Drury Creek Road — Faro to Anvil Range Placer Country

Faro was built to serve the Anvil Mine — once one of the world’s largest open-pit lead-zinc operations — and when the mine closed for the last time in 1998, it left a town of 1,400 people with almost nobody in it. Drury Creek Road heads northeast out of Faro through the Campbell Range, following creek drainages that saw placer activity going back to the early 1900s. The road crosses Drury Creek twice in the first ten kilometres, both fords typically knee-deep in June and manageable by August. Old cut lines and exploration tracks branch off constantly — it’s easy to end up on a dead-end spur — so paper maps and a GPS track are not optional here.

Mid-summer is the sweet spot: creek levels drop, the endless boreal mosquito hatch thins slightly, and the grizzly bears are spread wide across the range rather than concentrated on spawning creeks. High clearance and 4WD are required; a locker helps on the creek crossings. Faro has basic fuel and limited supplies — top up and carry extra. This is genuine remote travel: no cell service, no emergency infrastructure, and wildlife that hasn’t been pressured much since the mine shut down. Come prepared to be entirely on your own.