On the Road Again 2012 #14

The spot where Dale let me off, appeared to be a near perfect spot. Cars making the turnoff on to highway number 1 would need to slow down and would therefore would be going slow enough to get a good look at me. There was an ample shoulder and great sight lines. I really could not ask for anything better. Except of course for some cars to go by. In the first hour only four cars went by. None of them stopped. Clearly my assumption that Northerners were friendly and would therefore automatically picked me up was somewhat flawed. Equally as flawed was my assumption that everyone on the road was going to Yellowknife. While they were not marked on my map, there were a number of small First Nation communities along the way. I of course did not know this until I actually went through them.

The other major problem with the site that I was at, were the horse and deer flies (people in the north did not appear to distinguish between the two types of flies). I don't think I am exaggerating, but there were 100's of the silly buggers zooming around my head. I spent most of my almost two hours at that corner standing in the middle of the road. Because there were so few cars going in either direction I felt pretty safe standing there. I was hoping that as the breeze seemed to be strongest in the middle that perhaps the flies would be blown away. Unfortunately the breeze was no strong enough and the flies just hung around appreciating the windbreak my body provided. Again I did not get bitten, they were just annoying

 The vehicles, for some reason seemed to come in groups or 3-4. Which was really exciting for a few minutes but it was less exciting when I realized I may have seen the my allotted number of cars for the hour. As I watched the cars and small trucks roar pass me ( they were not slowing down nearly as much as I thought they would), I noticed that a small grey truck with a cab on the back had slowed down and was now turning around. As the vehicle passed me again, it did another U turn and stopped beside me. His first words were " I just could not drive by you and leave you standing there." I don't very often, or at least I don't think I get very many rides from people who feel a bit sorry for me. It nice when they do.

Todd was on the last leg of a cross country journey. He had started off in Vancouver and gone across the country visiting every capital all the way to the Atlantic Ocean. He was on his way home but heading towards Yellowknife (capital of NWT) and then onto Dawson. He had had a great trip and certainly had developed a extraordinary understanding of Canada. Canada would be a different country if all young people traveled across Canada the way the Todd had done. He had some great stories especially about people in Quebec. We share a lot of things in common including the desire to meet people and to learn from them. He also was prepared to take chances and enjoy the risks.

Todd by profession was a technician working in the film and television industry in  Vancouver. It is a great job as long as one is prepared to work long hours under what can be demanding conditions under, I suspect the bosses may know what they want but may not know if it is possible or not. The job takes perseverance, and I suspect a whole truck load of patience. On a good day it sounded like a lot  of fun with lots of challenges. On a bad day - at least the pay is great. We talked a fair amount about the industry. One of the things that I did not know was that each job was a separate contract. If the head gaffer knew you and liked your work then they would call you when a job was available. If you were not available for that job....they might not call you the next time. Todd knew that and he still went on his trip.It was that important to him.

There are times when I feel the need to censor myself when doing this blog of my trip. I am aware that sometimes the people might not always appreciate my particular perspective of our trip together. In Todd's case however there is nothing I could say that would be negative.He was a great driver, a good story teller, an even better listener and he shared my fascination for Canada. He was also a keen observer. For example it was he who noticed the strange telephone poles on the other side of the Mackenzie. The poles were not  made of wood or cement but rather some sort of fiber. They only had one wire strung on them. We later agreed that perhaps they were for high speed internet access.   

Picture does not reflect the magnificence of the Mackenzie River

The high point of the entire trip was crossing the Mackenzie River. We got on a small ferry  that appeared to struggle against the strong current. This river flows all of the way to the Arctic Ocean! I thin Todd shared my excitement about crossing this importance river that for so many generations has been a highway from community to community. I was told by someone that in the spring when the water is too high and the current too strong that there is no ferry for a month or so. That means that there is no way in or out of Yellowknife except by air. This makes fresh vegetables impossible to get. All of this will change in November when the bridge that is being built across the river will ensure year around access. While I am sure that this is a good thing for the folks who live Yellowknife, for me some of the romance will leave the north

P

Picture taken from a moving car

                                 


The second thing that blew me away and caused us both to get incredibly excited were the bison along the side of the road. I could not believe it. It was such a high!!   I don't believe I have ever been so excited at least for the past couple of years.
The animals look a bit mangy in part because they need to roll in mud to protect themselves from the flies.






We got to Yellowknife sometime around 10:00.  I didn't know where I was going to stay, but we found a hotel, got my stuff out of the back of the truck and away he went to find a camp ground somewhere outside of the city. It was a great ride and I am thankful that Todd shared part of his cross Canada trip with me.