ROF= Ring of fire Odyssey MEF-H = Marine Expeditionary Force- Hargus
AK= Alaska journey
Sunday July 9, 2017
Liard Hot Springs. Pronounced Lee-ard. Left Fort Nelson British Columbia heading north on Highway 97 and this was a pretty good hump all day driving about 180 miles. Driving West through the British Columbia Canada wilderness the scenery was just absolutely breathtaking.
Crossed huge Rivers 500 yards wide and the bridge construction was phenomenal on these huge Rivers. The Toad River.
Muncho Lake
Turning Northwest went through Muncho Lake National Park and the mountain range was absolutely beyond description the lake was beautiful to drive beside for 30 or 40 miles. T-Bird almost took out a caribou, or rock sheep at Muncho Lake.
Another 40 miles north and we come to Liard River Hot Springs Provincial Park. About a mile before the park we came up on a wood Buffalo grazing near the road.
This was the first Wood Buffalo we saw. Wood Buffalo are bigger than American Bison. The shoulders and hump are 6 or 7 ft High. This was a magnificent animal. I knew that this was a special place.
After a long hard day driving one of those life's gifts is to camp in a campground that has a real natural Hot Spring. There were only two campsites left when we got there at about 6pm and we grabbed it. The campsite was a beautiful nice wooded peaceful quiet Canadian Provincial Park. Nice campsite picnic table, and fire ring. British Columbia had a moratorium on campfires as there were forest fires down south near Kamloops and Prince George and the whole province had a fire restriction.
After setting up camp, getting settled, got the swimming trunks and a towel and headed up to the springs.
Walked a wooden walkway for about four or five hundred yards through woodland wetlands marsh, some of the run off of the springs.
The pool was maybe 30 to 40 ft wide and it began to flow Downstream the further away from the mouth of the spring, the cooler the water.
And we come to the actual Hot Springs building. The park had built a bath house, open locker bins for your shoes and bag, and a deck with steps down into the hot springs, absolutely a unique place out in the natural wilderness woodlands of British Columbia.
The hot springs up near the mouth of the spring was so hot I could not get close to it, I'd say around 112- 115 degrees. 30 ft down the stream down the pool was tolerable heat and wonderful. There was an actual concrete bench down in the spring that you could sit and be shoulder deep in the pool. Talk about a wonderful Leisure way to wind down the day, this was a true gift of nature.
I have to say hats off to British Columbia Parks Commission. They did this right they got this natural phenomenon of Hot Springs right and made it really enjoyable and convenient.
Our campsite overnight was $26 Canadian. Exchange rate of .78 comes to about 19 and change for a campsite at a Hot Springs, a real bargain. You could stay in the hot spring 20 minutes, 2 hours, or stay there and soak all day, it was an open pool.
These National parks, Provincial Parks, State Parks in the US are our real national treasures and do NOT need to be cut back. These parks were preserved for ALL our citizens that worked, labored hard, and were meant for a nation to rest and recreate in these natural places. Call your Congressman and Senators and tell them that our National Parks are to be preserved with adequate funding! for ALL of us!!!
To be able to sit and soak a sore shoulder, and sore ankles in natural hot mineral water is therapeutic, good to refresh a weary vagabond soul. I recommend it highly.
About 30 minutes in the pool and I was done. I was truly refreshed and ready to have a bite to eat and write my daily journal about this great place.
I have been to several of Nature's phenomenon of Hot Springs and this is one of the best ones.
Next morning I believe we went and spent 20 minutes plus before breaking camp and heading north.
You never drink twice from the same stream.
Just because you wander doesn't mean you're lost.
Uncle Hargus: Last of the Independents
Have Bear,
Will Travel
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