Telemetry under pressure: the 2024 Chevrolet Equinox LT instrument cluster showing 76 km/h speed, cruise control locked at 74 km/h, 11,586 km odometer, and the fuel needle buried in the red zone during our 140 km wilderness dash back to Terrace.
When enterprise healthcare infrastructure calls you to Northern British Columbia, your rental car is not just basic transportation. It is your gear mule, mobile engineering office, and primary lifeline across hundreds of miles of remote subarctic wilderness.
Over a 15-night deployment in April and May 2024, my colleague Jim and I were stationed in Terrace, BC to deploy the Sonitor Real-Time Location System (RTLS) inside the brand-new Mills Memorial Hospital Replacement Project. For two straight weeks, this silver 2024 Chevrolet Equinox LT AWD served as our steadfast companion.
It hauled heavy Pelican Vault trunks across active gravel construction sites, carved 290 kilometers down the Yellowhead Highway along the tidal Skeena River to Prince Rupert, climbed deep into the Nass River Valley across ancient volcanic lava beds—and pushed our nerves to the absolute limit in a harrowing 140-kilometer race against an empty fuel tank.
1. Arrival at YXT & Securing the Northern Fleet Equinox
Touching down at Northwest Regional Airport Terrace-Kitimat (YXT) aboard a Bombardier Dash 8-400 turboprop highlights Northern BC’s remote grandeur, surrounded by dense spruce forests and jagged snow peaks.
Rainy arrival at YXT: looking across the wet tarmac toward the rental vehicle parking area and forested coastal mountains.
The airport terminal was undergoing structural expansion in April 2024. Commercial passengers stepped directly onto the wet apron into a heated white temporary tent.
Temporary airport operations: the heated baggage claim pavilion constructed on the tarmac during the YXT terminal modernization.
Inside the tent: Jim (left) and fellow travelers waiting for luggage to be offloaded from the Dash 8 cargo hold.
With our gear collected, we checked in at the rental counter and walked to our assigned vehicle: a Silver Metallic 2024 Chevrolet Equinox LT AWD showing 11,586 km on the odometer.
Powered by a 1.5-liter turbo-4 with a 6-speed automatic and switchable AWD, the Equinox is a classic Canadian fleet workhorse with practical clearance and a cavernous cargo hatch.
2. Hospital Hauling: Pelican Vaults & RTLS Infrastructure
Our primary engagement in Terrace was commissioning the ultrasound and radio-frequency infrastructure for Northern Health’s new $600-million regional hospital facility.
Job-site staging: view through the Equinox windshield of the new Mills Memorial Hospital replacement project under PCL Construction management.
Every morning at 6:30 AM, we made the quick drive from our suite at the Quality Inn Sunshine Suites over to the job site on Haugland Avenue.
The Equinox proved its worth as a mobile utility rig:
- Cargo Space: With the 60/40 rear seat folded flat, the cargo floor easily swallowed two oversized Pelican Vault hard flight cases, custom aluminum laptop field tripods, cartons of Sonitor ultrasound ceiling beacons, Dynamic dielectric safety shields, and Pioneer high-visibility vests.
- Job-Site Mobility: Driving through active staging areas alongside PCL Construction crawler cranes, WillScot mobile office trailers, and Houle Electric trucks, the Equinox’s AWD system tackled muddy ruts and crushed ballast stone without spinning a tire.
- Mobile Engineering Desk: During mid-day commissioning pauses, the Equinox’s heated front bucket seats and USB charging ports provided a quiet refuge to review room numbering blueprints and signal strength logs.
3. Highway 16 Coastal Run: Terrace to Prince Rupert (290 km Round-Trip)
On our first weekend break, we drove west along the Yellowhead Highway (BC-16) to Prince Rupert—a 145-km drive each way following the Skeena River corridor.
Highway 16 heading west: wide asphalt tracking the tidal Skeena River beneath towering Coast Mountain peaks.
Highway 16 hugs the Skeena riverbank alongside the CN rail corridor.
Historic pause: the roadside memorial honoring Signalman John Samuel Little at John Little Falls along Highway 16.
Vertical relief: snow-covered granite massifs rising thousands of feet straight out of the coastal rainforest.
Cruising at 100 km/h (62 mph), the Equinox soaked up frost heaves, with plenty of midrange punch to pass logging trucks on the straights.
Skeena River rest area: a green hipped-roof pavilion overlooking the broad tidal river and surrounding coastal wilderness.
Pacific terminus: the historic Rushbrook Trail trailhead sign along the Prince Rupert waterfront.
In Prince Rupert, we walked the coastal Rushbrook Trail boardwalk, watched fishing vessels at Cow Bay, ate fresh Pacific fish and chips and a carved turkey club at a generational family restaurant on 2nd Avenue West where the grandfather brings in fresh fish daily, and had dockside pints at Wheelhouse Brewing Co. before returning to Terrace.
4. Nisga’a Highway 113: The Route of a Hundred Waterfalls
On Sunday, May 5, we pointed the Equinox north onto Nisga’a Highway 113—known locally as the “Route of a Hundred Waterfalls”—driving deep into the Nass River Valley and the sovereign ancestral territory of the Nisga’a Nation (detailed in full in our Northern BC Expedition Guide).
Provincial heritage marker detailing the historic trade route between the Skeena and Nass river basins.
Scenic overlook: sweeping views across Kitsumkalum Lake toward snow-covered peaks under dramatic northern cloudscapes.
The route climbs past Kitsumkalum Lake into deep rainforest before entering one of the most astonishing geological landscapes in Canada: Nisga’a Memorial Lava Bed Provincial Park (Anhluut’ukwsim Laxmihl Angwinga’asanskwhl Nisga’a).
Vetter Falls: powerful spring snowmelt cascading through a rocky rainforest canyon.
Around 1700, Tseax Cone erupted in one of Canada’s deadliest volcanic disasters, sending a 32-km basalt flow that buried two Nisga’a villages and claimed ~2,000 ancestors.
Sacred volcanic geology: vast fields of jagged A’a and smooth pahoehoe basalt blanketed in pale lichen.
Resilience: a young evergreen tree taking root directly inside a crack in the ancient lava bed.
The park is sacred burial ground. The lava fields stretch like frozen black waves blanketed in lichen and young conifers, where Nisga’a protocol strictly forbids disturbing any stone.
Vetter Creek: crystal-clear glacial waters cutting through old-growth cedar and hemlock.
Further north in Gitlaxt’aamiks (New Aiyansh), we stopped at the Nisga’a Longhouse, displaying magnificent formline art depicting orcas, salmon, and ancestral crests.
Nisga’a Longhouse: cedar craftsmanship and ancestral formline art at the Gitlaxt’aamiks visitor center.
Our final planned stop was Hlgu Isgwit Hot Springs (“little stinker” in Nisga’a for its natural sulfur springs). Handcrafted cedar soaking tubs nestled in the coastal rainforest are fed by natural geothermal waters.
Natural sanctuary: handcrafted cedar soaking tubs surrounded by lush coastal rainforest at Hlgu Isgwit Hot Springs.
5. The Lax̱g̱alts’ap Low-Fuel Scare: Coasting 140 km on Fumes
Leaving the hot springs at 1:59 PM, we drove further west into the Nass River Valley, crossing the bridge into Lax̱g̱alts’ap (Greenville).
The fateful turn: crossing the bridge over the Nass River into Lax̱g̱alts’ap through the Equinox windshield.
As we rolled off the bridge, Jim asked the question that made my stomach drop:
“Gene, how much fuel do we have left?”
The needle showed 3/8 of a tank.
In Connecticut, 3/8 of a tank means three days of driving. In the Nass River Valley, heading away from Terrace with zero cell service, it was an immediate emergency. We pulled up to the local fuel depot—completely closed on Sunday.
We spun around immediately: facing a 140-kilometer journey back down Highway 113 on less than four gallons.
Hyper-miling on empty: speedometer reading 76 km/h with cruise control set at 74 km/h and the fuel needle buried firmly below E.
This was where engineering discipline took over:
- Cruise Control Locked: Set to 74 km/h (46 mph)—the sweet spot keeping engine speed at a frugal 1,500 RPM.
- Coasting Downgrades: Using gravity down mountain descents rather than throttle.
- Zero Waste: No rapid acceleration, no passing, climate control dialed low.
- Telemetry: The Driver Information Center reported instant economy settling at 7.0 L/100km (33.6 MPG).
Thirty kilometers outside Terrace, the chime sounded and the distance-to-empty display flashed LOW FUEL. The analog needle pinned itself completely below the red ‘E’ hash mark. We barely spoke. When Terrace appeared, we coasted off the highway straight into the first gas station on Lakelse Avenue with barely a little fuel to spare—the closest fuel call of my road warrior career, saved by keeping our speed down and letting the Equinox sip fuel all the way home.
6. Vehicle Performance & Specs Scorecard
| Category | Rating | Field Performance Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Powertrain & Efficiency | 8.7 / 10 | 1.5L Turbo 4-cylinder delivered 7.0 L/100km (33.6 MPG) under disciplined highway hyper-miling. |
| AWD & Traction | 8.9 / 10 | Switchable AWD system kept surefooted grip on gravel pull-offs and active hospital mud ruts. |
| Cargo Versatility | 9.2 / 10 | Flat-folding rear bench easily swallowed two heavy Pelican Vault flight cases and field gear. |
| Highway Ride & Comfort | 8.6 / 10 | Well-damped suspension filtered out severe frost heaves along Highway 16 and Highway 113. |
| Cockpit Tech & Displays | 8.5 / 10 | Clear analog dials paired with digital DIC showing speed, instant fuel economy, and trip telemetry. |
| Emergency Range | 9.0 / 10 | Stretched the final 3/8 tank across 140 kilometers of mountain terrain without stalling out. |
7. The Final Verdict: The Unsung Northern Road Warrior
The 2024 Chevrolet Equinox LT will not win track trophies, but in Northern British Columbia, it was the exact vehicle we needed. It handled two weeks of hospital site logistics, conquered 290 km of coastal highway, navigated sacred lava beds, and carried us through a 140-km wilderness fuel emergency.
If corporate work or road trips bring you through Terrace, don’t overlook the Equinox. It is a rugged, fuel-sipping companion built for the Great White North. Just fill up the tank before heading up the Nass Valley on Sunday!