Find My Country

Is there a highway more beautiful than Transcanada 16, which passes from Winnipeg to Prince Rupert? I personally drove from Edmonton to Prince Rupert. The scenery is stunning, with alternating prarie plains, rivers, mountain, and coastal oceans at the end. Doubtlessly beautiful, this road has many dark secrets which I was only made aware of after riding through it.

My first stop along the way was in a small town called Edson. Over there I had a chance to talk to the friendly owner of a local Quizno’s. He explained how the oil boom was affecting his town. Capitalism proved to be a no-holds-barred affair, as a Walmart opened in town (after the new town council overrode the old council’s decision), and all the local businesses were destroyed within weeks. On the other hand, many new hotels are being built to satisfy the demand of oil workers who needed a place to stay. He also told me about the Dempster Highway from just outside Dawson City to Inuvik – not a very easy route for an average human being. He camped out along the side of the street, and said it was the most beautiful place he had ever been in his life.

Jasper is a city of hypocrisy. It is a snooty tourist town that makes money off of suckering European and Japanese tourists into thinking their fake politeness is actually real. There is no redeeming factor in the populace in this city. There is nothing Canadian to be found in the town – even the Canadian flags they fly are made in China (probably by the cheapest contractor they could find). Having foreign guests is an honour for our country, and a testament to how safe it is. Unfortunately, tourist traps like Jasper will ruin our reputation if foreigners ever realized how utterly cold the local populace is.

The Rockies themselves are beautiful, and the road going through them is even more-so. It is unfortunate that this road was built through injustice – they were first laid down by Japanese-Canadians who had been forced to build the highway during World War 2.

The Canadian National Railway (the amalgamation of the Grand Trunk pacific and the Canadian Northern Pacific) runs parallel to TC 16 – or vice versa. Prince Rupert, at the end of the trail, is a major year-round Canadian port, and a major destination for the Canadian Pacific. Unfortunately, the town itself never became what its founder hoped it would be.

The great Terry Fox has a mountain named after him along this stretch of highway in BC. Terry Fox may be the greatest Canadian in history. His sense of optimism and hard work can encourage anyone, regardless of race or nationality.

However, I am very sad to report that Terry Fox’s sense of optimism and hard work in the face of hardship does not exist in Northern BC. The depressed economy in Prince George, for example, has produced a city of drug users and prostitutes. During my ferry trip to Tofino, I had the chance to speak to a fellow whose brother owns a few small duplexes in the area. “I went to help him clean up after he kicked out the last tenant,” he said. “All I saw were drug needles and other (expletive deleted). When I turned to my brother, he said that it had been even worse when he had come the first day.” When he had heard that I stopped at a Motel in Prince George, he thought I was out of my mind – even when I explained it was next to a bank. “There are no safe places in Prince George. The women there become hookers, and the men become thieves to pay for crack.”

Dilapedated and other broken-down buildings dot the scene in BC’s central farming communities. I saw several large cow herds, but most of the farms looked to be abandoned while waiting for the growing season.

The wind is incredibly violent along this trail. This vehicle had toppled alongside the highway. I went to check if there was a driver, but it was completely abandoned.

Houston, BC has a problem – no one bothers coming to town.

As a result, they built the “world’s largest fishing rod”. I am not sure whether I should laugh or cry. I remember that I was closely followed as I explored the town. I guess they developed the same feeling of paranoia and fear that permeates Houston, Texas.

As you can see from the poem on the wall, the toilets along the trail are not properly maintained.

The biggest excitement along the trail was for “Hockeyville”, a CBC television series that promises to bring an NHL exihibition game to one of these small communiites. I passed 3 or 4 different towns that tried to promote their entry in the contest. I can’t see anywhere in these cities where a game could be held, but maybe that is just me.

The towns between Prince George and Prince Rupert are all drug baronies. The loss of the local fisheries (because of overfishing by the locals, mind you), coupled with the softwood lumber dispute, has meant that the economy has almost flatlined. The only means of escape from cruel fate is through drugs. All the young people left use marajuana, and many of them are on harder drugs, such as cocaine and heroin. It is not safe to spend time in these places, if one is not a local.

I was challenged to a fight by a drunk native American in Prince George. I laughed at him and gave him a big hug. I wasn’t particularly worried because he was dead drunk – and an easy target for a kick to the head. I told him to take care and walked away. Until the Native population of Canada can resolve its issues with alcohol and drugs, its concerns about the fairness of treaties cannot be taken seriously by those such as me. Who wants to hand land to a bunch of drunks and drug-users anyway?

I haven’t yet found a place as beautiful and utterly depressing as central British Columbia. In a sense, they were abandoned by Canada; but the blame partially lies on them and their overfishing. Without any sort of spirit of their own, they fell to the bottom of the barrel of the nation. Terry Fox, were you really from this province?