Fraser River Hells Gate 470a1

Leaving Fraser River area. The rest of this narrative (below) is about the trip and is not related to this photo.

After leaving the Fraser River, I was headed to Prince George. I had learned that there was a gay bed & breakfast in Prince George that also allowed camping on the grounds, so that was my next destination. I was curious as to what a gay bed & breakfast would be like in the relatively remote north (626 miles from Vancouver), and also was hoping to get information on finding other gays as I continued to travel north. The bed & breakfast was quite nice and there was a gay dance in town the night I was there, all of which seemed somewhat amazing since being in Prince George was sort of like being in a small town in North Dakota! Unfortunately, I also quickly learned that my American, urban, expectations about gay life did not jive well with some north Canada gays. Even though I tried to not let my American attitudes show through, I seemed to be unable to avoid coming across wrong. Part of the problem was simply that I met a number of people who self-identified as gay but had never had a sexual experience with another man (I met no lesbians), or had very limited experience. Part of the problem also was that I carried the stigma of being from San Francisco, a place that many people consider too fast, too intense, too gay.

I've no pictures of Saint George -- leaving there, I headed west on the Yellowhead Highway to Smithers (adjacent photo).

From 1994 San Francisco - Arctic Ocean camping trip. Scan of an older picture. Best viewed as part of the NW Canada set.