Truly Bigger Than Life

The bugs are certainly bigger.  We don't know what this is,
but I was really glad that he was outside and not inside.

Today we drove through the Yukon from Haines Junction to Beaver Creek, which is still gorgeous, but now the hills are a bit different.  It was mostly overcast and rain was in the distance, but none on us.  Maybe I shouldn't tempt fate by mentioning how lucky we've been about missing rainstorms.  It's very dry here and they need rain so a little bit would be okay.  After we're parked, of course. 

This is the first time I've seen a burl log not already made into a bowl or coffee table.  Burls start as an irritation in the spruce and the tree sends extra sap as healant, which creates a growth or burl.
  I didn't know.

The world's largest gold pan at Burwash Landing.
They have a lot of the world's largest something-or-other around these here parts. 

From the Milepost book:
  "According to Public Works Yukon, much of the soil along the north Alaska Highway is of glacial origin and unsuitable for road embankments.  Anything that causes the permafrost to melt will cause the ice-rich soil to liquefy, and liquid soil has little strength and will settle or subside.  Then if this soil refreezes during lower air temperatures, it will expand or heave.  This process wreaks havoc on the drivability of the road surface by creating undulations and cracking."
No kidding.   For miles and miles and miles.  There were several times that Al slowed to 10 or 15 mph to avoid major damage to Homer and our belongings tucked inside.  My teeth hurt.

We're settled for the evening and all around us is the Canada Day celebration, so we'll join in later.
It would only be polite to have a glass of something distilled in Canada.