The Klondike Highway

It is 535 km from Whitehorse to Dawson City.  The countryside doesn't give the grandeur of the mountains the way that Kluane did, but in some ways the scenery is even more impressive because of the vast open areas and fast moving rivers, mainly the Yukon River.  It's also interesting to compare the Klondike Highway with the Alaska Highway that we travelled yesterday.  It's almost a study in the differences between the two countries.  The Alaska Highway was very busy with many huge motor homes pulling cars behind them, sometimes travelling in convoy.  The Klondike Highway was quieter with smaller rigs and some semi-trailers carrying cargo.  The road was still paved though much of the route had no shoulders and workmen were repairing what must have been a washout in one location.
We started out in the rain and ended in the warm sunshine.

Our first stop was by a very special and enormous lake -- not one you can see from the highway, but we made an effort and drove in several km in order to see it for ourselves.  Here is your clue:  "The northern lights have seen clear sights but the clearest they ever did see was that night on the marge of Lake LaBarge, I cremated Sam McGee."  The lake today is called Lake LaBerge, but it is the same one that Robert Service spelled Lake LaBarge.

"We came to the marge of Lake LaBarge and a derelict there lay..."

This one is Fox Lake.

Scenes from the highway.

The "town" of Carmacks is no more than a pit stop really, as is the case with many of the 'named dots' on the map.  A place to get a coffee and some gas and perhaps a motel or a few houses.  We got a coffee at the Gold Pan Cafe where we were served by a young Chilean girl.  She said that she was the only Chilean in the Yukon.

This is a scene of "Five Fingers Rapids" just north of Carmacks.

A nice fellow took this picture for us.

Handsome fellow isn't he?

This is Pelly Crossing -- it's not the Yukon River -- we've already forgotten its name -- we stopped here for a picnic lunch.

These trees are deciduous and surprisingly tall.

As you approach Dawson City, you see miles of rubble.  These are tailings from the dredging.  It's a bit of a shame actually since the Klondike River is affected by all this.  You can see how they came, they ravaged, and they took the gold.