Shortly after entering British Columbia we came across Liard Hot Springs. It’s absolutely gorgeous: Surrounded by nature, it boasts perfect-temperature water and great views.
There’s a snail that’s endemic to the area. Endemic in this case means it lives nowhere else in the world. We looked around a bit and managed to find and photograph several of them. It was so cool to see a species that doesn’t live anywhere else.
The water was spectacular. At one end, it was very hot, but only on the surface. My shoulders were burning while my feet were almost cold. If I used my hands to mix up the water, it would all be a comfortable temperature. I also swam under the water. The experience of my face traversing the hot water on the surface, and then the cold water by the ground was a fascinating sensation. There was also an area in the very hot part of the pool with freezing cold water trickling down. The contrast of the cold water streaming over my upper body while the rest of me was so hot was also great. For hours, I lay in the water, floating, face up, staring at the clouds go by.
At the other end of the pool, it narrows, turning into a small creek with trees forming bridges over it. The water here started to cool significantly. Towards the end, there was a school of small fish. I wondered if they lived there because the temperature of the water was just right.
I’ve traveled a lot. I’ve visited all seven continents (and lived on three). I’ve visited most of the 50 states of the USA and spent countless weeks camping in national parks. But at Liard Hot Springs I kept thinking to myself, “This might be the single best place on the planet.”
Practical info about Liard Hot Springs
The park is open until 10 PM. You can pay $26 to camp in the park. But there’s a lot of trees, so Starlink doesn’t work so well inside the park. However, there’s a large overflow lot just across the highway with an excellent view of the sky. We parked there and Starlink performed perfectly. If you don’t want to pay for camping, drive just about a kilometer south and you’ll find free spots to boondock on either side of the river.
The cost to enter Liard Hot Springs is just $5 (Canadian) per day! That’s the best bargain I’ve found so far on the trip. And if you’re optimistic about returning, pay just $10 for an annual pass. I was a bit surprised that there was no potable water or showers. There is a water spigot, but it comes with a warning to boil the water before drinking. So be sure to bring some water with you. There is a nice changing room and pit toilets near the water.
First Bear Sighting
Just a bit before arriving at the hot springs, we saw a beautiful small black bear hanging out on the side of the road. We stopped for a moment to take pictures. He was eating something on the ground and didn’t even seem to notice us.
Using the Starlink While Driving
Starlink has continued to work really well. But since we only have phone service while driving through towns, we were wondering if we could get Starlink to work while we were driving. Our van has three windows above the front seats that point up at an angle. So we turned off the motor in the dish that automatically points it and set the dish in the window. To our amazement, it worked! It wasn’t perfect; there were some dropouts. But it was good enough to get messages and stream music. It’s not designed to work this way, so I was really surprised that it worked as well as it did!
Current location: Liard River Hot Springs. Today we’ll continue driving south/east along the Alaska highway.