Travelogue From White Horse on to Dawson City and Gold
Another early morning for us from White Horse. We had to board our motor coach at 8:00 a.m. so before we did that we walked down two blocks to a Tom Horton’s to grab some breakfast and then went across the street to Starbucks for that first cup of coffee of the day to get us going. White Horse has a population of 23,000 people and is the capital of the Yukon Territory. White Horse was a big port in “”the day””.
When gold was discovered in Dawson City by George Carmack news quickly flew about Gold! Gold! Gold! And the rush was on.
We departed from the hotel on the plush motor coach furnished by Holland America and passed the large white paddle wheeler, The Klondike. This was one of the only ways to get from Skagway to Whitehorse back in the Gold Rush Days. The Klondike was built in 1898 and is now a museum. We traveled along the Alaska Highway for about 20 miles to the intersection of the Klondike Highway. The Yukon River is 2,200 miles long and flows south to north and empties into the Bering Sea. The Raven is the territorial bird of the Yukon. In White Horse, they experience 6-7 hours of daylight in the winter months and 21 hours of daylight on the longest day of the year, June 21st.
Skagway was the gateway to the Klondike. The trek from Skagway began with your first destination of Whitehorse and then ultimately to Dawson City. By the time the prospectors and hopeful gold miners finally had traveled all of the trails, they would have traveled over 600 miles in all.
100,000 men and women came through Skagway. They either climbed up the Chilkoot Trail or the White Pass Trail. They say that no matter which one you decided to take, you always wished you had taken the other trail. The “”Chilkoot”” means the “”meanest trail””. Schools do not have snow days but they have “”bear”” days. When the grizzlies decide to come visit, the parents keep the kids home.
We crossed the Tahini River which was very reminiscent of driving through the mountains in northern California with a two lane road with gravel and dirt shoulders and about 209 feet off the road begins the forest. We learned that when there happens to be a forest fire up here, they let it burn They do not fight it unless it is threatening homes.
This has been the first time that we have seen the Alaska fireweed. It is about two feet tall with delicate magenta colored flowers at the top. It is fully edible and the first flower to grow back after a fire. Then the birch, aspen and cottonwoods return and then the pine trees.
We stopped at the Braeburn Lodge for the largest cinnamon rolls made in the Yukon Territory. These humongous rolls are at least 2-3″” tall and are at least 8 or more inches in diameter. The Braeburn Lodge is a small log cabin wit a large front deck with hanging baskets full of purple and pink petunias and small pansies.
Animals that you will find in the Yukon include elk, moose, raven, black bear and grizzly bears. Polar Bears are only about 100 miles north of Dawson City and are the most violent.
Our tour guides are not letting us go hungry by any means. We have a stop every two hours. Today’s lunch stop was at Carmacks – another small village along the highway We had lunch at the Hotel Carmacks – a rich tomato base, turkey vegetable rice soup with our choice of sandwich. I opted for the veggie wrap which was in a green tortilla with only lettuce and cucumber inside – not the best choice taste wise. I would have enjoyed a salad more.The Hotel is a wooden structure painted in a light blue base with white trim. There was actually a little mini-mart near the front where they had a good supply of goods offered for the travelers that stop by.
After our tummies were all full, we headed out again down the highway and across a new steel bridge over the Yukon River.
We had a picture stop at Five Finger Rapids about half an hour after lunch. Originally there were four islands in this very narrow channel which made navigating through the rapids quite a challenge in the old paddle wheel boats and other boats the prospectors had built for the journey. Now, there are only two islands and three fingers of the river – but it is still a dangerous area to pass through and quite a challenge in any boat.
Looking across the valley out the window of our motor coach I saw a beautiful forest that appeared to look much like a gorgeous green patchwork quilt of every color of green against the rolling hills. The groves of birch trees or cedar trees stood out against the darker pines and so thick that it looked smooth as if sewn together like a quilt.
The Yukon River meandered through the low meadows. As we continued on, every once in a while we would see more evidence of forest fires. Though there was much new growth on the forest floor, the evidence of the fires was obvious with the dark, burned barren tree trunks standing tall but with no branches – just like sticks stuck in the ground. There were also many areas where the trees had fallen and the trunks were laying on the floor of the forest next to each other, grey from the weather.
All along the highway there are signs for campgrounds for those being adventurous and driving through this magnificent area. There are small road stops with a one-pump gas station if you are in need of gasoline. Gasoline is quite expensive here at about $1.18 per liter which computes into about $5.00 per gallon in the US. Ouch!
The closer we got to Dawson City, I noticed yet another change in the landscape. The thick forest changed to groves of birch and cedar trees with their branches gently moving in the wind. Their white trunks are straight and tall and they have an umbrella of leaves on their top branches of a light grayish green color.
Dawson City was where the original gold was found that started the stampede to the Yukon in 1898. George Carmack staked his claim on August 16, 1898 at “”Discovery Claim”” in the Klondike River Valley. As soon as news spread about the gold discovery, Dawson City saw an influx of thousands. The Gold Rush lasted only a couple of years, but the legend will live forever. It is said that there is still a lot of gold in them thar’ hills. Of the 100,000 who trekked over the mountains, only about 30,000 actually made it to Dawson City.
Our afternoon stop about 2:30 was at Moose Creek Lodge – just a little roadside log cabin painted red. Their claim to fame is their homemade tarts. We tasted a raspberry one – and they ARE very tart.
Tintina Trench was our final picture stop of the day. It is a fault line in a glorious valley of spectacular panoramic views of the majestic mountains and valleys of the Yukon Territory. It is 45 miles from here to Dawson City.
The forest has now changed once again to pines that are only one straight trunk up standing tall with no branches. The highway is lined with patches of bright pink wild sweet peas that grow to about 6 inches tall and are not edible. The landscape seems to change at almost every turn, and it is more beautiful than the last one. The sky is so blue it is incredible. The skies have cleared with only a few puffy white clouds dotting it making it look even much deeper blue.
One of the other things that we have been able to experience first-hand on this trip is the infamous Alaska mosquito. They are about � inch long and unfortunately several have decided my forehead is a nice place to have a little snack. They are pesky little creatures.
We enjoyed dinner last night at Sourdough Joe’s for fish and chips. I had grilled salmon and Jim had the cod. We ate with two other couples from our group and enjoyed getting to know everyone a little more.
Many in our group decided to partake in the “”Sour Toe”” drink at the Gold Rush Hotel. Honestly, I thought it was gross and disgusting – but there were actually seven people from our group that got in on the festivities. They have this big ceremony and if you put this frost bitten toe in your shot of Yukon Jack you have to drink it and the toe has to touch your lips.
Once that was over, we walked outside and the sun was shining high in the sky, not a cloud in the sky and it was 10:30 p.m.!! Such is the land of the midnight sun! Tomorrow we actually get to sleep in and we will enjoy that! We have a small coffee pot in our room – which we will also enjoy while we are getting ready. There are “”black out”” curtains on our windows, so when we shut them, literally no light comes through and it is easy to get to sleep.