February 23, 2010 | Tips from Travellers >
Dawson Creek, Sightseeing Tours
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My Dad used to talk about how brutal life was working on the Alaska Highway, but as a kid, I had no context to understand what that actually meant.
I slept in a warm bed each night and ate Mom's home cooking every day.Did anyone you know work on the Highway?The building of the Alaska Highway; the daily life faced by the men who built it and the conditions they endured rival any Olympic games in diversity, endurance, spirit, teamwork, speed and challenge.
Endurance and Spirit: Those men were tough! They had to be. Pushed till they dropped day after day after day in the harshest weather conditions through an untamed wilderness with supplies and equipment that would be considered even less than sub-standard today.
Mud, muskeg, icy waters, freezing/frostbite in the winter, being tormented by mosquitoes and black flies in the summer, 3 meals a day of army-rationed food from tins, cold steel and daily back-breaking labor.
Speed: Over 1500 miles of road was punched through vast untamed wilderness in 9 months.
Challenge: Some of the toughest and most unforgiving wilderness in the world. One example was "Suicide Hill" where the marker read "prepare to meet your maker."
Teamwork: Seven regiments of American engineers (approximately 11,000 men including three regiments of men with African American heritage) 16,000 civilians from Canada and the United States, and 7,000 pieces of equipment.
Make sure you check out the amazing story at the Alaska Highway House museum in Dawson Creek when you come on holidays. Step back in time, relive the epic story and see what it was like for yourself.
You'll gain a whole new appreciation for your air conditioning.A Gold Medal Accomplishment for sure!