What the Zamboni?!

I saw this in Beaver Creek. I'm not sure what it is. At first I thought it could be an old zamboni, but it seems to be missing a few parts (like a driver's seat and a steering wheel and the assembly at the back). Also, it looks like it has some sort of arm for being towed.

Care to weigh in?

Birds on a Wire

There are a dozen-or-so swallows that hang around just outside my hotel room here in Beaver Creek. I think they're a mix of tree swallows and violet-green swallows. Whatever they are, they've definitely got personality.

"Oh, yeah. I'm cool. I know it."

"Oooh! Ooooh! Itchy!"

"Ha ha! Real cool. Flea-infested loser!"

"You're one to talk! You can't even keep your breast feathers from flopping out all over the place!"

"Eek!" (Groom, groom, groom.)

"Sorry..."

"Hey! How you doin'?"

"Kiss my tail feathers, slimeball!"

"This is all so embarrassing..."

"It doesn't matter how colourful I am, nobody seems to notice me..."

"Oh, I see you Mountains. You think you can intimidate me? You think you're all big and mighty and that I'm just a little bird, but I can fly right over you. Tony Robins tells me I can and I will. Whaddaya think of that, huh? Whaddaya think of that!"

Machines that made history!

On March 8, 1942, construction began on a 2,237 km (1,390 mile) road that would come to be known as the Alaska Highway. It was finished by October 28, 1942 with the northern linkup at Mile 1202, Beaver Creek. The highway was dedicated on November 20, 1942.

And what type of equipment was used to construct a somewhat-passable 2,237 km highway in eight months?



Yeah, definitely gotta have ambulances.




And ya gotta have some excavators (one step away from a steam shovel). Check out that über-comfortable seat!

Of course, you'll need something to transport the wooden culverts.



Aww, look at it looking at the Alaska Highway. I think it's feeling nostalgic!


If you'd like to see these history-making machines for yourself, you can find them not far from Beaver Creek, Yukon at Bear Flats (Koidern) near the White River.

What is the opposite of "impression"?

With the arrival of long days and spring heat, the ice on the lakes and ponds won't be around for much longer.

I'm in Beaver Creek now. On my way here, I noticed some tracks running across a small lake.  That's not unusual, but these tracks were.  You see, the walker compressed the snow in such a way that the surrounding snow melted faster than the footprints, leaving an elevated trackway.

Very cool.

Back to Beaver Creek.

I'm in Beaver Creek again. It seems like I was just here! How quickly the months fly by.

This trip marks the first time ever that I've seen sheep on Sheep Mountain. Its a scenic mountain on it's own. Sprinkle a dozen sheep and a warm Spring afternoon sun on its slopes and it becomes even more scenic.






I saw this wiley critter along the way. S/He was very wary of any vehicles, which is good, but something was keeping her/him in the area. A kill? A den? I'll never know.


The warmer weather and long spring days are melting things quickly. The larger lakes are still covered with ice but some of the smaller ones are starting to clear. This lake made me pause for reflection. As you can see.




I love how I don't have to worry about driving long distances in the dark at this time of year. Extended nighttime driving just gets so tiring. According to Environment Canada, sunrise in Beaver Creek today was at 05:56 and the sunset was at 22:45. It's still quite bright outside and will be for a while. And the days are still getting longer.

As scenic as the entire drive from Whitehorse to Beaver Creek is, I think I like the section closest to Beaver Creek the best. Not because of the perpetually horrid state of the highway (they really try their best, but Mother Nature's frost heaves are kicking their butts on this one), but because there's something about the area the makes for great, dramatic cloud formations.




I'll be here for the week and I'm certain that, just like the clouds in the sky and the traffic on the Alaska Highway, the time will fly right by.

Into the storm...

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It was a gloriously warm and sunny day as I began my drive back to Whitehorse from Beaver Creek.  As I got closer to Kluane Lake, the wind began to gust.  It was a strong wind and I could feel it pushing on my car, trying to force it off the side of the road.


I was driving under a baby blue sky but could see nothing but dark, grey skies past Burwash Landing.


By the time I passed Destruction Bay, the imposing grey dominated the skies.



Then, just past the lake, the stretch of road between the head of Kluane Lake and Haines Junction started to disappear in near white-out conditions.


As the snow accumulated, the wide soft shoulders began to disappear making it nearly impossible to tell where the road ended and the ditch began.  Vehicles heading in either direction started using the middle of the road - or at least what they thought was the middle of the road.


As I pulled into Haines Junction, the storm vanished as quickly as it had appeared.  The rest of the drive into Whitehorse was fast and pleasant.

There's nothing like a little inclement weather to make a road trip more memorable.

As seen on the drive to Beaver Creek...