We left Whitehorse early, heading north on the Klondike Highway for a long and winding drive to Dawson City. The road was beautiful and resplendent with fall colours and wildlife, but rough in spots, with patched pavement and permafrost humps that could make a grown man utter the odd primal bellow.
The very small towns along the way were few and far between, so keeping an eye on the gas gauge was once again important in our Juke with its small tank. The Yukon has about 37,000 inhabitants in total.....and nearly 30,000 of those live in Whitehorse. A "large" town might consist of 500 people.
Once in Dawson City, we secured a room for the night at the Bunkhouse hostel, and walked a bit around the dirt streets and dusty boardwalks of this historic gold rush town. Contrary to the current population of about 1,400 souls, making it the second largest community in the Yukon, this town started from moose pasture and quickly peaked at 40,000 inhabitants in 1898 at the height of the Klondike Gold Rush.
The town and her lure also drew famous writers to not only visit but stay for a time, including one of my faves poet Robert Service, along with notables Jack London and Pierre Berton.
Originally planning to camp across the river, we still took the ferry over to walk the banks of the Yukon and explore the Paddlewheel Graveyard, consisting of boats pulled up on the shore which were subsequently abandoned and left to rot when the gold rush died out. I stuck to the beach and employed a large branch as a walking stick, while Jane delved further into the graveyard.
The ferry across the river was an experience itself - a very short ride, but on a very small boat that essentially grounds itself on the dirt bank on either side before disgorging its passengers. Highly entertaining....and free to ride!
Upon our return to town, we enjoyed drinks and dinner at the Downtown Hotel, and stuck around for "Toe Time" to watch other tourists take a shot of alcohol with a real life toe. While we didn't partake ourselves, it was highly entertaining to watch.....and we had the best seat in house having fortuitously chosen the table right next to the toe table.
Klondike Highway to Dawson City
Bridge over the Yukon River at Carmacks
Welcome to Dawson City!
Our hostel for the night
Downtown Dawson City
S.S. Keno on the Yukon River
The cabin where Robert Service lived and wrote for a time
Crossing the Yukon River to West Dawson
Paddlewheel Graveyard on the bank of the Yukon
Awaiting the ferry
Triumphant return to Dawson City
Dawson City from the Midnight Dome
The Yukon River valley
Toe Time at the Downtown Hotel
Palace Grand Theatre
Enjoying a beer at Bombay Peggy's
The official "toe" for the Sourtoe
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