Once we had settled into our accommodation in Prince George (which all turned out to be fine after our initial problems), we went out exploring – shopping at Real Canadian Superstore, which seems to be Canada’s favourite supermarket, then visiting the tourist information centre to get info on BC & Alberta provincial campgrounds and the Ancient Forest, which is 113kms east of PG and the world’s only known rainforest found so far inland (800kms from the ocean). Trip Adviser rates it as the number 1 thing to see in PG.
The following day we had lunch at Shiraz, a Persian restaurant/cafe that serves delicious food. I had Zereshk Polo ba Morgh, a chicken dish made with chicken breast that was tender and moist, which can be difficult to do with breast as it tends to dry out. Greg had Koobideh Kebob, beef kebabs, with saffron rice pudding for dessert, and I had a milk pudding with walnuts and barberries. The semi-final of the World Cup was on TV, Holland vs Argentina, but we left before the end of the match.
Heading east towards Jasper the next day, we stopped at the Ancient Forest to do the 60-90 minute loop walk. The tallest trees in the forest are Western Red Cedars, with the oldest estimated to be 1000+ years old. The forest was only discovered in 2006, and signage on Hwy 16 is …. minimal. Small sign stating that the forest is 1km ahead, and a very plain sign at the actual turn-off to the forest. However the infrastructure at the actual forest is excellent -500m long boardwalk what is wheelchair-accessible, with additional boardwalks and timber steps in sections of the Loop Walk.
There was a bear’s den in the hollow trunk of an old cedar tree. We didn’t see the bear, but his home looked very comfortable and a nice place to hibernate in winter.
Then on to Mount Robson, highest peak in the Canadian Rockies standing at just under 4000 metres, and the second highest peak in BC. Sheer magnificence. We camped at the smallest of the 3 campsites near the Visitor Centre, a bit pricey at CAD$ 25, but there was a shower block in the campground with lukewarm water, flushing toilets and a Dyson hand dryer, plus the usual vault (drop) toilets around the campsites.
I’ve just learnt that even though Mt Robson is the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies, it’s actually the 69th highest peak in all of the Rocky Mountains, and the only Canadian peak in the highest 100. Most of the really high ones are in Colorado, with Mt Elbert the highest at 4400 metres. We’re planning on driving down through Colorado, so we might get a chance to see some of those high peaks.
When we arrived at the Mt Robson Visitor Centre, the top of the peak was covered in cloud, but the next morning it was fine and we decided to do an 8.5km walk to and from Kinney Lake to get closer to the peak, and it was a nice walk beside the aquamarine Robson River to a beautiful blue kettle lake which had been created by build-up of glacial silt . Glad we started early though – by the time we got back to the car park there were a few large groups and a couple of families on bikes getting ready to set off. A tough ride for little kids.
The big tree at Ancient Forest. A 2000 year old Western Red Cedar
One of the old trees at Ancient Forest that had fallen down with a rotten trunk
Camped at Mount Robson. One of only 3 tent campers amongst 19 sites, the rest were in RVs or sleeping in their cars.
Reflections in the beautiful Kinney Lake that we walked 5km to