Klondike Highway

May 28: Klondike River Yukon Campground, YT

From Whitehorse, we headed north on the Klondike Highway on another detour from the Alaskan Highway. This was the trip of The Road Less Taken. If the Minnie Winnie crowd was going one way, we were going another. On this leg of the trip, we spotted Black-billed Magpie, an Artic Ground Squirrel, Surf Scoter and a Red-breasted Merganser.

Black-billed Magpie

Black-billed Magpie and Artic Ground Squirrel

Artic Ground Squirrel

Surf Scoter

Female Red-breasted Merganser

As testament to the fact that the Northwest is still cold in the spring, Fox Lake still had ice on it. And as a testament to true rustic camping, here is an RV camped at Fox Lake complete with its satellite dish since missing TV while in the great outdoors seems to be unacceptable. Just for the record, we do not know if the TV in our RV worked or not. We were never tempted to turn it on even in RV sites with cable hookup.

Fox Lake, YT

Rustic Camping at Fox Lake

Miles Canyon outside of Whitehorse provided one challenge to prospectors heading north. Five Finger Rapids provided another. Only the eastern-most channel of the five narrow channels is was deep enough for the sternwheelers. A cable was attached to the rocks so sternwheelers could winch themselves up stream. It took 15 – 20 minutes and nearly a cord of wood to pull the sternwheeler through the channel.

Five Finger Rapids

Businesses popped up along the Klondike Route to serve those traveling north to seek their fortune. The remains of the Montague Roadhouse have been preserved.