Our Stay in Watson Lake, YT, Canada

Northern Lights in the Land of the Midnight Sun

Man, I hate to write about this. The reason is, my wife has very few bucket list eventsthat she wants to do once she retires. One of them is to go see the Northern Lights. Well, we did not actually see the Northen Lights, it is never completely dark in the Yukon Territory during the summer. However, in the small town of Watson Lake, we saw a huge domed-theater presentation of this fascinating phenomenon of nature. It was an incredible immersive 90-minute visual masterpiece of this crown of lights that resides at the top of our planet. My biggest takeaway from the experience is that if you want to see the Northern Lights, Yellowknife, Canada is the place to go. It is positioned right where these flame of fire light up the sky with the most frequency. One day, I hope Peggy and I can embark on that adventure.

Everyone Wants to Leave Their Mark

Where it all began…

The Alaska Highway starts in Dawson Creek. Much of it is also called Highway 1. We drove it backwards, counterclockwise. This worked out well. We were going counter to most of the traffic. So we reached the beginning of the Alaska Highway on our return trip, mile “0”. After sections of breathtaking beauty, incredibly rough roads, and mind blowing sights along the way, seeing where it all began really meant something to me. But our trip is not over. We still have around 3,000 miles to go. The Canadian Rockies lie just ahead. They may not call it the Alaska Highway, but highway 1 continues… and I can’t wait to find out what’s around the next curve.

In Canada, it seems very important for people to let you know you are crossing their paths. Again, the tiny town of Watson Lake unveiled a big surprise: the Sign Post Forest. I had heard of this oddity before and had very low expectations if I were ever to pay this 'forest' a visit. Right across the street from the Northern Lights Centre was the famed forest of signs. I have never seen so many signs in all my life. I expected 10 or 20 posts with a bunch of plaques nailed to it. What I found was hundreds of tall poles with signs from top to bottom on all sides. There were all types of signs, some

elaborate custom made, some stolen street signs, and lots of basic signs, all letting you know that some weary traveler had passed this way. Some were decades old, some were very recent. All were personal and touching. At last count in 2012, there were over 126,000 signs. Who knows how many now. I wouldn't want to be the one who counts them!

The Sign Post Forest is not the only place people leave their mark. At many points of interest, people left stickers letting you know they were there. Many of these stickers were custom made for this specific purpose. If there was a safety guard rail at a rest area, it was probably covered with stickers from long past road trips.

Click on each for complete picture

North Louisiana Fly Fishers

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It is the charge of the North Louisiana Fly Fishers to afford to the general public and our members in particular, a better understanding of Fly Fishing and Fly Tying. We wish to perpetuate the sport as a most pleasurable and exciting fishing method and provide education, instructions and the opportunities for relaxation to the membership.

The North Louisiana Fly Fishers (NLFF) serves the Ark-La-Tex area surrounding Shreveport. As the closest cold water fishery, we consider the Little Missouri (Little Mo') river near Murfreesboro, AR our home waters. We also fish the local rivers and lakes. We even have a growing group of kayak fishermen that, as well as the local rivers and lakes, will fish the gulf coast marshes for some saltwater action!