In spite of eagerly obeying a multitude of signs imploring me to “Watch for Wildlife on the Highway” I saw very few wild things along the 1400+ miles of the Alaska Highway. But the lack of wildlife may have been due to my driving habits – starting the day on the road between 7 and 8 am and quitting by 6 pm. Apparently (very) early morning and late evening hours are best for seeing the critters.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGjkBeboVNV9gAT4whgTcGjOBtDa3c0NJdehM9OnDRB-E5aSYHaB4F4aMlOi2N2418jK9K1I1GfMGZTG1DN86oPcOe63fl0CDvT2h_81VfTVAy6RJPn1wgc_SbK9oXDKd48rU4I4f5U_Ru/s320/canada-11-sign.jpg)
A large billboard tells me what the signs mean...
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMOOCDcaHGKocDObFDk0CiKRkqxSjBXv7mbjf899A0gYAILmjulRqmdoH3-yUr8MAAJUilm0S4TEZCNMol1LrxVJ9z7uO4TNpLFtZ2sr8RE-4L-OJfTe9A-pe_cxJKUYbCZ9kbgUqIpwi1/s320/canada-12-sign.jpg)
Smaller signs, like this one, dotted the sides of the highway.
The guide book that I've used for the drive to and in Alaska is called “
The Milepost” and it provides a mile-by-mile breakdown of what to expect along the various highways - from towns and attractions to highway conditions – and it has been a huge help. It too provided some dire warnings about what wildlife to expect and where it would be.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggVPNw-uijvE1SO8qHbDf9Oa6J_i2E2MY2XLqoJakxfCpv8q2MRE_ntaLnqK29e7rOwV6b3zn7lytVuiFGwT4YuBaAQ1wRrHLsRBS-tY_zTsJnqj_aWa9TZ0jQkCzkaH7FOlRf17BRuyVS/s320/canada-13-signpost.jpg)
What little wildlife I did see was on August 3rd (my second day on the Alaska Highway) between Summit Lake and Watson Lake (milepost 373-613). Oh, and that bit about not stopping on the highway? Forget it – everyone was doing it whenever an animal was sighted. Besides, the shoulders were nonexistent in many places and those animals certainly never appeared where there were turnouts!
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyJ0LB-huB0wFoHQOFYNEuCfATyvSOtDvQCfC7Xi3QgkaqvGD5wI-X_M4d-J10bf-OBXMk6i70gNAsvQsiWjdeIenUT10EwoUBnUHRSGTPAHssi7QKTKh0V6so5wMK1llebkWnyW-RYWUD/s400/canada-14-stone-sheep.jpg)
Stone Sheep at 8:20 am near Summit Lake, exactly where The Milepost said they would be! But there was only one, all alone. It was right along the highway just a few feet from the van.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZn-83i0VOGeXzCACUnQHM22c0BSuD7ZgKKfEH2SAJrSeXug6zrO7Md4GIidnKBuvnSP2oZdqPf5BsqwlkMQ1nqJK7h1o7ptbHB0Hb3GxLNLlfQxJJY2D-XuP7PH_AJ2nZSMT3WHmTHZDD/s400/canada-15-stone-sheep.jpg)
It posed for me for several minutes and was still standing there as I drove away.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF2HekuzjkhcaJYxdBMjYS2Vw9GwP9gUFv6uQG3Oo0cxPFtt-ILceDYWZCQ2VlusHcluSkoJurF5qWeKDgZrjsoP67_NbO2oArjnQlaJiIJtaOT8Zw-fAg00meNtKSc75uBQ_OIXfLxQ3Z/s400/canada-16-bear.jpg)
Bear at 10:35 am. On the off-chance that I'd see any wildlife I had gotten my other camera out (it has 15x zoom but takes lower resolution images). Otherwise this fella would have been a small dot in the photo! Berries were its idea of a good meal.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRFm1t-TPDw4Y9LJjn7Im_r307txYM8V0JxLpIuGyhhPbTqNYkNKG7iF_-HbLXXX5-Xlda1uYvJvdqpJvOsill6FELsEqT96W_CoIcUYJ-kVUmKLZ1eHzQ4pb2lNG3F5P1a-qfjLv08Ssz/s400/canada-17-bears.jpg)
These two bears (taken at 12:58 pm) were some distance away when I saw them and stopped. I was able to get just one photo before they scurried off into the forest.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNQ8XiG0FRK2vW-35Y2Do7NXY0GQvy5i6EyHX3jmezNNeRmS3xev7jmBQ1rHK9oHeg2C5Jly0RFi0LLsP9whBmBgdfZDWZZ31IukW38wyTxXmenHB7fbXsVCywrLghTm5pwMK02nJz4TC_/s400/canada-18-buffalo.jpg)
A small herd of Buffalo at 1:20 pm. Another small herd was several miles further on. It is possible that these are “domesticated” buffalo since several of them appear to be wearing a collar of some kind. Or perhaps it is a tracking device?
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCz2XgETErxfgcaGKLz14TRhxQbm6_H6Gzgm-dU6r7YcRgukVVRsbu7KmtNKBVuCiIcwjMhIUPEmghYTL-OA7wgX2RklZ-b7aqIgghf1h4XlKL1qdOJa1k6X5JBqoo_hGJxjFkfOwetBkH/s400/canada-19-buffalo.jpg)
That's all folks! That's it. That's all there was!
(Well that's all that I saw...)
Note: This post was written at 11:30 pm Friday night using the available daylight only. There was still an orange tint to the western sky. Even later in the night the sky does not get dark. I haven't seen the stars in the night sky since leaving Montana. Temperature was about 55 degrees with a light breeze. And, this is being posted from the public library in the little town of
North Pole, Alaska which is about 15 miles south of Fairbanks.
2 comments:
Great photo of the Stone Sheep. Also, I had no idea there were buffalo that far north! I always thought of them as being in the great plains.
Great photos, Becky! I'm enjoying your trip so much! Thank you for sharing it with us.
Post a Comment