DAY 66: STEWART & HYDER

The communities of Stewart, British Columbia and Hyder, Alaska are located at the head of the 90 mile long Portland Canal.  They are surrounded by the majestic coastal range of mountains, the Cambria Ice Fields and various glaciers.  The area around Steward was used as Spring and Fall hunting grounds for the Nass Indians before the white man arrived.  The native name for the Portland Canal is "Skam-A-Kounst" which means "Strong House" or Safe House" as it served as a place of retreat during inter-tribal wars.  By 1910 Steward was a bustling town of 10,000 residents.  It was joined to Hyder, then known as "Portland City," by a two mile long road on pilings across the tide flats.  Buildings, like the road, stood on pilings above the water and the remains of the pilings from the buildings and road are still visible today.  Mining and exploration in the surrounding mountains was the mainstay and the reason for the existence of both communities.  At one time there were more than 150 mines in operation in the area. Some of the richest mineral deposits in B.C. were found in the area and made it one of the major gold-silver districts in North America.

The population of Hyder at the 2,000 census was only 97 and the estimated per capita income was $21,902 in 2009.  Stewart had a population of less than 500 in 2005 and major industries are mining, logging and tourism.  While visiting the area I can see little to encourage young people to stay in the area and I can understand why the population is declining.  There are many properties which are for sale and others which appear abandoned. It is a remote and isolated area, and the availability of consumer goods is limited and expensive.  I found it interesting that when you cross the border into Hyder, Alaska there is no US Customs check; however, to re-enter Canada you must go through Canadian Customs. 

When we arrived in Steward yesterday our motorhome and jeep were very dirty and remain so as the campground forbids washing (it's raining anyway). There were about a gallon of gravel/rocks on the front bumper, hood and cowl vent of the jeep, and the plastic protective film I'd installed on the front and windshield was tattered and full of holes.  The jeep windshield now has three major chips and we have one in the motorhome windshield.  I'm sure glad we didn't tow Nancy's Pilot on this trip as it would no doubt need glass replacement and re-paint by the time we got home.

I hope it stops raining soon as we plan to go bear viewing again this evening. We drove around and explored the area this morning and are just going to rest this afternoon. I hope to post some pictures next time if we have any success with seeing bear this evening.  We can't be sure when we'll have internet access again, but I'll post an update when we do.  Our plan is to leave here tomorrow morning and backtrack north 40 miles on Rt. 37-A (The Glacier Highway) to continue our journey on the Cassiar Highway to the Yellowhead Highway which is Rt. 16.

LOGS FLOAT IN WATER WAITING TRANSPORT

BEAR GLACIER

WATER FALL ALONG THE GLACIER HIGHWAY