traveling too.  They are troopers and other than a little anxiety from Maddie this morning, it has been smooth sailing. 

We started the day in Superior Wisconsin with a nice 45 minute walk around town before breakfast, and then we packed up and headed out.  Within minutes we entered Duluth, Minnesota and Maddie was far too excited about all of the water surrounding us.  Thanks to Minnesota and their 10,000 Lakes, it was a morning drive filled with a pacing Maddie because she just loses her mind when she can smell lake air.  But she finally relaxed and was great for the rest of the trip.  We crossed the mighty Mississippi, which is pretty small in Northern Minnesota and traveled through many small towns before finally reaching the North Dakota border.  We weren't able to get any pictures at any of the State Borders since most of them happened at a bridge over water, but hopefully we'll get some on our way home. 

The plan for today was not to stop much along the way for any sight seeing, we'll be able to check some stuff out on our way home and I just wanted to get to Regina for the night.  However, we did stop to stretch our legs along the way and of course we had to stop in Michigan, North Dakota.

 Along the way, we also stopped at the geographic center of North America.

Most of our trip was just miles and miles of flat farmland with a town here and there.  Even though it's not the most exciting scenery, I still think it's beautiful.

After driving for miles through North Dakota, we finally reached the Canadian border at what has to be one of the lonliest border crossing locations in the country.  I didn't see another car for miles before or after crossing the border.

Thankfully no one was around so we were able to stop and get a picture as we entered Manitoba.  The girls weren't very cooperative, but at least I have proof that we were there!

We were in Manitoba for about 27 miles before we reached Saskatchewan.  So I dragged the girls out of the Jeep for a picture again. 

Imke and Maddie were enjoying just laying in the grass and I couldn't resist getting a picture of Imke all on her own just soaking up the sun.

The most interesting thing I've found about Saskatchewan is that every single town has one of these grain elevators.  After driving for miles and seeing nothing, I always knew we were nearing a town when I saw one of these looming in the distance.

After driving for 100s of miles through flat prairie land, the best part of the day was seeing the Regina skyline in the distance as the sun was setting. It was beautiful and I wish I could have gotten a picture. 

Before we leave in the morning, we'll be exploring the area a bit so we can get in a good walk before heading on to Edmonton for tomorrow night.  I'm looking forward to a little less driving and a little more exploring tomorrow.  

Stop One Superior Wisconsin

We headed out early today on day one of our trip to Alaska.  With a long day of travel ahead of us, I knew we'd need to make a few stops along the way to stretch our legs and give the girls a chance to explore.  So we left bright and early to begin our adventure.  The girls were excited to be in the Jeep heading off on an adventure.  They have no idea what's in store!

Our first stop, as is the case with any trip North, was Mackinaw City.  It was a hot and humid day, so the girls were ready to head right for the Lake. 

Happy girl at the Lake!

After a little splash in the Lake and a good drink, we were off to take a quick 1 1/2 mile walk on the North Country Trail before jumping back in the Jeep to continue on our journey.  But before we could get into the Jeep, I had to get a picture in front of the Fort.

After a nice stop, we settled in for a long drive.  I decided to stay on US2 as we headed West through the UP.  The girls were sound asleep and I had settled in for the drive so I was able to make good time on some really long, quiet stretches of highway.

US2 West of Crystal Falls

After driving through a bit of a rain storm, the sun came back out and it was time for us to get out to stretch our legs again so we made a stop in Wakefield and I forced the girls to pose for some pictures for me.

We took a quick walk around before we were back in the Jeep and heading to Wisconsin with my co-pilot in her rightful spot in the front seat.

The trip across Wisconsin went quickly and smoothly and we were soon in Superior, our destination for the night.  Although Superior is very much a industrial town, it still has some very pretty areas.  Before heading to the hotel for the night, we went for a walk on the Osaugie Trail which runs along the waterfront.

Silly me, I forgot it was the 4th of July, so we had to shorten our walk due to the fireworks which were just about to start.  As we walked back to the Jeep, we even got a little history lesson.

Before heading to the hotel, we mad a quick stop to pick up dinner at Shorty's, which was featured on Food Network's Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. The pizza and cheese curds were both amazing!

We're now all nicely settled into our room for the night.  The girls are snuggled together and sound asleep and I'm about to snuggle up with them.  We have an even longer day ahead of us tomorrow as we head into Canada. Time for bed!

Hit the road, Jack!

Tomorrow is the day we leave for our epic road trip through Canada to Juneau, Alaska.  After months of planning and preparation, we are ready.  The Jeep is packed with the exception of a couple of items which can't be packed until we are leaving, the girls got in a good walk tonight, and I have done everything I possibly can to make sure we are prepared.  I can't believe it's here!

Tomorrow we'll be traveling through the UP and into Wisconsin for our first night away.  I plan to make some small stops along the way to stretch our legs and maybe even get in a few miles on the North Country Trail.  I'm excited beyond belief, a little nervous, and am amazed at that fact the we're really doing this.

No pictures to share tonight and no big story, just one excited girl ready to go out and see the world.  It is my plan to update this blog every night as long as I have internet...I guess we'll see what happens.  I hope to share some really amazing stuff with you all along the way and hope you enjoy the journey with us!

Until tomorrow night, good night to you all.  I wish you all a happy and safe 4th of July holiday!