After leaving Chicken, AK on Day 27, (See August 1 - Top of the World) we crossed the Canandian Border (from Poker Creek, AK to Little Gold Creek, YT) and headed down Yukon Rt. 2 on the route known as the Klondike Loop. (It's called that since the complete trip connects the Alaska Highway in YT to the Alaska Highway in Alaska.)
We traveled through some of the most beautiful country you can imagine, mostly following ridge lines, until we finally arrived at the Yukon River. We crossed the river by Ferry, arriving at the historic Dawson City, where we bought gas and headed south, after exploring a bit. I remember learning about Dawson City and the Gold Rush in school, but it is so much more meaningful to actually be there and see the old buildings, monuments, and the country where the events took place. Lots of the old structures have been preserved, and many more are being restored. Even the cabins where Robert W. Service and Jack London penned their famous writings are both still there, although we didn't get to see them. It's definitely a very popular tourist destination, which is a good thing, I guess, because it makes it possible for the residents to preserve their heritage.
Before leaving Dawson City, we also visited the site of Gold Dredge No. 4, a Canadian National Historic Site, on the outskirts of town. This is the largest wooden hulled dredge in North America. The whole Klondike area is still bustling with gold mining activity. We could see evidence of placer mining operations, also called hydraulic mining, on the hillsides around the city. The recent increase in gold prices has sparked new interest many old sites.
As we travelled south, we followed the Klondike River (I just had to wade in the water - it was COLD!). Later, the Stewart River was visible alongside the road, and when we reached the end of our day's journey, the mighty Yukon came back into view. Before roads were carved through the wilderness, these waterways were crucial for transportation. Everything had to be brought in by boat or overland in the winter.
Towns we passed through after Dawson City were Stewart's Crossing, Pelly Crossing, Minto and Carmacks.
A bit of history, courtesy of the Milepost magazine:
Carmacks was named for George Carmack, who established a trading post there in the 1890s. Carmack had come North in 1885, hoping to strike it rich. He spent the next 10 years prospecting without success. In 1896, when the trading post went bankrupt, Carmack moved his family to Fortymile, where he could fish to eat and cut timber to sell. That summer, Carmack's remarkable persistence paid off - he unearthed a 5-dollar pan of coarse gold, during a time with a 10-cent pan was considered a good find. That same winter, he extracted more than a ton of gold from the creek, which he renamed Bonanza Creek, and its tributary, Eldorado. When word of Carmack's discovery reached the outside world the following spring, it set off the Klondike Gold Rush.
One other interesting bit of information, also courtesy of the Milepost:
Note the White River ash [last photo above] deposits alongside the highway. About 1,250 years ago a layer of white volcanic ash coated a third of the southern Yukon, or some 125,000 square miles, and it is easily visible along many road cuts.
For miles and miles, we could see this layer of white ash along the road. It was even visible underwater in some of the ponds.
After we stopped to view Five Finger Rapids, an infamous navigational hazard for early river travelers, we stopped for the night at a rest area near the remains of Montague House, a typical early-day roadhouse which offered meals and lodging on the stagecoach route between Whitehorse and Dawson City.
That's all for now! More tomorrow - or whenever we next find Wi-Fi.
Cheryl & Don
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