Our first quad/ATV adventure of 2026 was one to remember!

On Sunday, Jeff and I drove out to Bear Creek (about a 10km quad ride), partially on the highway, to our friends’ house to meet up with the rest of our riding posse for the day!

It had rained all night so I was convinced we weren’t going to go, so I had done no prep. At the last minute, the sky turned to blue and I was running around the house and garage picking out the necessities. I didn’t even have any snacks packed, so we made a quick stop at the corner store for some riding snacks (a protein bar and a bag of Twizzlers).

It was forecast to only be a max of 13°C, and it was likely going to rain more, so it was all about the layers! It wasn’t even until we all met up that we learned where we were heading off to, and that was Montana Creek – far out in the goldfields. Near where Jeff and I used to cut firewood the first few winters in this house. In a truck, it would take hours to drive. But likely faster with a nimble ATV!

The roads to and within the goldfields are known to be particularly terrible this spring. Think deep thick mud ruts with holes big enough to swallow trucks. Or just not there at all.

All together, we set off with 4 side-by-sides and 3 ATV quads. Most of our posse for this ride was related in some way, over 3 generations! All together there was 10 people I think?

Unfortunately, by the time we got to the Hunker Summit, it was clear that one of the side-by-sides wasn’t going to be able to make it all the way to our destination. It was a diesel Husqvarna UTV that is geared really low, and just didn’t get the speed, or the gumption to climb the hills. So Kevin turned back to town, which was really too bad. The other quad started leaking oil too, but fortunately between all the machines, they had tools and oil to top it up.

How these rides go – you drive for a bit. Then you stop, have snacks, rehydrate, dial in your gear and clothing layer, and then carry on.

You usually plan where the next meeting place will be, because we all drive at different speeds, with different comfort levels and abilities. If you’re turning, you wait for the next machine so the next person always knows what side of the fork in the road you’re taking.

Most of the day, I had a freezing cold throttle thumb. I have heated handlebar grips, which I often had maxed out, and I had gloves on, but that throttle lever doesn’t have heat and my hands don’t have the circulation they used to have. Next time: warmer gloves. Or maybe mitts!

Once I put my puffy winter coat under my oversized rain coat, bringing my top layers to FOUR, I was finally warm enough.

I really dislike wearing my goggles though, and the road was dusty at times, which filled my eyes with dust and gravel, despite wearing my sunglasses. I find it difficult to see well in goggles. The occasional rain we drove through sticks to them, then the dust sticks. They scratch easily. And they prevent me seeing behind me when I turn my head. I end up just relying on my little mirrors on my hand grips. No matter how much I spend on goggles, they are always terrible. Maybe I need to get ones with the tear-off lens covers like Jeff has.

Unlike other adventures, this one was mostly on the roads. We didn’t explore as much in old cabins and around old machinery, but there was some of that too.

We drove through several rivers, and once the road had blown out at a culvert. It was such a steep up and down. I have the smallest quad, and I do not like exceeding my comfort zone of steepness (particularly uphill because those quads can tip right back on top of you.) So I copped out and let our friend Tim drive my machine through the steep washout.

Probably my favourite part now is going driving through the rivers. Sometimes they are deep enough that your quad almost starts to float (especially my smaller one). Someone is always strategizing how they can rip through the water beside you to completely soak you to your bones, but luckily with a family group, that was kept between brother and sister more than with me (whew!).

Despite the roads being terrible in some spots, the goldfields are busy right now! With the high price of gold certainly the reason, there is a lot of activity, and a lot of mining happening. The big miners have completely altered the road and landscape in some areas. I didn’t get any pictures of the big mines that we drove through, because I don’t want to stop my little ol’ quad in an active mine. Compared to the size of those rock trucks tearing around, I’m but a little speck on the road!

In some places, the road was magnificent. Which also may be because the road to get there was so terrible, you couldn’t actually drive on it, unless you have an ATV.

We stopped at the Dominion Creek gold dredge. The road goes around either side of it now, so it is easier to see!

This one still has the buckets on it!

There was old machinery to explore. Harley was teaching me how one of these old things ran, what pedal and lever did what, where the transmission and fueld tank sat, etc.

There was an old machine shop here too, with the door wide open.

We drove through one active mine that is working through all the black muck of the permafrost to get to the pay dirt below. The smell of that black muck is something you really should experience. It’s almost a bit like cow manure, since it is organic, but I think it must be what the smell of rotting dinosaurs and mammoths must smell like! Of course, that’s where they’ve been known to find frozen mammoths and tusks.

When we finally made it to Montana Creek, we were able to catch up with Ty (one of the family members of the group we were with) who is working out there for the summer with his Dad. His Grandma, who was with us, made sure to fill his bunk room with snacks, as all Grandma’s would do! When you are this far out from town, you don’t go back and forth as much. Although more and more of the mine owners seem to be getting pilots and small planes and putting in runways. Can’t blame them!

Here’s part of the family group we were adventuring with.

Overall, we drove 218 km, round trip! I turned my Garmin trip tracker on after we met everyone to start off (so about 10-15 km into our day). Here’s the map it made of where we went! It was about a 9 hour adventure.

Today I’m sore, particularly in the back of my upper arms and in my shoulders, and I’m still picking gravel bits out of my eyeballs. But it was all worth it for a great time with great people.