Still with the ‘hang over glow’ of the Brooks River bear adventure, it was time to head for the lower 48.  Never doing anything ‘normal’, we would attack the Alaska – Canada Highway (the Al-Can) backwards to Mile 0!

Before leaving Alaska – there was one last glacier.  The Matanuska Glacier is between Anchorage and Glennallen and is the largest glacier accessible by car, as well as the oldest.  It measures 13,000 feet high and 27 miles long and provided an ‘awe’ moment on this long day – –

One can hike to the base of the Matanuska – it is HUGE!

After a good night’s sleep, we broke the rules and drove almost 450 miles the next day.  More beautiful views made the day go quickly – especially seeing lots of blue sky after many days of rain.  At Kluane Lake the views were so awesome, it seemed like a good time to get that drone out again – –

Kluane Lake was glassy as we passed by – so couldn’t resist;-)

Ahhh, very calming.

Now well along the Al-Can, another 370 miles took us to Watson Lake at mile 635 – AND the sign post forrest.  In 1942 a homesick GI working on the Alaska Highway erected a sign stating the mileage to his home town.  This one sign grew to a ‘forrest’ and we wanted to be a part of it;-)

The Magic Caboose’s (our tow car) old license plate, 32 KBUS, joined the thousands of other plates and signs.

With E’s fascination for bridges, this one had to be included in a blog about the Al-Can –

The last remaining suspension bridge on the Alaska Highway – crossing the Liard River.

One particular day we seemed to hit the ‘animal sightings jackpot’ – –

Bear!

Bison!

Caribou shedding its velvet.

Mountain goat – didn’t care that Magic wanted to proceed.

Two more nights and a little over 600 miles and we were at MILE 0!!  Many people today think of this as ‘just the road to travel to get to Alaska’.  And – that is true today.  But, the idea to build this road was conceived in 1941 after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.  The American and Canadian governments needed a secure supply route to haul military goods and materials from the lower states to Alaska and they needed it NOW!  In the spring of 1942, the peaceful agricultural town of Dawson Creek went from 600 to 10,000 in a matter of weeks as US troops and Canadian civilians began arriving with equipment and supplies.  1500 miles of Canada’s most untamed wilderness (as it STILL remains!!) would be punched through in EIGHT months and the Al-Can Highway was created!!

Made it to Mile Marker 0 on the Alaska Highway;-)

You might think we are done.  BUT, not so fast.  There is another month to go.

E & G – Completed the Al-Can and are now headed south