Tacoma Team - It's a Wrap #1

Hello, Friends and Family,


We're home! But between Saturday morning and Monday night we still had time for a few more adventures:

The Logging Road

On our way into town on July 10 I'd noticed a street called "Bulkley Canyon Road." It sounded like it had potential for awesome views, so on our free Saturday (July 17), I invited people to join me on a little driving exploration. A few leaders - Lynn, Matt, Ardyce, Lori, and Mark - were game, so off we went. Bulkley Canyon Road ended in a dead end with no views, so we followed another sign to Ross Lake. It was so beautiful and so peaceful (but what WAS that calling from across the lake?) that we decided we'd plan a picnic there next year, weather permitting.

On we journeyed, heading up the road to Kispiox, a village about 16 km from Hazelton. After admiring their totem poles, we crossed back over the river and decided to explore a side road, hoping to spot some bears. After 11 km (and still no bears) the road forked: one branch led to an Experimental Forest, but the other was unmarked. We chose the unmarked road and soon found ourselves heading uphill. As the views grew more spectacular and the piles of bear droppings ("scat") grew more plentiful, our hopes of spotting a bear (or three) grew. Unfortunately, the condition of the road deteriorated. Eventually, it wasn't much of a road but more of a bulldozed, narrow track covered with coarse rock (not smooth gravel). When we came upon downed trees we realized it was merely a logging road. Rationalizing that logging trucks couldn't possibly turn around on such a narrow track (and not finding any place suitable for turning around even if we'd wanted to), we deduced the road had to go all the way through to a main road, so onward we went.

Until the road abruptly ended in a stand of trees, 12 km from the fork (we're sure of the distances because there were km markings along the way). There was a small turnaround area, but one small miscalculation with the (14-passenger) van, and we'd either be in the ditch or sliding down the sleep slope into the trees. No one knew where we were, and we had no cell phone service. As we all prayed mightily (as we had been doing for about 15 minutes by this time), I hopped out and let Mark take over driving. With God's help he maneuvered us back over the rocks, through the water- and mud-filled tire tracks, back to the fork, and on out to the main highway. When we were safely home, I kept looking around the camp, thinking I'd never been as happy to be there as I was that day. Oh - and we finally did see a bear. One bear. Running across the road. Near the bottom of the hill.

The Alaska Trip

Two vanloads of teens and adults set out at 7 a.m. on Saturday morning, knowing they'd be spending a good portion of the day on the road the day BEFORE our two days' driving to come home. But the scenery on the 3-hour drive to the border was spectacular - waterfalls and Bear Glacier (and even some bears) and tree-covered mountainsides. Once across the border they stopped at Fish Creek hoping to view grizzlies from the safe viewing boardwalks, but they saw no bears (we never do). They continued on up to Salmon Glacier, where they ate lunch and then played mountain goats, scampering up the rocks to take in an even-more-spectacular view.

After a stop in the "ghost town" of Hyder, where you can buy fudge from the Dulcimer Lady, they crossed back into Canada (getting their passports stamped in the process) and headed home. I was told the van ride was almost the best part of the journey; it was a smorgasbord of music (some of it so old only the adult leaders recognized it), and it was often accompanied by dancing. That's what they told me: dancing in the van. Don't worry - I'm having a hard time picturing it, also.
I'll continue to adventures tomorrow in Part 2, when you'll get all the details of the broken ankle and the flat tire.

In Christ,

Sue Acuna

I will sing to the Lord, for He has been good to me. Ps. 6:13