NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA - British Columbia: Including the Alaska Highway - page 635

caribou, and more than 100 species of birds are all present, but access is by foot or float-
plane only. Mount Edziza Provincial Park protects a moonlike volcanic landscape, above
the tree line and dominated by 2,787-meter (9,140-foot) Mount Edziza, an extinct volcano
whose glaciated crater is over two kilometers (1.2 miles) wide.
The small community of Dease Lake, on the shores of its namesake lake 65 kilometers
(40 miles) north of Iskut, provides basic tourist services and a bit more. The best place to eat
is Mama Z's (250/771-3021, 7am-10pm daily June-Sept., 7am-8pm Tues.-Sat. Oct.-May,
$11-21), where an always busy waitstaff will happily take your order for burgers or pizza
while you admire the old photographs lining the walls.
Telegraph Creek
From Dease Lake, an unsealed road leads 119 kilometers (74 miles) west along the Tanzilla
River to Telegraph Creek (pop. 300), which lies on a terraced hill overlooking the Stikine
River. The town boasts friendly people, gorgeous scenery, and heritage buildings dating
back to the 1860s. Jet boat tours are popular—by the hour or day, upstream through Stikine
River Provincial Park or down to Wrangell or Petersburg, Alaska (book through Stikine
RiverSong Lodge, 250/235-3196). A 20-kilometer (12.5-mile) road leads west from town
to Glenora, which had 10,000 residents in its Gold-Rush heyday. Nowadays, only one or
two of the original buildings remain.
Continuing to the Alaska Highway
As you continue north from the turnoff to Telegraph Creek, the road parallels the east shore
of Dease Lake. Good campsites are found by the lake, along with the occasional chunk of
jade on the lakeshore—the area has been called the jade capital of the world. From Dease
Lake to the Alaska Highway it's clear sailing for 235 kilometers (146 miles) along the
northern slopes of the Cassiar Mountains.
The next worthwhile stop is 4,597-hectare (11,360-acre) Boya Lake Provincial Park,
150 kilometers (92 miles) north of Dease Lake. White, claylike beaches ring the incredibly
clear lake. Walking along the shoreline is worthwhile, or take the short hiking trail that leads
to an active beaver pond. The park also has a primitive campground (no reservations, mid-
May-mid-Sept., $16). From Boya Lake, the highway traverses the Liard Plain across the
border and into the Yukon. From the border it's another four kilometers (2.5 miles) to the
junction of the Alaska Highway, then 21 kilometers (13 miles) east to Watson Lake.