To Kinaskan Lake Provincial Park: a bear just off the road

August 15, 2007

The noisy group across from us is also up early, 7am, but a little quieter. We pack up and eat yogurt-museli bars for breakfast in the parking lot by the office.

There is a steep hill 1/3 mile back to the highway, too early for Rachel without a warm up, and walks some of it. Once on the highway, it's a quick 2-3km downhill to Iskut. We stop for gasoline for our fuel bottle, then back on the road. We are stopped by a flagger for the road construction. We can continue to ride another 3km, then our gear & bikes go in the back of the pilot pickup truck and we are driven through the construction about 10km. The road follows the lake, the driver friendly. Tells us a couple of "bear stories", one about a cyclist who had been all around the world and at the end of his travels headed to anchorage...got eaten by a bear at Watson Lake. There is another human-bear incident at Laird Hot Springs.

There is really only a small section of road being worked on, but some entrances for the large trucks & road equipment makes it safer to keep all the traffic together. He is also going to Tatogga Lake Resort for breakfast, just another km past the end of the construction...so we ask to be dropped off there. Breakfast takes a long time, but well worth the wait. Coffee is self serve, we could hear the cook talking in the kitchen--and it sounded like she had had too much coffee, and the "waiter" must have been a relative, just hanging out taking orders...slowly.

This is a short day, 10km in a truck and 25km to Kinaskan Lake. Just about 3km away from the campground, Rachel spots a black bear just off the left side of the highway and freezes. Patrick had stopped to take pictures and was a ways behind her. When he came up, he said let's back away, so we did watching the bear feed, no traffic coming by, Patrick had his camera ready and the safety off the bear spray. Something finally spooked the bear into the forest, so quickly blending in the forest and disappearing.

Once to the campground, we find a spot near the camp site of people we first met at Deese River Crossing. We settle into our site then go back and visit with Ellen and a cup of coffee. Ray is out exploring another cabin, the fishing for rainbow trout is good. We attempt a hike along the lake trail but it has been chewed up and muddied by horses, so we don't make it very far. Patrick finds a little beach with perfect skipping stones.

Back at camp, another camping neighbor that we had met at Boya Lake, gives us a rainbow trout, aluminum foil and some wood for a fire to cook it on. We have that as an appetizer while Rachel cooks a red sauce, meat spaghetti. Later Ellen comes over and invites us to dinner and gives us 2 rainbow trout Patrick cooks in the frying pan. The Park Facility Operator comes by to register us and collect the $14 fee. She told us about the road ahead, then moved on to other sites returning to us later and gives us a fresh smoked rainbow trout! We'll have plenty to eat for the long ride tomorrow.

After dinner, our neighbors invite us to join them at their campfire. Patrick had heard the chopping wood and went to help. The couple are from British Columbia, Bill and Carol. Bill was a commercial fisherman. We chatted around the fire, Patrick had a beer, Rachel tried the home made wine. We say good night to them and go to the next campsite to say goodbye to Ray & Ellen. We visit a little bit, there is a Port Angeles couple also there, we talk about NZ and Ray weaved into the conversation information from our conversation at Deese River crossing.

All very nice people, and such a different experience than last night's noisy camping.