Bedaux Expedition - The Journey

The Journey

After enjoying a champagne breakfast hosted by Edmonton's elite and parading down Jasper Avenue, the expedition was formally sent off by Alberta's Lieutenant Governor. Just outside of the city, it began to rain. Those dismal weather conditions would accompany the expedition through much of their trip. Despite the weather and poor road conditions, they made good progress and by July 12th they left Grande Prairie and on the 17th were in British Columbia on the trail from Taylor to Fort St, John.

The party stayed in Fort St. John until the 22nd, purchasing supplies, repairing the Citroëns, hiring more cowboys and attending banquets. By then, Bedaux had come to the decision that the expedition had to become more newsworthy than it already was and he fired his radio operator and announced that the party would continue without a radio. Furthermore, he decided that the Citroëns were expendable and would create a bigger sensation if they were destroyed on film rather than simply making the trip intact. In August, two of the Citroëns were pushed over a 300-foot (91 m) cliff near Halfway River and a third was floated downriver for an explosion scene that didn't pan out. Nevertheless, Bedaux's plan worked and Canadian and American newspapers carried the news that three of the cars had been lost and that some of the expedition members had barely escaped death in these terrible "accidents". The party was lauded for its bravery and determination to continue on despite this terrible setback.

By mid September, the papers were reporting that the expedition would reach its destination in October. But when the expedition arrived at Whitewater Pass, Frank Swannell, then one of the very few men who knew Northern British Columbia well enough to be considered an expert on the terrain, advised Bedaux against traveling further through the snow covered mountain passes. His advice was proven well-founded when the party's horses began to die of diseases and the route simply proved too arduous to continue. On October 17th, the Edmonton Journal reported that the party was turning back. The party reached Hudson's Hope after nearly four months in the wilderness and a party was thrown in honor of their near achievement, a party which turned out to be one of the biggest celebrations that the town had ever thrown.