All of Canada is a gray, choking mess of SMOKE.

It was smoky in Spokane like it has been in Boise, but Canada is completely turned up to 11 on the smoke meter. You cannot see over a ½ mile visibility in many places and I’ve been told it will be worse in Prince George where I will be in two days on my way to Dawson Creek and the beginning of the Alaskan Highway.

So far the trip has gone well- I am moving right along driving a 7 hour day Friday and today to get about 20 miles outside of Kelowna, British Columbia and I am staying at a Provincial Campground that is above a large lake. It would be very pretty if it you could see it.

The fires that are making the smoke must be all over here. When I crossed the border the first thing I saw was a large helicopter with a bucket under it diving for a lake to fill its bucket and to my left was another one, bucket full heading west;  scary. I’ve been caught in a wildfire in Tasmania, Australia with flames by the side of the road and a helicopter frantically dumping retardant to keep the road clear and I don’t need that anxiety again!

Passing through northern Washington after Spokane was like driving north of Sun Valley with high meadows and mountain valleys and driving across the border and through this part of Canada reminds me of the area around Reno and Tahoe. Pine trees and windy roads and you run along a lake for awhile…the roads are good, well maintained two lanes that are windy and speed limits are 60 mph and below. My GPS speedometer has a ‘kilometers’ setting that I switched to after the border crossing so I have no excuses for speeding , but mostly I want to travel slower than traffic both to sightsee and keep it a little easier on my 41 year old vehicle.

The van has been running well. Noisy and smelly, but good.

I put about ¾ of a quart of oil in it this morning when I filled up but the coolant was good- no overheat issue.  It is very loud with the engine so close beside me and I think the new clutch fan has a whiney noise when it engages that is annoying and with the window down to stay cool there has been a lot of road noise so I can’t hear the radio.

After crossing the border I stopped in a small town for a walk and to get some Canadian currency. I exchanged cash in a market and bought some milk and crackers then went to a small farmers market across the street in park and bought two beautiful heirloom tomatoes to have with dinner. They were delicious.

I am still not organized with living in the van so I am continually moving things around to sit, cook, get a drink, etc. I believe I may take a rest day in Dawson Creek when I get there in three days to sort it out more before starting the Alaskan Highway.

That’s all for now- will add pictures when I can. Peace out!