Below: Welcome sign in 2015 |
Below: Welcome sign in 2009 |
|
|
Below: At this time, the
Prince George Visitor Center let visitors borrow rod and tackle for
free. |
|
|
Below: The two RV Gypsies went to Fort
George Park which had a big celebration going on. There was FREE hot
dogs, chips and a soda for everyone (of course the line was very long).
Lots of stuff for kids and adults alike. |
|
|
|
|
 Below: Mr. PG was first constructed in 1960 as a symbol of the importance of the forest industry to Prince George. That year he took part in the Prince George May Day parade and could speak and bow. In 1961 he was entered in the Kelowna Regatta and the Vancouver PNE Parade and also traveled to Smithers. Two years later, he entered the 1963 Grey Cup parade.
Today Mr. PG stands happily at the junction of Highway 97 and Highway 16, but still welcomes all visitors to a Prince George that owes much to the forest industry.
Mr. PG is 8.138 meters high, his head is 1.5 metres in diameter. |
|
|
Below: Mr. PG in 2009 |
 |
Below: Mr. PG in 2015 |
|
|
Below: The next day when the two RV Gypsies
drove by Mr. PG, they saw that he no longer had a flag in his hand,
but instead he had some kind of a whiffle-ball racquet. |
|
|
Leaving Prince George, the two RV Gypsies
drove their RV through several towns, but were unable to stop because
they did not see parking big enough for a 40-foot RV towing a car. So
Karen Duquette took a few photos through the window of the moving RV,
as they made their way to Smithers. |
|
|
Below: The sign for Vanderhoof, The Geographical
Centre of B.C. |
 |
|
|
Below: Then the two RV Gypsies
drove their RV through Houston, a forestry, mining and tourism
town in the Bulkley Valley of the Northern Interior of British Columbia,
Canada. It is known as the "steelhead capital" and it has the
world's largest fly fishing rod (shown a bit below). (Although several
other places claim the same fame). Houston's tourism industry is largely
based on eco-tourism and Steelhead Park, situated along Highway 16. |
|
|
This "largest fly rod in the world"
is situated in Houston's Steelhead Park. It was the brainchild
of fisherman Warner Jarvis and was installed May 5, 1990.
The rod is constructed entirely of aluminum and anodized
bronze to simulate graphite. It is 60 feet long and weighs about 800
pounds. The reel has a diameter of 36 inches.
The fly is a fluorescent orange "Skykomish Sunrise" and
is 21 inches long, tied on a bright 5/8" floating line of hollow plastic
with a tapered leader (weed-eater cord and 300 test tip). A nail knot
and a blood knot are used on the rod.
The rod can be seen in a natural setting in the park.
It is illuminated at night. Dedicated to the people of Houston, the
Largest Fly Rod in the World has, over the years, been photographed
by countless tourists, and continues to draw attention to one of the
best fishing spots in B.C. Again, Lee Duquette could not find a parking
spot for their big RV, and did not want to spend the time stopping at
all of these small places that Karen Duquette likes to photograph. |
|
|
Visit sites in the order they happened and continue on to
