May 20, Our Sign is Finally at Lake Watson!

Love this little GPS gadget!  I have become a master of it; but sometimes it's wrong! (I'll never admit it that it was really me)  I'm faster in finding information on this rather than those McNally Atlas Maps.  It has eliminated a few disputes about my map skills.  Now I can tell you almost anything in a matter of seconds!  Sally McNally is our GPS's name and when she talks Bill can't always hear what she's saying because I have it turned down low.  Bill asks what she said and no matter what Sally says I usually say she said..."Warning....SLOW DOWN!" (it really does give speed warnings)  At this point on my GPS, we are 215 miles from Watson Lake, Yukon...our destination today.  

Notice the motorhome in the middle of the map....that's us. 

This part of Highway 37 was a slower ride because curves, elevation, and lots of potholes that needed to be filled in.  The uneven pavement reminded me of those rides when we were kids on roads where you felt like you lost your stomach. There were so many beautiful views today I could post tons of photos.  There were also some interesting things going on along the way 

and places to stop.  Here are a few... 

The water really looks that turquoise!

For hours we passed the constructing of power lines along Highway 37. This photo was on fairly level terrain;  but most of it was on sides of mountains...where do you even start a project like this?
We were told that the energy was mainly being produced to supply the mining industry.

 Jade is one of the gems being mined in this area.  That's why this town is called Jade City?  There are 30 permanent residents that live here year round.  They had jade from small pieces to huge boulders.  Outside there were different types of machinery that they use to cut the jade into whatever it is needed for.  It was quite an interesting place to come across.

  

This young lady worked in the jade shop.  She lives south of Edmonton and has been coming up here to work for the past 5 years.  It's seems like this place is out in the middle of nowhere; but she says it gets quite busy everyday in the summer.  She enjoys working there and said that the Discovery Channel is in the process of taping a twelve hour series about Jade City.  I asked her if I could take a picture of her since she's going to be on TV and become a celebrity.
It was a great store and I did walk out with a few gems of my own, including Bill.

Saw another black bear today....that's 9.

Two caribou;  but only one in the picture :-)

A big moose!

...and a little quail that should not be walking across the road (very slowly)
when a motorhome is barreling down the road!

Watson Lake is known for many things; but one thing they are known worldwide for is the "Sign Post Forest."  On a corner in town by the Vistor's Center are trees and posts with signs of names and places of thousands of people from countries all over the world.  When we were here in 2011 we thought we would put up our own sign; but someone forgot to bring it.

Our sign now has been added to the more than 72,000 signs posted since 1942.  It started with a few signs posted by the US Army Engineers to let others know the distance and directions of nearby towns and various places in the world. Private Carl Lindley, who was working on the Alcan Highway was assigned to paint the posts.  He was lonesome for his hometown of Danville, Illinois so he posted a sign of his own town.  That's how it all began and people are still posting their own signs of the towns they come from.  It's really something to see!

So next time you pass through Watson Lake, Yukon Territory...stop and see our sign with all the thousands of others posted there.  Ours is in the first row from the Visitor's Centers entrance and it's on the very last post...halfway up.  You'd be surprised at the towns or people you may know or are familiar with.  We found one from Burlington, Wisconsin!