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Fort Nelson, BC - An Unexpected DelightJul 22, 2007
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Peace River Bridge - First on the Alaska Highway
Trapper's Instrument at the Ft. Nelson Museum
Trapper's Fur Carrying Sled
| Fort Nelson, Historic Mile 300, where we spent our next night, provided an unusual opportunity to get a feel for what it was and is like to live in the north country. The surroundings on the road to Fort Nelson lent credence to the quote, "Nothing out here but miles and miles of nothing but miles and miles." Deer grazed along the road where white aspen graced the surroundings with their white birch-like bark. The wilds stretched as far as we could see. Amidst this beauteous landscape, Duke Energy's natural gas processing plant sits (hidden from view), the largest in North America. From here it ships its purified gas through pipelines, having removed the sulphur that is then sold in pellet form. Coming into Fort Nelson, we crossed the Muskwa River Bridge which is at the lowest point on the Alaska Highway (1000 feet). This is Dene people (natives) country, a people who speak an Athabascan dialect. Since we arrived early, we set up and went to check out the Fort Nelson Museum. What a treat!! The museum had an amazingly eclectic collection of objects from the homes and workplaces of those who had lived in this region for generations. Those past generations lived when the Hudson Bay Company was king, all goods arrived by river (until 1922) since no highway existed and fur traders worked the region. We learned from the delightful docent about her experiences when she first came to Fort Nelson 30 years ago as a 20-year-old, when very few women were there. She took us through the museum's trapper's cabin that was actually at least four times the size of a real trapper's cabin. Her explanations of the tools, life and transport of these mountain men was fascinating and her knowledge extensive. A tiny cabin was all the trapper needed because he was out trapping, and when inside, the less to heat the better. She then took us to the "mansion" of the manager of the Hudson Bay Company store. This two-story dwelling on the other hand even had a sink in the kitchen and an indoor bathroom - unheard of in other dwellings. Trappers would bring their furs to "the store," await getting credit (it was based on the going price of furs), and then use their credit for what they needed to survive. We thought much trust came into play. Judging from the handsome dresses of the woman of the house (hand embroidered and beautiful fabric), they lived quite well. The comparison was striking - perhaps a choice. A highlight of the museum was their curator/mechanic who cared for (and I mean lovingly) a garage full and then some of old cars. The oldest car was a Buick from 1908 that the curator intends to drive to Whitehorse for the car's 100th birthday. When asked if he intended to go by himself or be accompanied, he said, "Not if I can help it." He was not quite as old as the car and had made his living as a mechanic. He had brought back to life all of the cars in the museum that were now in working order and able to be driven in the July 1st parade (Canada Day). When discussing life in Fort Nelson with the docent, she told us that winter is the busy time. We stood in shock, mouths agape - winter, 10 feet of snow, -50 degrees? That is when the population grows from 5000 to 12000. Why you ask? The answer is permafrost. The ground gets too soft (sucks you and equipment in) in the spring and summer to be able to operate on it and, as a result, logging, natural gas and oil work are all done in the winter. She pointed out an oilrig that had been moved for the summer lest it sink into the muskeg. Should we want to return in the winter, we were out of luck. If we did not have reservations already, there would be no accommodations available. We had seen ugly boarded up "motels." These housed workers who came for the winter season - we wouldn't want to stay there. We now understood, egocentric tourists that we are, why stores, motels and other businesses were closed for the summer for vacation. We tourists are not their life's blood. A good meal (Jigg's Dinner) at the campground saloon (down home cooking), a good night's sleep (even if it was light out) and we were off again for our next stop at Muncho Lake. |
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