Headed up first week of February Lynx huntin, what are the road conditions between Williams lake and Bella coola generally? Tried finding some traffic cams to no avail. Obliged

Courtesy of Drive BC

http://www.drivebc.ca/mobile/pub/webcams/SouthernInterior20.html

Thanks. Headed to anahim lake

Highway 20 could be good at that time or it could be crap. Right now it is compact snow and ice with blowing snow. The "worst" sections are climbing the Sheep Creek hill just West of Williams Lake and the 'Hill" down into the valley West of Anahim Lake. The drive down the "Hill" is worth the drive just to experience it.

Hopefully you are driving a good 4 x 4 or all-wheel drive with snow tires. Fuel up in Williams Lake and it wouldn't be a bad idea to add a few Jerrycans of extra fuel. Cell phone service is non-existent once you get a few miles West of Williams Lake and Satellite phone or In-Reach messenger may be something to consider. You will be driving through a sparsely populated area for 8 - 10 hours so plan accordingly as stores and restaurants are few and far between.

On a positive note you will be driving through some very beautiful country.

Copy that, hunted mtn caribou with the same outfitter 10 years ago, beautiful country and cool folks for sure. Gonna swing into Tatla lake and see a old lion hunter named Doug Shuck

Prolly best your not heading up right now Jud' its a freezing rain and snow chit show through the Fraser Valley just now, lightening up tho. That link that Mauser put up is your huckleberry for the hwy 20 cameras. Look up the drivebc home page and there's a map that you can zoom in on and check out different spots along the way. Lots of country and lots of different weather possibly as you go. Sounds like a cool trip! Good luck with the cats..

Thanks I gotta stop in Williams lake and grab a license and lynx tag I guess. Just gonna make a day out of er...

A long day it'll be but not bad if conditions are good, safe travels You'll be going thru ground zero of the fires we had this summer... was brutal. But what burns today provides tomorrow it will be some good deer growing country for a spell I still haven't made it up to check it out since the fires, I'm at the south end of the Fraser Canyon the fires start a couple hours north of here, gotta go up for a cruise one of these days to check it out.

Will be lots of logging truck traffic. Keep your headlights on.

10-4 I bout shiit last time I was up there, bigger trucks and a lot bigger loads...

If it was 10 years ago you were up here you will notice the trucks have gotten even bigger. LoL

Most rigs are now running 9 1/2 foot bunks on the highway with 8 or 9 axles. These "new" loads are being pulled by 530+ HP engines which explain why the asphalt is being torqued out into ruts on most uphill grades.

Ya it was about 12 years ago... anything I should stop and see on the way up or back?

Judman;
Good afternoon, I hope the weekend was a good one for you and this finds you well.

Since I'm guessing on your route here, if you've never stopped by Hell's Gate to take a look its worth the stop I'd think - that is if you're heading up the #1 from Hope. It's a windy road too though, so as noted keep the lights on and hit the drivebc.ca site whenever you're in a town for the latest road updates.

It's been wicked for avalanches this year, the perfect storm of snow conditions, so again it's a good plan to keep on top of that.

Otherwise I believe my Canuck brethren have more than covered it. Good luck on your trip and your hunt.

Dwayne

Isn't that the truth. I hate running shorts on the b train.Massive pia. Prefer longs on the pole trailer anyday.

Dewayne, obliged, I appreciate your mild manner and helpfulness, I love traveling/hunting in your country as everyone I’ve met/hunted with have been damn good folks!!id love to break bread with you someday. Here’s to hoping you and yours have a great 2018. Later, Jud

Wel shiit. Had my gear packed and ready to roll tomorrow morning, checked my email, outfitter doesn’t think it’s too promising. Lotsa lynx around but snow conditions are garbage and expecting a foot of fresh on top of the frozen stuff they have now. Dogs won’t get around good and might not be able to keep the heat on long enough to tree one..... so I rescheduled for dec of 18’. Think I might head over to Idaho and do some horn and coyote huntin..

Williams Lake yesterday broke a single-day snowfall record that was set in 1960! This was after 2 days of freezing rain before the temperatures dropped down to 20 degrees below freezing.

Highways 97 and 20 are pure crap right now with accidents and spun-out trucks everywhere. In all honesty you would have been taking your life in your hands trying to drive Highway 20 in these conditions.

Well, looks like we made the right decision then!! Thanks for the update cariboo.

A new storm warning was just issued for the area. We are looking at 20+ inches of snow over the next 24 hours. We are breaking all sorts of 60 year old snowfall records and all mountainous areas are under avalanche warning as well.

I just booked the rest of the week off work so that maybe I will be able to stay ahead of the snowfall and stay the hell off the highway commuting to my office. LoL

Damn.... glad I didn’t chance it. Stay safe!!