They were following us when we drove through
Then watched Fred as he
filled up in the snow.
Another day as we climbed the White Pass and
crossed the crevass on Moore Bridge.
Thanks for sending these pictures to us.
Tuesday, June 8 after settling down for our very first stay on a Wal-Mart parking lot, we rushed around to find the visitor’s center and library. Olivia went into the library and attempted to post Letter 11. The Wi-Fi was free but limited to one hour, so she only achieved half of the posting. We rushed back to the trailer, picked up June and Terry and went to eat, followed by “the Follies.” the show consisted of everything from the
Can Can to
Figaro. At the first of the show the MC asked Olivia where she was from, then after several attempts at correctly pronouncing Waxahachie, the cast threw the name into the script several times. They even had the 
Mayor of Waxahachie portrayed as the town drunk. We wondered what Joe Jenkins, Ron Wilkinson, or Buck Jordan would think? All in all it was very good publicity for Waxahachie.
As we arrived back at the trailer the sun was just beginning to set over
Wal-Mart at 10:30 PM.
Wednesday, June 8 we rushed around to do our chores in Whitehorse before heading out. Olivia went back to the library to finish the blog post and found she was 30 minutes early. Outside contractors for Yukon’s highway improvement were protesting the awarding of a contract. At least she had someone to talk to while waiting since Fred had gone to run his errands.
All that done, we bought a few groceries then packed up. By this time it was after noon.
We headed up highway 2 or the Klondike Loop toward Dawson City. Not far north of town we saw Lake Laberge which was made famous by Robert Service with lines: “The Northern Lights have seen queer sights. But the queerest they ever did see, was that night on the marge of Lake Lebarge I cremated Sam McGee.” This lake reminded us of a skit in the Follies that followed this poem.
Northbound the highway entered the Miners Range, plateau country of the Yukon, an immense wilderness of forested dome-shaped mountains and high ridges, dotted with lakes and traversed by tributaries of the Yukon River.
Braeburn Lodge was the home of the
world famous cinnamon buns advertised to feed four people. The size was correct, but it wasn’t sweet enough for our taste. We did think of Jack Stroope’s love of Cinnamon rolls. In the picture you can see what’s left after Fred took a large slice.
We stopped for the night at the
“Five Fingers” Recreation Site overlooking the Yukon. It was named by early miners for the five channels, or fingers, formed by the rock pillars. They are a navigational hazard. The safest passage is through the nearest channel.
This area was also where wood cutters worked tirelessly to stockpile wood for the fleet of sternwheelers on the Yukon River and its tributaries.
All day we had seen little clumps of blue/purple flowers and found they were
Yukon Lupins. Up close they looked like our bluebonnets in shape and leaf. There are three kinds of Lupines in this area, Arctic, Yukon and Nootka. Again the dandelions were also in full bloom.
Our supper consisted of left over Halibut from our dinner the night before and a big slice of cinnamon bun. It was delicious after Olivia melted butter in the skillet and slightly toasted the slice. Then topped with extra icing. YUM. Fred says they were outstanding!
Thursday, June 9 after safely spending the night in the Five finger Pull Out we headed on up the Klondike Loop toward Dawson City. We passed the little communities of Pelly Crossing, Stewart Crossing, and Moose Creek. All sprung up because of GOLD. This stretch of highway was fairly good with occasional little
red flags showing a bump, crack, pot hole, dip, or any other point of hazard. Only once did we find flags on both sides of the road and then there were several of each.
The scenery wasn’t especially exciting so Olivia pulled out a "Where in the World" geography quiz and questioned us both. Between the two of us we answered 35 of 50 correct. We were surprised we did so well.
We decided to describe our drive by telling the highway department was clearing or widening the fire brake in the right of way. Large piles of trees were stacked teepee style. We wondered what would happen to them. The forests were mixed hardwoods and pine. The traffic we met was about one car ever two miles. It rained intermittently which helped to clean the trailer. We crossed two big rivers, the Stewart and Yukon. We didn’t see any animals or birds. Guess the birds have all gone south, but wait they are suppose to go north in the summer. Where are they? The temperature was steady in the 50’s and we averaged 45-50 mph. Oh, by the way the blog responses about the matches have been great! Thanks for the entertainment.
Nearing Dawson we stopped to change drivers and read the signs about the
Tintina Trench, which extends hundreds of miles across Yukon and Alaska, it is the largest fault in North America and 1 of 2 major bird migration corridors in the Yukon. 65 millions years ago before the movement happened the Yukon was entirely different shape. It caused rivers to flow into opposite directions. Another sign showed this trench being viewed from outer space. The road led us down into the trench and we followed the Klondike River north to Dawson.
We pulled into
Dawson to find some old and new buildings with lots of activities by locals and Canadian National parks.
We checked into one of the RV parks, but were very disappointed when their free Wi-Fi was only available two times a day from 6-10 am and pm. Afterwards we found the other two had it 24 hours. Sure was inconvenient. We missed a play and a walking tour because of our need for being live. If you are going to Dawson City ask and Olivia will tell you which RV park it was, we don't want to give them any publicity here.
Friday June 10 we enjoyed the internet until cut off at 10 am then took off to sightsee the town. We drove the streets, enjoyed the old buildings including their 
Carnegie Library which had metal siding, the sternwheeler Keno and the 
Harrington Store, now a photography museum. Harrington’s store like other grocers at the turn of the century provided a cosmopolitan clientele with every conceivable foodstuff, from beans to truffles. Linked to the rest of the world during summer by rail and steamer, Dawson City merchants provided perishable foods year-round, all at a price of 2 to 3 times that “outside.” The same is true today! We paid $1.569 liter when we filled up today.
Jack London’s 
cabin was on our list and we saw it and his cache on the up side of downtown. This was where he wrote The Call of the Wild and White Fang when he came to the Klondike Gold Rush in 1897 searching for gold on Henderson Creek.
This area is where it happened one sunny afternoon in August while George Carmack, Dawson Charlie and Skookum Jim were walking along Rabbit Creek, later renames Bonanza Creek. GOLD!
We visited the
Dredge No. 4, National Historic Site, largest wooden hull dredge in North America, which commemorates corporate industrial mining in northern Canada. For sixty years this huge machine dug up the ground of the Klondike region to extract gold. After exhausting the Klondike River near Dawson City they moved it nearby into Bonanza creek.
The first step was to strip the land then thaw the permafrost with steam, then this huge dredge pulled buckets full of rocks, dirt and anything in its way up into the works to be turned inside a colander with holes on the side.
Before this big machine started its processing, men had to
thaw the permafrost with wood fires, then lift the pay gravel out of shafts with hand operated hoists, and stockpile it until spring when melting snows would provide water for sluicing.
Buckets full of rocks, dirt and anything in its way up into the works to be
turned in the inside where the
small stuff (gold) was sifted out into sluices where the workers picked up the black dirt with gold. Our guide Sue was outstanding and is pictured with one of 60 buckets from the dredge.
Dawson continues to seek the treasure that triggered one of the world’s great gold rushes and mining in all forms remains the #1 industry in the Yukon Territory. In 2010, 45,882 ounces were mined for a value of $57,352,000.
After that education we drove up to the Dome to see the view of the mining operations of the Klondike across the 
bottom left and the Bonanza valley, on the right.
Note the rows of tailings left after the dredge was through near the Klondike in the lower left.
Fred overlooked the 
mining operations and the town of 
Dawson City where the Klondike and the Yukon merge. The top of the dome is where the locals celebrate at midnight on June 21, the longest day. It is still daylight at that time. We are almost to that time of year, but can’t stay up until midnight, even if it is daylight.
When we arrived on top there were about 10 other vehicles and before we left we had discovered all were going to Chicken the next day. We have to cross a free ferry from Dawson Creek to the other side and it only holds about six cars, or less if RVs. Sometimes there is a long wait to take the ferry. Knowing us we will be the last to arrive for a long line. Oh well, we have time to spare.
When we do cross the Yukon we will drive up the road seen on the other side of the river.
We love hearing from you so write us at
Olivia@bobheck.com or Fredharrington@yahoo.com
