tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21400524162447181522024-02-20T18:48:24.077-08:00No Throwing Fish.Driving around (parts of) North America in a '98 Prelude.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-7826531335141364142008-09-30T13:15:00.000-07:002008-09-30T13:56:58.124-07:00<a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/trip6.mp4><img height=320 width=400 src=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/theend.jpg><br />the video</a> (13 MB)<br /><br />3 months, 12,000 miles, 9 states, 3 provinces. There are a lot of places I went, a lot of places I didn't go, and a lot of places I'd like to go back to.<br /><br />I enjoyed north of the border more than south of it. BC, Yukon, and Alaska were very impressive and unique. Not to say places like the Redwoods, California Headlands and Colorado Plateau aren't also cool. In different ways.<br /><br />It was a great experience, I've learned a lot, have seen many things, finally traveled outside the Pacific time zone, and yet have only covered something like 4% of the world. I hope to take a trip like this again some day, only next time I'll go someplace outside North America. <br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/theend.html>Photos</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-19094783319658347012008-09-20T14:25:00.000-07:002008-09-20T14:27:21.899-07:00Las Vegas is a silly placePrior to arriving in Las Vegas, I stayed a day at a $35 motel, which had wi-fi, cable, and a shower. What else can a man ask for?<br /><br />In vegas, I managed to avoid gambling, whores, and marriage, and yet still had a good time - despite <b>the Star Trek Experience having closed</b> a mere two weeks before I got there.<br /><br />Driving through the desert is rough. I spent much of it sweating out all the water I was near-constantly ingesting. The <a href=http://desertbus.org/faq/>Desert Bus</a> guys have it easy.<br /><br />The Colorado Plateau, where all the parks are, has a lot more to look at. In Zion, they give biblical names to a lot of the rock formations - I'm not sure if this is because of their glorious majesty, or just because it's in Utah.<br /><br />I managed to fall on my left knee while climbing on some rocks I wasn't supposed to climb on. This has ruled out any hiking for the last couple days.<br /><br />Thankfully I didn't fall into the canyon; there are a surprising number of places where this is very possible thanks to no railings or barriers.<br /><br /><a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/lizard.mp4>Video: Lizard Action</a><br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/severalstates.html>Photos</a><br /><br />Also, old fact: Unlike other states' picture of a tent with the "no" symbol through it, the "No Camping" logo in California is a Vanagon with a "no" over it.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-35105381743362017802008-09-12T22:40:00.000-07:002008-09-12T23:26:55.599-07:00San FranciscoIt's a pretty cool place. I managed to at least briefly take in most of its districts. Just walking through them kept me busy for several days.<br /><br />On a small, public beach, a man built a sand sculpture of a mermaid. He began talking to me about it once he'd finished, saying things like how he "built it from memory" and "knows exactly what she looks like." Maybe he was a mythical sea creature in a past life.<br /><br />I was in a bar which was also occupied by a drunken crazy man, who decided to repeatedly kick a porsche which was parked outside. The bartender, after seeing this, called the cops as the man drunkenly wandered down the street. Shortly thereafter, The porsche owner and his wife returned to their vehicle to find it freshly kicked. The bartender explained the situation to the car owner, who then <b>went looking for</b> the perpetrator while his wife stayed with the car. Minutes later, the car kicker stumbles back to the scene and begins <b>hitting on the car owner's wife.</b> She calls her husband, who comes back and holds a casual conversation with the car kicker as a way to keep him in one place until the police arrive. The car kicker was arrested.<br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/california.html>Photos</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-70075462627864314892008-09-07T13:44:00.000-07:002008-09-07T13:50:12.340-07:00Pictures and stuffI'm on CA highway 1 now. It's called the Pacific Coast Highway, but I can't see the pacific coast because it is <b>really foggy.</b><br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/southofseattle.html>Recent pictures</a><br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/eastofseattle.html>Older pictures</a> includes the coolest thing in Ellensburg<br /><br />Videos:<br /><br /><a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/redwood.mp4>Driving through redwood forest</a><br /><br /><a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/tree.mp4>Drive-thru tree</a> (note: soundtrack added because this was pretty boring otherwise.)<br /><br /><a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/llama.mp4>Llama face</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-10337070186767314282008-09-05T18:22:00.000-07:002008-09-05T18:24:26.040-07:00mayonnaise sandwichI'm back on the road. I became a bit nervous when confronted with the idea of once again being without a home, but quickly warmed up to the idea of continued adventure while looking out at Crater Lake from the summit of Mount Scott.<br /><br />I needed to break a $20 inside a shopping mall in Oregon. Carl's Jr. has a 99 cent chicken sandwich. Knowing an opportunity when I see one, I ordered said sandwich, forgetting to specify "without mayonnaise." The cooks took this omission as a reason to apply a week's supply of mayo onto what was once known as my "sandwich," but could now only be referred to as my "foil wrapped mayo."<br /><br />Outside a friend's house in Eugene, I was rummaging through my car, until I was interrupted by someone shouting "HAAAEEEEEHHHGH." I turned around to find a homeless woman standing about 25 feet from me, near a futon mattress which had been discarded in a carport. I responded "uhhhh... what?" and the following conversation ensued:<br /><br />woman: YOU GOTTA HELP MAH BACK<br />me: "what?"<br />woman: I LIVE OUTDOORS. IT FOLDS RIGHT UP<br />me: "uh, what?"<br />woman: GOTTA TAKE THIS MATTRESS TO CARL'S JR<br />me: "okay?"<br />woman: IT FOLDS RIGHT UP! MY BACK!<br />me: "I have to go somewhere."<br /><br />I parked my car on the next block.<br /><br />While driving from Crater Lake towards the Redwood Forest (I think this is only about a 4 or 5 hour drive, I did not expect that) I encountered a sign advertising "Sweet Cron." I was stunned. About a quarter mile later I found another sign advertising the very same "sweet cron." Those clever Southern Oregonians succeeded in grabbing my attention with their intentional misspelling. Cron.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-70712129056668048142008-08-28T13:02:00.000-07:002008-08-28T13:26:18.142-07:00Yakima River FloatLast weekend involved a group of about 40 people, myself included, tying inflatable rafts together and floating down the yakima river for about 14 miles. Understandably, this flotilla was hard to control, and spent a fair bit of time bouncing off the edges of the river. <br /><br />One instance of this involved my raft colliding with a jagged rock, possibly a series of them. The raft tipped over and unceremoniously dumped me into the river, before its now utterly lacerated self moved on with the rest of the group, leaving me stranded. I got to my feet to see the uncontrollable mass of rubber, beer, and partiers several hundred feet downstream, a distance which could not be regained by swimming. Luckily, the road between Ellensburg and our campground paralleled the river, so I <a href=http://picasaweb.google.com/Ventured/Float2008/photo#5238879900414411778>scrambled out and ran along the road</a>, to the serenade of half the floaters singing "flight of the valkyrie" while the other half sang the theme song from Rocky. This lasted for what seemed like at least a quarter of a marathon, until I <a href=http://picasaweb.google.com/Ventured/Float2008/photo#5238879987497093490>nobly rejoined the party.</a><br /><br />By the time all that was through, everyone knew my name: The Karate Kid. I'm not sure how they came up with that.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-28106461744017071142008-08-20T11:51:00.000-07:002008-08-21T11:48:59.209-07:00Two-Tone MacbookI'm temporarily back in the Pacific Northwest. I knew I reached Seattle, because people drive like they have mad cow disease. Since my return I've been enjoying such luxuries as couches and running water.<br /><br />I think I'll set out towards California around Labor Day. Since I've been out for two months already, I've pretty much written the east coast out of my plans; I'll save it for another trip. The west should keep me company for as long as I feel like being out.<br /><br />While having a place to do some work on my laptop, I replaced its inverter board to fix its chronic flickering screen. While I was at it I replaced the inner plastics with those from a black macbook, and here is the result:<br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/twotonemacbook.html><img height=300 width=400 src=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/twotonemacbook_files/IMG_7273.jpg><br><small>click for more pictures</small></a><br /><br />Black and white stylin'. I looked up other bi-color macbooks only to find they were all done by circumstance instead of by intention, making mine the only one of its kind (I think). Until people find out they can do this for something like $80.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-69140813639646810562008-08-14T11:31:00.000-07:002008-08-19T13:04:56.040-07:00People talk slow in MontanaI took to calling Alberta "Canadian Texas," and all the locals agreed. It's very wealthy, very full of oil, the "welcome to Calgary" sign has a cowboy hat on it, and there are suburban housing developments everywhere. I drove over one hill in Calgary to be greeted with the sight of five-foot-long yard, housing development houses as far as I could see. And it's flat there, so I could see pretty far.<br /><br />I've crossed back into the US. Washington Mutual's "fraud prevention" froze my debit card while I was in Calgary (but would still let me withdraw from ATMs, what the crap). I found the first place in Montana with cell reception so that I could spend a half hour on hold with them. It was this town called Browning. That place is a shit hole. I don't believe I've ever come across a shittier hole. About two of every three buildings are "for sale" or just boarded up and abandoned. Drunk people roam about in the middle of the street at all hours of the day. People ride around on crumbling, backfiring old ATVs, presumably because their cars have long since failed. It was impressive in a very sad way. I got out of there as soon as possible, looking for Egg Mountain. It turns out the mountain was recently bought by Museum of the Rockies, and no longer open to the public. very large frowny face. I did get the chance to be exposed to Montana's slow talking, large belt-buckle showing populace. I now have a much more solid knowledge of the fact that the Pacific Northwest is my kind of place.<br /><br />Although Egg Mountain was a failure, I saw the <a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/longest.mp4>World's <b>Longest</b> Dinosaur</a> (world's largest was last time) but couldn't bring myself to sing about this one.<br /><br />Glacier National Park had a really nice drive, the road that goes through the park is called the "going to the sun road" and has some awesome sights, as well as driving through caves. It took some deft peripheral vision to both enjoy the scenery and watch out for people being retarded in the road as they risked life and limb for pictures of themselves.<br /><br />This post comes from Coeur D'Alene, Idaho. I am on my way back towards Seattle and Bellingham - I plan to hang out there for a bit and see if I feel like traveling further. Two months (well, almost) has turned out to be a long time and I need a break from my vacation, ha.<br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/alberta2.html>Photos</a> (look up Frank Slide, it's some serious history)Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-78522221447907135692008-08-08T13:00:00.000-07:002008-08-08T13:24:11.559-07:00AlbertaThis is going to be an "I was here and did this" kind of post<br /><br />Since Grande Cache, I've been through Jasper, Banff, Drumheller, Vulcan, and am now in Calgary.<br /><br />Jasper is pretty cool, a little town with tons of hiking and camping around its perimeter. The Icefields Highway is possibly the most awesome stretch of road I've ever driven.<br /><br />Banff is like if you gave a shopping mall its own zip code. It has nature and stuff around it, but even their own hiking guides say "do this hike in the early morning or late evening to avoid the hordes." The fact that they use the word <b>hordes</b> gives you an idea of how immensely crowded this place is. I can see how people would enjoy going there and shopping and dining and blargle blah bloo blah, but it isn't for me. <br /><br />I visited some of the areas surrounding Calgary - Drumheller, Dinosaur Provincial Park, and Vulcan. Drumheller is all crazy about dinosaurs - there are these dinosaur statues everywhere - like almost literally on every street corner. The city logo is a fossilized T-Rex, the street lamps have dinosaurs attached to them, they're the home of the "world's largest dinosaur..." the list goes on. It was a cool place though, well worth the trip.<br /><br />Dinosaur park was less full of dinosaurs, and more full of Canadian Badlands. These are some surreal sections of earth. Again, well worth the trip.<br /><br />Also stopped by Vulcan, AB. This town recently started going all star-trek like to attract tourists. It doesn't seem to have worked incredibly well as their star trek murals have been deteriorating, no effort has been made to restore them, "Spock's Bar" closed... Despite this, I enjoyed a Spock Burger at the Enterprise Cafe.<br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/Alberta.html>Photos</a><br /><br />Videos:<br /><br /><a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/MVI_7156.mp4>Me inside the world's largest dinosaur</a><br /><br /><a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/cave.mp4>Me crawling through a cave</a><br /><br /><a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/ptarmiganchase.mp4>Me chasing a ptarmigan</a> (beware, over 3 minutes)Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-42593549766864589402008-08-03T12:57:00.000-07:002008-08-03T13:08:06.830-07:00why places like grande prairie and prince george suckThese are places with populations of 50,000 or more, and yet nobody wants to live there; they are only there because their job is nearby.<br /><br />This results in the only businesses being bars, Wal-Mart, and Tim Horton's. These kinds of places seem to spring up "naturally" when nobody cares enough to open their own restaurant or coffee house.<br /><br />The response to "I'm from Seattle" in either of these towns was a consistent "what the hell are you doing <b>here?</b>"<br /><br />Even Fort St. John, BC, with less than half the population of these places, was more friendly, had more to do, and was better cared for. This is probably because it's on the Al-Can, whereas neither GP or PG are. It goes to show that a little tourism goes a long way.<br /><br />More recently, I was in Grande Cache, AB, for the Canadian Death Race. I'm inside a chinese restaurant / coffee house, and one of the more common orders being delivered to patrons is "fries 'n' gravy." I guess that satisfies both of the Alberta food groups.<br /><br />I was in this same restaurant last night, and after finishing a plate of chinese food, a chinese woman takes my plate and says "you're done with this, eh?" It was a cultural experience. I am starting to get the feeling that I sound rude if I don't end my sentences with "eh."<br /><br />Death Race was pretty neat, a 125km marathon through mountains. I didn't participate, despite everyone in town thinking that's what I was there for. ("You look like you're runnin', eh?") The events surrounding it couldn't keep my interest for the entire three days of the festival though, I ended up leaving on Saturday afternoon.<br /><br />I'm in Jasper now - it's refreshing to be in another outdoorsy place after a relatively dismal week in the boring cities on the eastern end of the Al-Can, <a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/fsj_dawson.html>which I have some photos of here</a><br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/grandecache.html>Grande Cache/Jasper photos</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-79566612688702452402008-07-29T11:04:00.000-07:002008-07-29T11:15:26.615-07:00Video and picture dump<a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/sealife.mp4>Seabirds at Seward wildlife center</a><br /><br /><a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/sealion.mp4>Sea lions are secretly athletes</a><br /><br /><a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/juneau.mp4>Me rambling about Juneau</a><br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/sincewhitehorse.html>Photos</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-21325731154367555582008-07-28T21:04:00.000-07:002008-07-28T21:26:07.052-07:00watch out for animals, and your eyesToday has involved a whole ton of driving - the towns on this part of the Al-Can really serve no purpose but to supply travelers with overpriced gas and doritos. On the way though, I had several run-ins with wildlife and other dangers.<br /><br />The first: the danger of falling asleep.<br />I slept last night in a "check your brakes, steep hill ahead" area. It was too cold to remain asleep, so I hit the road about 5:30 this morning. By the second time I drifted off the road I decided it was time to sleep some more. Luckily the day had warmed up, and I succeeded.<br /><br />The second: $1.79/liter gas! This will take a man's life faster than you can say "Al Gore."<br /><br />The third: A herd of bison in the road. They don't appear to realize that cars go there, and just lay down for a nap in the highway.<br /><br />The fourth: A herd of sheep in the road. I was rolling up a hill at about 70mph, and over the crest of it are A BUNCH OF SHEEP. IN MY LANE. I swerve around them as there would have been no stopping in time to prevent acres of lamb stew. Luckily they were only in the one lane, and no cars were in the other. About a mile after this incident occurs, a large sign tells me to watch out for sheep in the highway, with a picture of a tipped over sheep next to a car. THANKS FOR WARNING ME, SIGN<br /><br />THE FIFTH is sweat carrying my bug spray from my face directly into my eyes while driving. My eyebrows clearly did not do their job, and I had to pull over and frantically dump water all over myself as passersby were the most confused I'd ever made them.<br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/backtoyukon.html>Old photos, new ones when possible</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-14260700400206520242008-07-23T15:34:00.000-07:002008-07-23T16:13:22.375-07:00Glenn HighwayBy the time I'd posted last, I had visited Anchorage, Seward, and Homer. I didn't have a whole lot to say about them. Anchorage was quite the return to civilization, though I wouldn't call it very unique aside from its abundance of Alaska themed gift shops. Homer has probably got more character than I managed to notice, sadly I was there while being rather tired and didn't do much more than look at it. Seward is cool, the marine wildlife center and Exit Glacier are not to be missed.<br /><br />I drove back from Anchorage along the Glenn highway, and realized that I'd missed Wrangell-St. Elias park. d'oh. Its main entrance is near Valdez, which I passed on visiting, completely forgetting the park was there. I found an edge of the park near Slana, AK, and went for a hike, technically in the park. During this hike I found <a href=http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/camp.mp4>this abandoned camp</a> which was pretty awesome. Later on that hike, I found a couple of guys who were in an active camp, just chilling out at the top of this hill shooting marmots. The park advertised this area as "the road less traveled," and I guess I'd been the only person on it in a long time as these guys were surprised to have been discovered.<br /><br />Since then I've been to Haines, which is a friendly place. Very small, the whole town, except for its bars, closes at 2pm, or 5pm on days when cruise ships are docked. It is also full of people my age who are desperately trying to leave, but can't get much farther than their parents' house.<br /><br />I've crossed the water into Juneau, and as I'm typing this am about halfway between the ferry terminal and the nearest bus stop, a 1.5 mile walk. My journey was interrupted by my emergency need for a waffle. It was delicious and I believe I will need to purchase a waffle iron upon my return. I could have taken a cab or something but then I would be without this waffle and therefore a sad and unfulfilled individual.<br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/thisweek.html>Photos</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-87339586286008951852008-07-19T19:53:00.000-07:002008-07-19T20:52:34.472-07:00New PhotosI am no photographer - most of these pictures are just to prove I've been to the places I claim to. With that aside, <a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/postdenali.html>Photos</a><br /><br />OLD STORY: in Chicken, after the 4th of July had begun to wind down, I was reorganizing my car and I hear "AAAAAAUH." I say "how goes, buddy?" and then look over at where the sound has come from - I find a man with his pants around his ankles, urinating. He's not aiming anywhere, just standing there no-handing it. He responds "UUUUUUWH." I say "great, sounds good," climb into my car and lock the doors. I would later hear several more "OAAAAAAAA" noises trailing off into the distance.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-1545509204836872612008-07-15T14:15:00.000-07:002008-07-16T11:10:32.807-07:00DenaliGot into Denali on Thursday night, spent until Monday morning there. This place is <b>really touristy</b>. Luckily there are ways around them, for those of us who actually want to be outdoors instead of on a "wildlife viewing" tour bus.<br /><br />If you do a google map search for "park road, denali, ak" you'll see the park has a road going through much of it. A person can only drive about fifteen miles in; The rest is reserved for the park's buses. These will take people further into the park so they can hike or camp or whatever, way out in the wilderness. I took a bus to about the 29 mile mark (which was a 2.5 hour trip one-way) and departed for a hike. I was the only person who got off the bus - everyone else rode it back to the visitor center. What the crap are these people doing there? "let's get on a bus an' see one o' them smokey bears!"<br /><br />after getting off the bus I walked around for a while and found a hill to climb, it was a steep sort of thing which I couldn't walk back down - only "glissade." this is french for "slide on one's ass."<br /><br />This park, particularly from its higher elevations, made me feel very small. It's huge, not at all flat, and very impressive. If anyone reading this plans to come here, there are a few pieces of advice I can suggest:<br />Reserve a camp site ahead of time.<br />Get on the green bus, despite it costing $24 per person.<br />Get <b>off</b> the green bus, out in the woods somewhere.<br />Don't worry about there being no trails - that's the point.<br />Bring food. Food inside the park has prices like $9 for half a sandwich (not an exaggeration.)<br /><br />I stayed in a hostel last night, for the first time ever. It was $22, and in Anchorage. Not a bad deal, I paid more for a campsite once. This was the first time I've slept on a real bed in weeks, which was nice. What was not nice was sharing a bedroom with three other guys. There was something about that situation that made me feel like a genuine homeless person. The people were nice, intelligent, friendly, not crazy, and clearly just frugal instead of being there because they had no other options - there's just something weird about sleeping in a bunk bed in a room full of strangers.<br /><br /><br /><a href=http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/denali.html>Photos</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span><br /></span></span></span><b></b>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-8371816973722738542008-07-10T15:13:00.000-07:002008-07-10T16:56:37.787-07:00Moose CarsI wandered over to one of the fred meyers (fairbanks has two) and this guy starts talking to me. "Brian," a guy who's part native american, and all welfare. He invited me to his apartment which was "walking distance from here" as he put it. about half a 90 degree sunny hour later we arrive at his welfare apartment building. He opens his apartment door and cancer comes wafting out. At this point I'm too polite to run away screaming and enter, trying desperately not to gag. This guy is just barely not homeless - he has almost nothing but a plastic desk, camping chair, and package of cigarillos in his about 250 square foot apartment. He is apparently able to find work once in a while, but spends most of his time having a few screws loose.<br /><br /><b>I just remembered he also had a "john denver's greatest hits" cd. I seriously can't escape John Denver.</b><br /><br />After making an excuse to get out of Brian's cancer death home I found a taco del mar and got some serious comfort food in me after a good two weeks without a burrito.<br /><br />In true tourist fashion I drove to the Chena Hot Springs, which were an adventure to find since the roads leading to it were closed. There is a lot of need for road maintenance around here, with the kind of things the winter does to the roads. I did find my way around the closed section of the Steese Expressway and managed to arrive at the hot springs at the same time as a tour bus full of retirees.<br /><br />It was overcast and therefore a good time for a hot bath. Also got to shower off and stuff. These are some touristed out hot springs, unlike Baker's hot tub sized hole in the ground, so I got to take a non sulphur smelling shower and soap off properly.<br /><br />I think there would be a few people who'd agree with me in my assessment of places like Baker hot springs being a better place to spend time than Chena, beacuse it's more natural and untouched and not formed into being accessible by the most people possible. The Bulkley Canyon Bridge was also cooler than the Capilano Suspension Bridge, despite not being a suspension bridge, and having cars going by while you're peering through the bottom of it at the river 700-odd feet below. Another case where it's just what it is, and not made into a tourist attraction.<br /><br />Along the hot springs road (they're 60 miles out of Fairbanks) there were plenty of people pulled over to look at moose. In my quest for moose sightings, I didn't have to keep an eye out for anything but "moose cars" - people who are perfectly happy to film a moose grazing for half an hour. I've seen tons of them so far, but haven't really been inclined to pull over and film one. Maybe I will though, add it to my wildlife collection. gotta catch em all.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-7359895795640494282008-07-06T18:41:00.001-07:002008-07-06T22:48:56.806-07:00Chicken, AKArrived in <a href="http://www.chickenalaska.com/">Chicken</a> on the evening of July 3. Great little town. Unbeknown to me, they had quite the series of events taking place on the 4th, so I stuck around for all that - lunchtime barbecue, evening roast of two pigs, live music, and a completely packed saloon. People come from all around to spend the 4th in Chicken. It was easily the most interesting place I've been since Vancouver. Many of the highwayside towns are little more than a place to get gas and a bag of Fritos, whereas according to Chicken's locals, Chicken is "the way Alaska used to be."<br /><br /><a href="http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/july%202%20to.html">Photos from the last few days</a><br /><br />This update comes from Fairbanks. I've just watched a Californian folk singer play some music in a coffee shop - he played a cover of John Denver's "Country Roads," as did Kenny Kim, the busker from a few days ago. I should start keeping a tally of notable things I come across on this trip - things like numbers of bears, moose, and John Denver covers.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-91294546778038423822008-07-01T22:10:00.000-07:002008-07-01T22:17:44.428-07:00Hazelton, BC to Whitehorse, YTI noticed my car bra had some bulges in it, so I figured it was a good time to clean out all the bugs which had accumulated under there. Gotta catch 'em all.<br /><br />It's true it stays bright around the clock in the summer this far north. Bright enough to read by, but just barely. Sadly, this means I won't see the northern lights.<br /><br />The Stewart-Cassiar highway, despite having a reputation for being unpaved, was a piece of cake to drive on. The gravel sections are short, rare, and you can still go 30 to 40 mph on them. Stewart and Hyder are not places to miss. It was a remarkable experience to stop at Bear Glacier, drive past Bear Creek, and see <a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/bear2.mp4">this bear.</a><br /><br />Speaking of Hyder, that is quite the interesting little town of about 100 people. It's part of Alaska, but you can't get anywhere from there. There is no customs office entering Hyder, but there is one going back to BC. It's odd because, you really can't get anywhere except by boat. It has no pavement, but surprisingly, does have a post office.<br /><br />I've now driven a fair stretch of the Al-Can highway, from Watson Lake to Whitehorse. My route, BC 99 to 97 to Yellowhead to Stewart Cassiar, I can now say with a small bit of certainty is much more interesting, and much less crowded. To give you an idea of the "popularity" of the SC, I pulled over at about 11pm the other night and curled up to sleep (yes, right there on the side of the highway) - probably one car went by between then and 7am. I did see one bear lumbering across the road, though.<br /><br />It's Canada Day, and I'm in Whitehorse, YT. I came across a crazy Korean busker who spent about 15 minutes telling me his two minute long life story seven and a half times, before aborting his eighth telling to <a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/kennykim.mp4">break out into song.</a> He talked about positivity, Jesus, today's youth, and he has three teeth.<br /><br />Photos:<br /><br /><a href="http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/lotsmore.html">Hazelton to Whitehorse via Stewart and Hyder</a><br /><br />More videos:<br /><br /><a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/lowgas.mp4">100,000 mile day</a><br /><br /><a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/signforest.mp4">Watson Lake's Signpost Forest</a><br /><br /><a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/spare.mp4">Flat tire/Alaska Highway</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-75146784548664524342008-06-30T15:48:00.000-07:002008-06-30T15:51:16.864-07:00BugsThere are a lot of bugs. A whole lot.<br /><br />I'm starting to get used to them, though. Just like an african child.<br /><br />This update is from Dease Lake, BC - where a liter of Ocean Spray is $7.99.<br /><br />Poor internet here, so no photos today.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-68250967856178241842008-06-28T22:46:00.000-07:002008-08-08T18:31:35.760-07:00Magic Bus DayA lot of people compare this trip to "into the wild." One of the things going on in that kid's story was the "magic bus" which served as his shelter while he was in the alaskan bush.<br /><br />Last night, I was in my car outside Houston BC's chamber of commerce, borrowing their internet, when a white former school bus pulled up. The driver, a 22 year old canadian stoner and aspiring musician, asked me the password for the internet (my face was illuminated by the unmistakable computer screen blue glow). He called the bus his "summer home," and would be staying the night in that parking lot, because his bus' headlights didn't work.<br /><br />Only drove from Houston to Hazelton today, just shy of 150 km. Stopped at a farmers' market in Smithers, and was surprised no <a href=http://www.google.ca/search?hl="en&q="farmers%27+market+crash&btnG="Google+Search&meta=">old people crashed into it.</a><br /><br />Those of you looking at where I am on a map are probably thinking "that isn't the alaska highway." I've decided to take the Stewart-Cassiar. I'm on highway 16 right now, officially known as the "Yellowhead Highway" and unofficially known as the "highway of tears" because of the large number of hitchhikers who've been murdered on it. Good thing I'm not hitchhiking.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-14852822215853932952008-06-27T22:11:00.000-07:002008-06-27T22:31:06.584-07:00holy shit, bears.I am a talented videographer who has taken the following videos<br /><br /><a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/bears.mp4">Bears</a> (I hope pointing the camera the wrong way is excusable, there were three of them)<br /><br /><a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/crow.mp4">Crow eating frog</a> (graphic?)<br /><br /><a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/seagull.mp4">Seagulls are predictable</a><br /><br /><a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/dirt.mp4">Road conditions</a><br /><br />Also there are a couple more pictures <a href="http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/june27.html">here</a>, nothing too special though.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-61459313827584867072008-06-27T14:43:00.001-07:002008-06-27T14:53:15.608-07:00Houston, BC632km from my last update. Things have been a bit less interesting on this part of the trip. Prince George, despite calling itself "british columbia's northern capital," is pretty lame. 70,000 people and nothing but big box stores and chain restaurants. Quesnel, though, had a neat museum. It's interesting how history around here is written with first nations people in it, like "The Haida nation was here prior to Canadian colonization" instead of US history which tends to read more like "we claimed the empty lands of Oregon."<br /><br />I drove past Lac La Hache, and don't have a clue how to pronounce it.<br /><br />I did come across some opinions about my trip in a bar in Prince George. Person A suggested I go east to Newfoundland instead of to Alaska, though Person B (after person A left for the restroom) suggested I stick with my original plan, if only so I wouldn't have to drive through the canadian midwest.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-59186601707191655522008-06-26T13:31:00.000-07:002008-06-26T13:51:19.425-07:00A lot of drivingDrove from Pemberton to 100 Mile House yesterday. That's 275 km, and possibly more than I've driven the entire trip. I passed by a couple of small towns, Lillooet and Clinton, which didn't really have a whole lot going on. Shortly afterward, I came across a sign reading "Chasm." NOW YOU'RE TALKIN'.<br /><br />I camped last night, at a campground which was deceptively far from where the "camping, turn right" sign led me to believe. Only about 25 miles after the signs saying "this way" did camping finally exist.<br /><br />Attempting to do laundry today, I repeatedly failed at inserting a canadian $10 into a change machine, only to have someone instruct me to insert the bill face-up. I believe I lost about a thousand cultural literacy points at that moment.<br /><br /><a href="http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/day.html">Photos</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-65597092959017434262008-06-25T13:00:00.000-07:002008-06-25T13:41:03.265-07:00Things Happen In Stanley ParkI spent four or five hours walking around Stanley Park on Tuesday, great place. <a href="http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/Stanley%20Park.html">Photos here.</a><br /><br />This place has an unnaturally high population of animals - all of which are very accustomed to humans, and being fed by humans. I'm sure it's these supplements to their diet allowing so many animals to survive there. Everywhere you looked there would be animals asking for handouts. I could not resist the cuteness of these guys though, and so here's a <a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/raccoon.mp4">video</a> of me feeding a raccoon (pardon my inane commentary).<br /><br />I was walking along one of their trails, and I saw a woman in her 70s or 80s digging around in some bushes, and as I'm headed in that direction, she falls over into them. It was an odd sight, she fell like a tree which had just been cut down - slowly, entirely in one direction, and without any motion or attempt to catch herself. I checked on her to see if she was ok or needed help, and she responded by showing me a styrofoam cup full of salmonberries, which miraculously hadn't spilled. She then resumed picking berries from her newly discovered prone position.<br /><br />Later that day I went to the <a href="http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/Capilano.html">Capilano Suspension Bridge,</a> which is neat, but pricey - $32 or so for an adult ticket and parking. It's cool to walk around on their bridge which is suspended over a river, but it requires walking around the entire population of British Columbia since they're all on that bridge as well. I took a <a href="http://homepage.mac.com/ericchambers/Capilano.mp4">video</a> of the bridge right before closing, when it was less crowded. The camera I was using has image stabilization so, the wobbliness of the bridge might not come across so well.<br /><br />The Sea to Sky Highway is getting the holy crap torn out of it, I imagine in preparation for the Olympics. This results in sections where the entire highway is one lane - they have stop/slow people guiding lines of 30 or 40 cars through these sections, meaning I was stopped for ten or fifteen minutes at a time. I did get some neat pictures from out my car window while stopped, though.<br /><br />Today I stopped by <a href="http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/Nairn%20Falls.html">Nairn Falls.</a> While it was some cool nature and an impressive waterfall, they fenced off all the "unsafe" parts, which of course are far more interesting. This didn't stop me from finding a way around this fence and scrambling around the forbidden, but awesome, rocky territory.Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2140052416244718152.post-64149065568726887282008-06-24T09:57:00.000-07:002008-06-24T10:27:15.293-07:00Goin' up the countryCrossed the border into Canada yesterday. Crossing guard didn't ask for my ID or birth certificate or anything. This is part of the reason I took the Alder Grove crossing instead of Peace Arch.<br /><br />On the way up through Lynden, there was a guy holding a sign saying something like "jesus is the way." This, and the stink of cow manure, gives a person a good idea of the kind of town Lynden is.<br /><br />I stopped at a bar and grill kind of place last night. Struck up a conversation with the bartender, and one of the first things he talks about how great his weed is, and whether I wanted to buy some. This gives you an idea of the kind of place "Van" is. It makes sense that's the nickname for this city, though I hadn't heard anyone call it that until then.<br /><br />Pictures here: <a href="http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/vancouver.html">http://web.mac.com/ericchambers/iWeb/Site/vancouver.html</a>Erichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13713179550244389434noreply@blogger.com3