June 19, 2013

On the Road to Prince Rupert

A week ago last Saturday I drove with two friends to Prince Rupert, a town about an hour and a half away from Terrace. Prince Rupert is a port town, that is becoming a major player in shipping from North America to China. We didn’t get a chance to see the container port, but I’d love to stop by there next time.
Instead, we took our time driving along Highway 16 and taking in the spectacular mountain sights. It was a rare sunny day along the Skeena River, and I got some spectacular photos.
One stop we made was to check out a painting apparently made by First Nations people over a hundred years ago. Trees grew up in front of it, covering it from view until it was “Rediscovered” in 1950 and the trees were cut down to expose it to view. One of my friends knew approximately where it was, so we were driving fairly slowly when we passed the rock outcropping where the face is painted. Just as we passed it I glanced in my rear view mirror, which perfectly framed the red face staring back at me. A quick screech of tires and we pulled off to the side of the road to get a better look.
It was hard to get a good picture. You have to either stand on the highway and use your zoom, or come in from the side and try to get an angled shot. Below the face is a marsh. The artist must have had a good ladder.
Glyph on Highway 16 small