For
many motorists, the Peace River region has
long been somewhere you go through on your
way to Alaska: Dawson Creek is Mile Zero
of the Alaska Highway. But the Peace is
worth visiting for itself, especially in
July when the wheat is newly green and the
canola fields are in bloom, or in the fall,
when aspens turn the river benches golden.
Take Hwy 97 north from Prince George through
the Pine Pass.
to Chetwynd, then circle in whatever direction
pleases you through Dawson Creek, Pouce Coupe,
Fort St. John, and Hudson's Hope. When you're
ready to leave, you can follow Hwy 2 east across
the Alberta border, then take Hwy 40 south
from Grande Prairie through Grande Cache to
join up with the Yellowhead (Hwy 16) near Hinton,
Alberta. This stretch of Hwy 40 is now paved
throughout, and provides a quick route back
south. You can fly in to Fort St. John or Dawson
Creek via various airlines.
Getting Around:
Most visitors stick with the main highways
and miss the most interesting parts of the
region. Hwy 29 from Fort St. John to Hudson's
Hope provides spectacular views of the Peace
River valley. Try the Rolla Road that heads
north from Hwy 49, east of Dawson Creek,
across the Peace River, then to Goodlow on
an east-west route. This road sweeps down
across the Beatton River, with its deeply
cut banks and terraces.
Back roaming is enjoyable in this region;
roads, though rarely paved, are good gravel
and almost always straight, drawn on the
typical prairie grid. But back-road maps
are hard to come by. |
