Day 4: The Deh Cho Route: Valleyview, Alta – High Level, Alta
This route connects Alberta’s Highway 35 with the Mackenzie Highway in the NWT. We came up Highway 43N, then turned onto 35N. When we reached the intersection where we were supposed to turn left to go into Grimshaw, where we would officially start the Mackenzie Highway at Mile Zero – we didn’t. Due to a brain fart, we turned right and continued on.
The photo you are seeing is actually from a magazine. Aarrgg.
Then the signs let us know it’s a long way to High Level, where we will spend the next two days golfing. It’s hot as hell here, 35C, which is unusual. And there is a lot of smoke from the forest fires. Oh well, when we see ash falling, then we will go the opposite way from the wind. All is well.
For hours and many kilometers, this is what we saw. It’s flat, but bright and beautiful (and smoky).
Manning, Alta: We stopped at the Visitors Info in search of the famous mighty moose statue affectionately called “Morse”. The ladies playing cards at the information centre said, ‘The moose is a horse statue, but wearing horns’, hence the combination of moose/horse = ‘Morse’. Manning was named for the 1947 Premier, Manning. This town is a service centre and jumping-off point for hunters and fishermen in the ‘Land of the Mighty Moose.”
Next up: Peace River!
Oddly enough, the town of Peace River is located on the Peace River. Actually, it looked like a pretty cool little town. The population is approximately 6,700, and it serves as the centre for government services in the region. It’s a farming community, but there’s also a pulp mill, and the surrounding country has lots of gas & oil. We missed the statue of ‘Twelve Foot Davis’. He was a gold miner who struck it rich on a 12-foot-wide strip of land between two larger claims in the Cariboo goldfields. I do remember passing his grave when we went through Donnelly.
Looking down on the town and the river from the highway.
After a brief tour of the town, we carried on to High Level. We stayed at the Aspen Ridge Campground, and without a doubt, this is THE best campground we have ever camped at in all our years of travel. It’s very well thought out, with easy access, and it has the best ‘shower building’ which includes a ping-pong table, library, laundromat, and great showers. Debbie was pretty impressed. We pulled in here thinking of golfing all day tomorrow, but alas, the clouds and thunder moved in overnight. It dropped from 35C to 18C with high winds and thunder showers. It definitely blew the smoke out, but there would be NO golfing. We hunkered down, read books, I kicked Steve’s ass in Crib, and we watched a movie. It was definitely a ‘down’ day. We have our own Starlink system, our own wine, and we’re not on a schedule. Life is good. Tomorrow, off we go. Next destination, Hay River, Enn Doubleyew Tee!
Coming up: The Dehcho Region, or Deh Cho, is one of five administrative regions in the Northwest Territories of Canada. The region consists of six communities with the regional office situated in Fort Simpson. The communities are: Fort Liard, Fort Simpson, Jean Marie River, Nahanni Butte, Sambaa K’e, and Wrigley. All communities in the Dehcho are predominantly Dehcho First Nations. Dehcho means “big river” – the Dene name for the Mackenzie River. The Mackenzie begins its 1,600-kilometre journey north to the Arctic Ocean and winds along through some of the Northwest Territories’ most remarkable landscapes along the way. The foothills and spires of the Mackenzie Mountains are home to the Nahanni National Park Reserve.