British Columbia Whitehorse to Haida Gwaii - Alaska and Points North: Tips and Tales from the Road - page 233

Stewart Hyder
Some 300 km /188 mi down the highway from Dease Lake we come to Meziadin Junction
and another adventure - the 65 km /40mi road to the towns of Stewart and Hyder. Stewart
is in British Columbia but sits right next door to Hyder which is in a little pocket of Alaska
that protrudes into BC. So you drive through Stewart to the US border crossing at Hyder,
Alaska. Then if you keep going past Hyder you come on a sign which welcomes you back
to “BC - the Best Place on Earth”. Indeed.
The road, Hwy #37A from Meziadan Junction is extraordinarily scenic. Soaring snow-
kissed mountains, glaciers glistening in the sun. At km 24 you come on one of the biggest,
the blue ice Bear Glacier. There are some great viewpoints to stop and watch it calving.
The first town we come to is Stewart, at the head of the Portland Canal. This narrow salt-
water fjord is 145 km /90 mi long, a natural, deepwater port that is ice free year round. His-
torically, the Nass First Nations called this area Skam-A-Kounst, or “safe place” because it
was a retreat from the indomitable Haida Nation who fearlessly cruised the coastline.
Today Stewart is a town that's a tad down-at-the-heel. There are some quaint looking B&Bs
and a few kitschy gift shops that are trying hard but the place is economically challenged
and it shows. Year-round population is about 700.