Friday, July 12, 2024

Lunch in Hyder

Hyder has a fish and chips stand, two stores, and a bar. We visited them all! When we got to the fish and chips stand she was taking a break. We placed our order and went exploring. "Hyders Hides" was a fun stop. They had an amazing collection of pelts, mostly hunted by the owner! The fish and chips used to be in the bus, but post-Covid moved into a cute little wood shack. The food was incredible! By far the best fried shrimp and the chunkiest pieces of halibut we have ever had! We highly recommend it if you are in the area! After lunch we got some fudge at the little shop on main street, peeked into the bar (there are thousands of dollars in bills tacked to the walls) and then we had seen it all! Hyder is a strange little place- no official US presence (no police, customs, government) except the Post Office and they depend on Canada for pretty much everything. 26 residents last winter makes it a pretty small isolated town. As the sign on the road says, "The Friendliest Ghost Town in America".


Lunch with a view!


The Road

The road to the Salmon Glacier is dirt and well maintained. It hugs the side of the mountain and curves it's way out of the US and back into BC. (The Salmon Glacier is in Canada). There is no border station as the only way in or out is through the one in Hyder. There is an active mine along the way. It's a huge Canadian operation and we encountered their vehicles along the way. The winding mountain road was the perfect opportunity for a time lapse. Enjoy the ride!




Another View

 There are several turnouts along the road. Many of them need a trim to have a view. 



The Toe

 The toe of the glacier has a cave where the water flows out. 


Like in some other places we have seen on this trip the minerals create amazing colors of water in the lakes and pools! This is part of the glacier run off.


Marmot

 The same animal that we have in Colorado, but a different color. This one was posing for pictures!





Viewing Platform

There were several viewing platforms along the road. We stopped at this one because it had a ladder. We are not really sure what they are for since the view from the top was not all that great. 




The road less traveled

There were a few spots of snow covering some of the road. It feels like it has not been open very long for this season!