Thursday, July 3

OK, we have been lingering for a week in the Canadian Rockies, which are every bit as beautiful as they are cracked up to be, and now it is time to get back on the road . But we have one more treat in store before leaving Jasper National Park: a visit to the Miette Hot Springs, located near the northeast edge of the park. There one can luxuriate in one of two big pools COOLED to 104 degrees while admiring the mountain scenery all around. When that gets too hot, you can jump into one of two smaller cold pools. And afterwards, how about a picnic?



This was the day that we had planned to drive to Calgary for the rodeo, and our decision to give away our tickets and forego culture (however you want to define it) in favor of nature and a more direct route to Alaska felt ever more right to us. Just outside the park, at Hinton, we saw our first sign pointing to Alaska; our wonderful route 40 had reappeared, and scenic it indeed was. We travelled north through the foothills of the Rockies for a time, surrounded by billions of trees and much evidence of lumbering activity. Gradually the earth became lower and flatter, but still there were trees. Suddenly we were back in the prairie, Grande Prairie to be precise, at the edge of a city with the most gigantic sawmills and piles of logs and lumber that we had ever seen. We got out of it as quickly as possible and landed at Saskatoon Island Provincial Park in the midst of a rainstorm. But it soon cleared, and when we walked to the lake we saw a bit of a sunset.



Happy Fourth of July to all of you! We have already celebrated with Canada Day (see July 1).