Friday, we only drove 70 miles to Quesnell (that's pronounced "Kwe-nell"). They have "The World's Largest Gold Pan." We had lots of time for sightseeing, but again, rain put somewhat of a damper on that.
We did take a 60 mile drive to the old mining towns of Wells and Barkerville. Wells was build around the turn of the century and has a population of around 200. The buildings have been restored by the current or previous owners and it is a quaint little village with a few shops etc.
Barkerville is a village with restorred and replicated buildings from the gold rush era of 1860's - 1900. There is a charge for admission of $13.50. We drove the 5 miles from Wells to Barkerville & when we got there it was about 3:30 and the rain had just recently stopped. We were admitted without having to pay the admission, as the shops inside were closing at 4:00. We did take a stroll around the town. It would be worthwhile to spend the entire day, or a big part of it anyway. They have tours throughout the day with guides explaining the history of the town and gold rush in general. There is also a large "Chinatown" area. As in the 
US, Chinese played a large part in the building of the Canadian Railways and working in the gold mines. There was another guide for that part. We arrived too late to get in on either tour. I got the impression that they didn't conduct the tours that day anyway due to the weather. Jan was dissapointed that the streets weren't really "paved with gold" but were paved with mud instead.
Then we took a drive to a ghost town, Stanley, that we had missed yesterday. Jan also wanted to try her hand at panning for gold in a stream in the area. She didn't have any success finding gold, but had a great time trying. I tried a little, but my enthusiasm is not at the same level as Jan's.
We did see two Moose next to the highway. A bull on the way in, which we were too slow on the camera to get a picture of, and this cow, which we saw on our way back to Quesnell. We caught up with Nell & Dave this afternoon
Barkerville is a village with restorred and replicated buildings from the gold rush era of 1860's - 1900. There is a charge for admission of $13.50. We drove the 5 miles from Wells to Barkerville & when we got there it was about 3:30 and the rain had just recently stopped. We were admitted without having to pay the admission, as the shops inside were closing at 4:00. We did take a stroll around the town. It would be worthwhile to spend the entire day, or a big part of it anyway. They have tours throughout the day with guides explaining the history of the town and gold rush in general. There is also a large "Chinatown" area. As in the 
US, Chinese played a large part in the building of the Canadian Railways and working in the gold mines. There was another guide for that part. We arrived too late to get in on either tour. I got the impression that they didn't conduct the tours that day anyway due to the weather. Jan was dissapointed that the streets weren't really "paved with gold" but were paved with mud instead. 
Today, Nell & Dave continued on to Prince George, 80 miles further N. Jan and I stayed in the area to take a drive to Pinnacles Provincial Park to see some "Hoodoos."
Then we took a drive to a ghost town, Stanley, that we had missed yesterday. Jan also wanted to try her hand at panning for gold in a stream in the area. She didn't have any success finding gold, but had a great time trying. I tried a little, but my enthusiasm is not at the same level as Jan's.
We did see two Moose next to the highway. A bull on the way in, which we were too slow on the camera to get a picture of, and this cow, which we saw on our way back to Quesnell. We caught up with Nell & Dave this afternoon
1 comment:
Pictures are GREAT! Love the sand castle. Sounds like you are having a good time, in spite of the weather. And Please, quit sending all that rain our way. When Jan gets to Healy, she'll have to check out Pam's panning tool. :-)
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