This adventure north and the last few days meandering through BC had been very relaxing. We were NOT looking forward to the hubbub and activity of the Lower Mainland. We had not driven Hwy 99 between Hwy 97 and Vancouver for many years and decided it was a good day to do that. The Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal is on the north side of Vancouver and the hectic traffic could be avoided.
Turning off Hwy 97 onto Hwy 99 headed westbound
Marble Canyon Provincial Park is about 30km from Hwy 97. We planned our lunch stop to be there. Unlike most provincial park campgrounds, Marble Canyon was not well suited for larger units. It was a bit tight, but we found a spot for lunch.
Turquoise Lake at Marble Canyon Provincial Park
There were numerous birds making use of Crown Lake, which is visible from the campground and has a trail right to it. This heron caught my eye as it strolled through the shallows.
Heron wading in Crown Lake near Marble Canyon
Back on the road, the landscape started to change from grassland to mountains. There were numerous farms & ranches along the route, taking advantage of every bit of land.
Hwy 99 westbound between Marble Canyon and Lillooet
It is not too long before the Fraser River joins the route, along
with BC Rail and
BC Hydro lines.
Fraser River alongside Hwy 99
The Fraser River has deeply etched the canyon. The scenery is entertaining, for sure!
Fraser River
Rail overpass ... timing is everything!
Also note the hydro lines above.
Rail crossing over Hwy 99
To get to Lillooet and continue on Hwy 99, one must make a right turn away from Highway 12 to cross a bridge over the Fraser River. If you want to go into Lillooet, follow the signs. We continued on along Hwy 99 without stopping to sightsee.
Soon after leaving Lillooet, the Power Canal bridge gives the first indication of what future bridges might be like.
Power Canal bridge, near Seton Lake Reservoir
After passing Seton Lake, the highway immediately begins to climb.
Leaving Lillooet heading upwards and westward towards Pemberton
The highway is generally in good conditions with lots of twists, turns and ups & downs as it crawls into the coastal mountains towards Pemberton. On one of our trips through here with a Toyota 4x4 truck, the head gasket blew climbing out of Lillooet. Do be sure your vehicle is in good condition with lots of coolant in the radiator!
Approaching the coastal mountains
What goes up, must come down.
A sign of things to come ...
Duffey Lake has several places to stop alongside it. We didn't stop as most of those places were occupied by tour buses! So I resorted to clicking pics out the window, yet again.
Duffey Lake, looking eastward back towards Lillooet
Don't quote me on it, but I believe the next picture is of Mount Howard, Mount Matier, & Joffre Peak with the Anniversary Glacier and Twin One Glacier .
Glaciers viewed westbound on Hwy 99
70 km behind us and 30 left to go!
Another 11% grade but interestingly there is no indication of how long the 11% grade is. Seems our memories were a lot shorter than the hill ...
Start of 11% downhill grade westbound on Hwy 99
According to the GPS, the above photo was taken at an elevation of 1005m. The next photo was taken 6 km later at an elevation of 555m. So, a decline of about 450m over 6,000m. It wasn't 11% downhill all the way, but steep enough in places for the brakes to get hot.
There is a small pullout at the spot pictured below. We stopped to let the brakes cool. Were also happy to have disc brakes all around on the truck. The truck brakes were really working to take the load as the trailer brakes were smoking hot and not effective.
We patiently waited for 15 minutes, then swallowed hard and headed on down the road again.
Stopped at a pull out to let the brakes cool down & debate the next
5 km
The GPS tracked our movements, as it had from day one of the trip. According to good ol'Garmin, the brake check stop pictured above was at an elevation of 555m.
Hairpin turns included!
During the next 12 minutes (during which we held our breath) we dropped to an elevation of 220m at Lillooet Lake & the Birkenhead River (which you can see in the photo below).
The END is in sight!
Finally, we hit bottom! It was a relief! The truck brakes were smelling mighty strong, but still working. It received much praise for a job well done!
BUT, in the world according to Garmin, it was ONLY 3.5 km, not the 5 km posted at the brake check pullout.
335m over 3,500m ... not quite 10%. Is there something wrong with my math?
This is the profile of this section of highway, extracted from the GPS track properties. The top is the brake check and the bottom is the river.
Profile of the section of road between the brake check area to the
bottom of the hill at the river
The Pemberton Valley is a pleasant drive. Nairn Falls Provincial Park was open for camping, with half the campground closed because it was late in the camping season.
It was our first time here and our last night on the road. Rather than start a campfire for the evening, we just sat around the truck's brakes for warmth ... kidding!
Just for curiosity's sake, below is the profile of the 13.5 km section from the hilltops down into the Pemberton Valley (includes the profiled section shown above). Starting at an elevation of 1270m and dropping to an elevation of 220m over a distance of 13.5km, an average of 7.8%. I've no doubt that some of the sections are indeed 11% and 15%.
