Prince George to Barriere (40 miles short of Kamloops). The route I took starts on BC-16 and switches to BC-5 where 16 turns east into Jasper National Park north of Banff. I took a little side trip through Dunster where there is a General Store that's been around about a century. That side trip followed a 20 mile dirt logging and forest service road south to rejoin the highway south of Tete Jaune Cache. I was planning to spend the night in Kamloops but suddenly decided Barriere is far enough. Another crummy motel as I don't feel like sleeping on the ground tonight. At least the wifi is good here.
Leaving Prince George on the 16 the landscape is again generic North American. I suppose that botanists or geologists would look at it and know exactly where they are, but to me it could be many places. After an hour or so sharp peaks begin to appear in the distance. Then, suddenly you are surrounded by mountains. Unlike in Stewart where the mountains hem you in, here they surround vast valleys filled with forests and impossibly green farm fields. The landscape becomes huge. It's magnificent. This is really the more scenic, if longer, route between Prince George and the Cache Creek/Kamloops area.
I fueled up at Prince George, McBride and Blue River. From Prince George to McBride there's a 100+ mile stretch with no fuel that I noticed. South of there every small town has gas as well as motels and RV Park/Campgrounds.
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| General Store at Dunster, BC |
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Interior of the store. The only modern touch I noted was a glass
fronted refrigerator for fresh vegetables. I bought a couple of
fresh plums.
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| Logging road heading south from Dunster. |