It's a Small World
Adventures with Abby
This is Gabriela & Marcel, and if I remember correctly, Bubbles!
We first met last year (2024) at the Mount Robson River Campground. I was walking around the campground with Abby, and I suppose she and Bubbles were probably the first to meet. Every now and then Abby helps me meet new friends who are enjoyable to talk with, and have a truly interesting life story to share.
I’m not going to try and recreate their entire story here. I’ll just mention that when they were a younger couple they hiked and camped in the Carpathian Mountains in Romania. Why so far away, you may ask? It was their home. This, in the era when Ceausescu ruled with an iron fist. The dictator and his wife lived in what I’ll call obscene luxury, while the citizens of his country lived a very different experience.
I’ve always been fascinated with world history, and actually remember when, on Christmas Day in 1989 the communist dictator of Romania was dispatched to his eternal reward. Four days after giving a public speech that was interrupted on live television, by thousands in the crowd jeering the dictator, with whom they had simply had enough, the man was tried in secret by some of his very own top generals. It took about an hour, after which they were taken out and unceremoniously shot. Footage was later aired to confirm he was indeed gone.
My friends are both highly educated, with engineering backgrounds and PhD’s from their earlier life in Romania. When this most golden of opportunities presented itself, they wasted no time in leaving and immigrating to Canada.
Why am I showing you a picture of them from this summer at Lake Tyhee Campground?
I had just completed 16 nights in Hyder, Alaska and Stewart, BC and was headed back to the Canadian Rockies for a few more days camping in the mountains I love so much, before driving east to visit my Mom near Niagara Falls, and then returning home to Louisiana, completing our little 53 day outing.
The truth is Gabriela & Marcel read “Adventures with Abby” just like you! In fact, they enjoyed seeing and hearing about many of the places I’ve shared with you, that they decided to experience them for themselves. They were on their way to Stewart and Hyder, and had stopped here for the night, just like I had.
As I was selling a couple bundles of firewood back to the camp host, which I’d purchased here on my way up a couple weeks earlier, but never used, my friends were walking back to their camp site. They spotted my familiar orange teardrop camper, and said “Could that be Dan?” About then they saw Abby and I and with great big smiles on their faces walked up to me.
I so enjoyed our visit the previous year and wished I’d get to see them again some day. Frankly, I thought that wasn’t very likely.
Today however, turned out to be that day!
They were as surprised as I was, and I consider it yet another truly delightful unplanned experience, of which these trips seem to be full and overflowing!
A couple weeks later, as I was in Kentucky for the night, a mere day and a half from home, I would receive a wonderful e-mail from them. Everything I talked about here on the blog and in our “In person” conversations proved to be exactly as I faithfully represented. They had a truly memorable time visiting the natural wonders of the Stewart/Hyder region, and met many of the same people who call this beautiful place their home. People I am blessed to call friends.
In the remainder of this post and the next, we’ll wrap up a few pleasant experiences I had in Stewart, BC this summer, before sharing a very special Adobe Lightroom photo album with you, of pics I snapped when Abby and I awoke to several inches of snow while camping at high elevation along Icefields Parkway.
I’ve mentioned El Tostador several times in previous posts, so I won’t rehash the story here. I will say that while I’m very comfortable “Rustling up some grub” around a campfire, I’m equally comfortable enjoying an occasional treat, preferably with a friend. The culinary experience to be had here is a true delight! Thank you Chef Alejandro!
Austin and I met on this trip at Eagle Shadow Campground in Hyder, Alaska. It never ceases to amaze me that when I least expect it, the opportunity to make a new friend sometimes presents itself without warning. It’s not necessarily that we have everything in common, but that we have enough in common to “Hit it off” and enjoy genuine camaraderie. I’d say appreciation for adventure, and love of the outdoors are certainly key, along with a keen “Disinterest” in spouting off about differing political perspectives.
Besides, it’s not every day you meet someone who's climbed Everest.
There are stories to be shared, many of which can only be appreciated by someone who has had similar lived experiences, many of which are uncommon. The practice of sitting face to face and having what’s called a “Conversation” is quickly becoming a lost art in this age of glowing screens. May I humbly suggest there’s no substitute for genuine human interaction, in person, and the best place to practice this may well be over a shared meal.
While Abby waited for me in the cabin during dinner, I always make sure she gets her fill of walking afterwards, exploring and seeing the sights! Here she’s enjoying watching and listening to a family of ducks who make their home on the beautiful antique filled grounds of the Ripley Creek Inn.
To bring todays story full circle, this is the campground at Tyhee Lake. It’s a pleasant half days drive from Stewart, nestled in a birch forest. Did I mention they have showers too?
I’ve got a few more pics from Stewart I’d like to share, but will need to make a separate post.
Next time… on Adventures with Abby!
I so enjoy your travels and seeing this world
Through your eyes. I’ve often wondered what brought you to Louisiana and how you and Danielle met. I’d love to hear those stories if you will share. Thank you!