This summer I made my semi-annual trip to Alaska. Last year, we rode the White Pass railway, which took the path the sourdoughs followed when making the trek into the gold fields of the Yukon. The ride ended at the border to Canada, stopping short of the wonders of the Yukon. This year, we took a trek into the Yukon to experience the granduer of Canada's least-populated province.
The tour bus picked us up promptly at 0800 AM at the Skagway shipyards. Once aboard the bus took a trip through town, then joined up with the Klondike Highway to start the trip to the Yukon. This road winded through the mountains that once challenged then fortitude of the goldseekers (and my stomach), and the fog made driving difficult. But once we reached the top and began the trip into Canada, the fog cleared and the weather cooperated for the rest of the trip.
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| Driving along the Klondike Highway. Nary a Stuckey's to be found. |
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| Welcome to the Yukon! I immediately took on the nickname of "Yukon Joe" and insisted that everyone on the bus address me by that name. For some reason, after that no one would tell me when it was time to get on the bus. I assume they wanted me to have the most time to enjoy the scenery. |
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| This is Bove Island, located in Taglish Lake. I wish I was a better photographer, because this really was a beautiful site. |
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| Our lunch stop was at Spirit Lake Wilderness Resort, where we were treated to a lunch of soup, sandwiches and what was billed as the best pie in the Yukon. All I can say is, someone could make a fortune opening a Marie Callendar's up here. |
After making a brief stop at what was billed as "The Worst Restroom in Canada" we eventually made it to
Carcross. Carcross, originally known as Caribou Crossing, was a popular stopping point for prospectors heading towards Dawson City or Whitehorse, and continues to be to this day. Tourism is the #1 economy for this population of about 200. It's conveniently located at the intersection of the Klondike Highway and Tagish Road, between Lake Bennet and Nares Lake. It's also a stop on the White Pass Railway.
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| Here's the train station at Carcross. Train service resumed in 2007. |
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| Inside the General Store, catering to all your moose-related needs. |
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| Another view of the train station. To the left is one of the original locomotives. I asked someone where I could find an old caboose. I didn't like his answer. |
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| Beautiful downtown Carcross. There was a bakery on the right that served some great rolls. |
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| This was the Carcross visitor's center. Next to it was a small assemblage of shops catering to the tourist. They DID take coupons, all of which could be found in the travel guides in the visitor's center. A very symbiotic relationship. |
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| The Shoppes of Carcross. Not exactly Westside Pavilion, but the fish and chips were excellent. |
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| Now this is a sad story. The S.S. Tutshi was the largest excursion boats built at the time, and catered to first class-passengers with such novelties as room service. Built in 1917, she took pleasure-seeking tourists to Ben-My-Chree (a interesting story in itself that you should seek out later) and up the river until she was retired in 1956. She sat unused until the people of Carcross decided to buy her and restore her to her formal glory as a tourist draw. Work began in 1972. Painting was completed in 1977 and the restoration work began in earnest in 1984. By 1990 work was almost completed when an early morning fire destroyed most of the ship, except for a small part of the bow. It now sits just as you see it, a testament to early tourism in the area. |
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| Lake Bennet. You can almost imagine the sourdoughs piloting their boats towards Whitehorse. |
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| Who said there are no beaches in the Yukon? Probably no one. But, in case you are curious, here's the beach at Carcross. |
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| There was an annoying photographer on our bus that was constantly taking pictures of everything. However, annoying as he was, he really could take a good picture, even with my cheap camera. |
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| Outside of Carcross was Emerald Lake. It was the color of an emerald. Hey, maybe that's where the name came from... |
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| Another view of Emerald Lake. Yukon Joe like! |
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| This is everyone getting on the Tourbus. As usual, no one told me they were leaving. |
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| Carcross Dessert is really not a desert at all, but a small area of sand dunes leftover from a dried-up lake. However, the populace bills it as the "World's Smallest Desert." It's popular for sandboarding and off-roading. |
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| This is Yukon Joe, making his perilous trip across the Carcross Desert. The desert consists on one square mile of rugged, unrelenting hardships. Will he make it? Or will the elements get the best of him?? |
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| Yeah, the bus tried to leave me here as well. |
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| Heading back into Alaska, we crossed back over the mountains and beyond the timber line, where tress can't grow. The landscape looks like something out of a Hobbit movie. |
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| At this point, we re-entered Alaska and made our way back to Skagway. I was going to take pictures of the customs area, but our driver warned us that our cameras would be confiscated by Homeland Security if we did. Seriously. |
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| Just another thing for my "Bucket List"... One day I may drive up here. It seems like a beautiful way to see this area without getting seasick. |
