Continuing a trend, I was offered some pancakes by Andrew but this time politely declined as I was keen to get into town at a decent time. 

 

After leaving the campsite I was able to quickly get off the highway and onto a forest service road which appeared to be a pretty unused road and even required a shoes off water crossing at one point. It then seemed as though they were beginning the process of logging in this area again as lots of heavy machinery had been out clearing the bush at the side of the road. Although, it being a Saturday, there wasn’t anyone actively working which was good. 

 

Back to the paved roads for the run down into Prince George. On reaching the edge of town it felt pretty sketchy and Google was trying to take me down this little track which I didn’t like the look of so I stayed on the road, riding though a few blocks of industrial estate before reaching the city centre. I’d booked a hotel so I went straight there for a shower. 

 

I’d been warned by Andrew not to leave my bike outside in the downtown area and as I left the hotel to get a hair cut/beard trim, I could begin to see why. There were people openly using drugs on the steps of a building a few doors down and others walking around looking fairly zombified. On doing a bit of research I learned that Prince George has a significant fentanyl problem and had previously been described as the most dangerous city in Canada. However, I didn’t feel threatened or unsafe - it was just sad to see so many people in a bad way.

 

Freshly shorn, I went back to the hotel to do a bit of route admin as I’ve opted against a really remote section coming up that I had initially planned. 

 

Went out for a beer and then a meal at a nice Italian restaurant. It was slightly bizarre having a selection of nice bars/restaurants with people going about their usual Saturday evening business, whilst across the road there was a large encampment of homeless people - many of whom were sprawled in various states of consciousness across the pavement and in doorways. I think it’s the most obvious street homelessness I’ve seen since leaving San Diego.