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July 9, 2009

Liard Hot Spring, BC - Yukon boarder

By Marcelo

WOW! what a drive, today we saw so many whild animals. A single (not sure if it was married) Bison right outside Liard Lodge. As soon as we got on the road, a herd of bison, they were huge, than we saw a back bear, another one, another heard of bison but this time I got a bit too excited, just as I was driving very slowly with the solar car a mama bison got its cuf moving and running. I brought the solar car to a stop, waited until most of the herd crossed the road before turning the wheels again. It was so cool to get that close to them. Following that I had another encouter with another black bear. Far enough to be at a safe distance but close enough to get some great photos.

The drive it self was a bit challenging due to the weather. The clear sky morning turned into overcast and rain.

Early in the morning we had the car charging at the back of the Liard Hot Springs while replacing tires, got new tires from underneath the trailer (our secret solar car tire location), organize tools, etc.. Laura was back on her feet, up and running. From the hot springs we made a stop at the Liard Lodge, I was looking forward to seeing Richard but he is no longer there. Florence, the new manager, allowed me to use their faz machine, to send agreement to 20/20 it airs tomorrow. Florence also adopted 20 miles. Thank you Florence.



By Willy Wanka



By Laura
We stay in Liard until the early afternoon. After chocolate ice cream and meeting a couple vans full of Norh Carolinans, we head out. Josh gets a close up with a black bear. We see more buffalo and some cute little foxes. In the back we work on updates to perfect the website to upload once we reach Watson Lake. The views get increasingly beautiful as the landscape becomes more and more remote. However, whenever the crew lines up a good shot, a car always seems to come by to spoil the photo. Willy makes his own lasting fragrance for the rest of the van to enjoy, and we gasp for fresh air, even though it is clouded with mosquitos. We end up driving until 1am, stop at the border of Yukon Territory and for the first time in a while, I lay my head to rest in dark skies.




By Josh
I woke up refreshed at Liard Hot Springs. Early in the morning we set up the array, and Willy Wanka changed the tire on the solar car while I put spares beneath the trailer. I got water from the lodge nearby, and I told them we would be back to show the car. When we got to the lodge, the new owner Florence let Marcelo use the fax machine to send footage to 20/20. We all had grilled cheese and ice cream for lunch, and Claire spent a good portion of the time upside down. Laura was feeling slightly better, and joined us for a meal. We talked with an outdoors hiking group, who all loved the car. We moved on to go to Watson Lake. On the way, we encountered a bear. I wasn't scared to get pretty close to it, and I got some great shots as a result. The sheer speed and size of the bear was impressive, but didn't deter me from getting some key shots. Claire and I were climbing hills all day trying to get the best angles. We drove until 1:00 in the morning, where there was still sunlight to be seen. We battled some heavy swarms of mosquitoes today. I even had a bumper sticker that sums my day up nicely, “There is not a single mosquito on the Alaskan Highway; They're all married and have raised very large families.”





By Claire




Morning monkies
The sun is shining, 6AH already
Liard Springs front gate guards
Liard Springs Lodge
A Buffalo having lunch near the lodge
XOF1 with the crew from the lodge
Marcelo signs a postcard for our waitress
A white black bear, not a polar bear
XOF1 in front of the lodge, about to leave
A rainbow around the sun!
We come upon a herd of buffalo
His winter coat is shedding
Buffalo laying in the grass
To Lake Walton!
Watch out for falling rock!
Nice view!
The invisible woman
Setting up the array at Donna's cafe
Thumby hard at work
To the Arctic!
Waterside
Cloud cover
Mountian view
Another herd of buffalo
Getting curious about the solar car
Claire capturing the moment
Josh removing the on board camera
Solar power!
Why did the black bear cross the road?
To see the solar car!
Solar power flower lights, goodnight!