As I mentioned last time, I ended up staying around Haines Junction a little longer than planned. The new leaf springs did not arrive until Wednesday, and the work could not be scheduled until Friday. At the shop, they also discovered that a spring had broken on the other side, so in the end I was glad we had agreed to replace the springs on both sides. After several days of waiting, I could finally get back on the road and head south through the mountains of British Columbia. I was looking forward to seeing what the next part of the journey would bring. I did not expect another unplanned vehicle repair to become part of the story.
I continued along the Cassiar Highway, which winds through the beautiful mountains of northern British Columbia. I could easily have spent much more time there. I made a detour to Stewart and drove up to see Salmon Glacier. The road there is reasonably well maintained, and the surrounding area makes a great base for hiking in the mountains. This time, however, I did not stay anywhere for long and enjoyed most of the views from the van because I wanted to reach Kelowna sooner.
Reaching the end of the Cassiar Highway felt like a return to reality. Suddenly, I found myself in much heavier traffic and a more populated landscape. Even the height of the trees seemed strange for a while, but I soon got used to them again.
I then continued to Nakusp to visit friends. Last year I stayed with them longer and worked on the motorcycle, but this time it was only a short stop. I rotated the van’s tires, did some laundry, and together we discovered that one of the front shocks was probably nearing the end of its life. It should still make it to Halifax, though, so we left it alone for now. I also had time to try the local hot springs, which felt especially good after so many hours behind the wheel. For a while, I stopped thinking about the route ahead and simply enjoyed not having to rush anywhere. When I checked how far I still had to go to reach Halifax, the distance came to just under 5,500 kilometres. I therefore decided to visit Kamloops, Jasper, and Banff before heading closer to the border and travelling east on a route slightly farther north than the one I had taken by motorcycle last year. It will be my first time crossing Canada from west to east, so I am curious to see what it will be like.
A friend had recommended Wells Gray Provincial Park to me, but I had never heard of it before, so I headed there on Sunday. I discovered a beautiful stretch of wilderness filled with waterfalls; the park is actually larger than the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island. I spent a wonderful day there and went for a bike ride as well. On Monday morning, as I was leaving, I stopped at one more small waterfall. When I returned to the van, however, it would not start. Although I was on a paved road, I was still more than 50 kilometres from the nearest town, Clearwater, and had no cell service. That meant I could not simply call the roadside assistance service I had paid for. Fortunately, I have Starlink with me this year, and once again it proved how useful it can be. I contacted a friend through it, and he called roadside assistance and arranged a tow to Clearwater. Instead of visiting the other waterfalls I had planned to see, I started trying to diagnose the problem. I checked the fuel-pump fuse and relay, but that was as far as I could go. The starter was turning the engine over, but I could not hear the fuel pump running at all. When the tow-truck driver arrived, he first checked whether the battery might simply be weak. He then spent about half an hour loading the van because I was parked in a small pullout close to the edge of the road, leaving him very little room to manoeuvre. We continued to town without making any more stops. Fortunately, a local mechanic agreed to take a look at the van, order whatever parts were needed, and hopefully have it repaired by Tuesday.
I took out my bike and checked into a cabin by Dutch Lake for the night. The next morning, I stopped by the shop to pick up a few things and see how the repair was going. The mechanic told me that he had already replaced the fuel pump, but the van still would not start, so he had to keep looking. Around one o’clock, he finally called to say it was ready. The problem had not been the pump after all, but a burned terminal for a fuse underneath the fuse box. The mechanic installed a new connection for both the fuse and the relay, and I was able to continue toward Jasper. My next update will come from Halifax.