All posts tagged: Roadtrip

Roadtrippin’ America: Day III Cowboys & Canyons

Published by Jenn

Wednesday, October 13 This day ended 283 miles away from where it started. In ‘Canadian’, that’s 458 kilometres. Not the longest stretch of driving I had done lately, but somehow this 12-hour haul felt like a year and a day. The last few hours of the drive led us through some of the most rural terrain I had ever travelled. We pressed on through an empty desert, nary a porch light, star or moon to interrupt the inky horizon. The gas tank needle met the quarter tank mark and slowly crept toward empty. There were no towns between us and our destination; an observation that I tried to push to my mind’s periphery. And what would be there when we arrived? Surely, there would be a gas station. Finally…we pulled into a blip on the map called Mexican Hat and checked into what I would nominate as the least remarkable motel in America. Despite the fatigue of driving lonely highways in the dark, I’d struggle to fall asleep, because tomorrow was a day I was very …

2 Girls Try (and Fail) to Find Barkerville’s Cheeky Past

Published by Jenn

How in the world did we end up in Barkerville? I was heading from Smithers to Vancouver and needed a place to spend the night to break up an otherwise 14-hour drive. Having never been to B.C.’s famed gold rush town – Barkerville – I figured it would elevate the task from arduous drive to touristic road trip. Lucky for me, my gal pal Alex had recently moved north. With Dawson Creek just a cool six hour drive to Barkerville, she hastily accepted my invitation. What is Barkerville, anyway? “Barkerville is a preserved and dynamic gold-rush town in the British Columbia interior. Each summer, its rich history during the Cariboo Gold Rush and subsequent gold mining in the area is demonstrated for visitors from all over the world.” – TheCanadianEncyclopedia.ca Prior to arriving, we knew little of Billy Barker’s boom town. All we knew was that we’re apt to geek out over B.C. history – like that time we hit up the Royal BC Museum exhibit, Gold Rush! – so this seemed right up our alley. And surely, a gold rush ghost town …