The ongoing story of a girl and her van on an epic journey across Canada.
…or the Yellowhead Highway…
Day 7 (Sun, May 16)
I was up in Terrace, BC, maybe 11 years ago. Actually, I was about an hour North of Terrace, in a tiny hippy community called Rosswood, for a music festival. It had been, I don’t remember exactly how many so let’s just say several, days since I’d bathed. As I passed through Terrace on my way east, I saw a laundromat that had paid showers.
Now maybe you’ve seen this before. But I have travelled a fair bit in my day and I have never, ever encountered this anywhere else. There was a little bathroom in the back with a coin-operated shower. Maybe it has something to do with those “several days” with no access to running water, but I still remember that as the best shower I’ve ever taken.
So I was delighted when, back in Terrace, I was walking along and saw the same laundromat with the same sign. I may have even squealed.
I should mention that the drive from Prince Rupert to Terrace is likely the prettiest part of the Yellowhead highway. The Skeena River to the south, forests and snowcapped mountains all around; I’m surprised I didn’t kill myself trying to take pictures while driving.
Not that I did that. Because that would be dangerous.
…cough…
Anyway, I spent a few days chillin’ in lovely Terrace at Ferry Island campground. I had the whole park practically to myself. This time around I showered at the campground, not at the laundromat. That turned out to be a big mistake. The water was warm for just long enough for me to get my hair wet and shampooed, and then it turned arctic-glacier-runoff freezing. So Terrace is now the place that gave me the best shower ever AND the worst shower ever.
I’m talking a lot about showering. Is that weird?
Day 9 (Tues, May 18)
You may remember my friend Bev from such posts as “What Happens in Portland” and “Adventures in Snacking“. Once again she has come through for me in a fantastic way, by hooking me up with her friend Rhonda in Houston, BC. Thanks, Bev!
I was in Smithers, and there was a monsoon going on outside. I stopped at a coffee shop to quickly check my email and somehow managed to delete my entire website from my server.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I’m THAT smart.
So my quick stop turned into hours of trying to recover the darn thing. And then it was even wetter outside and the thought of trying to find a camping site made me want to cry. I had this number of this friend of a friend in Houston (about an hour away) and thought okay, I’ll call and maybe we can get together for coffee tomorrow or something.
But no, this angel is all just come straight over and stay with us and we’ll feed you and everything! (I’m paraphrasing.) So this is how I ended up in Houston for a few days and met some of the best people ever. Rhonda and Doug welcomed me into their home, sat me down, gave me chilli and wine, and within minutes I felt like I’d known them forever.
Day 10-11 (Wed/Thur, May 19/20)
The next morning Rhonda took me on her daily walk — 8k up through old mining roads, with her dear friend Kathy. On the way I was lucky enough to have a rare encounter with their personal snuffaluffagus, Steve. (side note, did you know that there’s a wiki dedicated to muppet characters? How cool is that?) Steve is a runner that sometimes will magically appear about halfway through the walk, only to depart before they get home. They never see him anywhere else and I’m not sure his existence has been confirmed by anyone else in town.
The two days we did this walk we were joined by Steve, which I think is a good omen for the rest of my trip. I fully expect to be walking somewhere in Saskatchewan and have him appear beside me and start chatting.
The four of us walked and swapped stories and laughed during our morning walks. It was such a lovely way to start each day. Thanks to Rhonda and Doug and Kathy and Steve I can say that so far Houston is my favouritest place. I also enjoyed the big stuffed grizzly and giant fly fishing rod at the tourist info centre. I think all Canadian towns should have a “world’s largest” thing. Canada, get on that, will you?
Sadly, I did have to leave. I mean, I was only half way across one province. It wouldn’t be much of a cross-Canada adventure if I put up roots already. Nine and a half still to go.
So leave I did. And what was I greeted with? Snow.
That’s right. SNOW.
But more on that later.
Photo Credits
All photos by Sarah Gignac
Terrace Laundromat with Showers
The Yellowhead Highway from Prince Rupert to Terrace
The Houston Vistor Centre Grizzly Bear
This article was first published on Raggedy Threads in May 2010.
Glad to see (but I’m not surprised!) that you are having an amazing adventure. We just drove through a town in Maine that is purported to be the blueberry capital and YES, you guessed it, a gigantic blueberry display had been created. Wacky and awesome at the same time.
Oooh, where in Maine? I do love blueberries and wacky displays.