Blogs from Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada, North America - page 5

My second morning of this visit to Whitehorse dawned clear and bright once again. It was hard to believe that they had been having a crappy spring and summer, except for the fact that it was so chilly. I haven't worn my shorts really much at all since Inuvik, where it was very nice and warm. I took my time as I had noted that things didn't really open before 9 in the morning, if not 10. I had plenty of time. I packed up my tent and other things and put them in my car and I was off towards my first desired stop, the Kwanlin Dun Cultural Centre. It really is a slick looking building. However, once again, it is very new, just as the centre in Haines Junction. That meant that there was ... read more

Oh man, planning a trip to Japan is much harder. Our plan is to get the JR Rail Pass for 21 days, this will ensure we have the train ride from almost North to South. We printed the map of railways our pass will cover and now we need to decide on what stops we want to adventure at. This is hard, we know main cities but trying to investigate whats in these other small towns is near impossible. We have decided to blow up the map and sit down with it and the inter-webs to explore each stop. We have a few stops we know we are going to stop at however the thins we want to experience like a traditional tea cermony. Where do we go for that? Where do we go to find ... read more

How far north can you drive? Where does the road end? At what point do you have to bust out dog sleds and snow shoes? One possible answer might be Inuvik. At the top of Canada's Northwest Territory, it's two degrees above the Arctic Circle and Canada's northernmost town. (Alaska has four towns further north. Barrow is the northernmost.) My friend Jerry and I once planned a fantasy trip to Inuvik. We were going to take our fathers (who, not surprisingly, didn't think it would be such a great idea.) The trip had the added advantage of traversing the storied Yukon. As a kid I followed the adventures of Sergeant Preston of the Royal Canadian Mounties. The gold rush brought a lot of seedy characters to the Yukon. Only Sergeant Preston stood between them and the ... read more

Today we left Beaver Creek, YT around 8 a.m. The overcast and foggy conditions gradually gave way to some amazing weather just in time for us to reach Kluane Lake (one of our favorite locations from 3 years ago when we were driving to AK). This time we pulled over and took a walk with Duke down to the water. He had fun smelling everything in sight and just getting a chance to get out of the car. It sure is a good thing he loves car rides!!!! Kluane Lake is gorgeous with aqua waters and surrounded by the Ruby and Wrangell-St. Elias mountain ranges. We stopped for lunch in Haines Junction, searching in vain for the awesome sandwhich shop we went to 3 years ago. We have since concluded that that shop must have been ... read more

Wednesday, July 20, 2011 Galena Park, Mayo, YK 55 degrees, cloudy, but some blue sky can be seen. Need to get a loaf of bread today. Drove through the community of Mayo to the grocery store---it doesn’t open until 10.00!!! We have discovered that the Yukon govt. helps these small, mostly First Nations communities/villages/towns publish a “walking tour” of the town. Two color printing with drawings and not expensive photos, but still?? It would be like publishing a walking tour of Tucker or Clarkston----here is Aunt Susie’s house whose father fought in the Civil War; here is the fire station that was built in 1955 after the original structure burned in 1954; Fred’s gas station is located here where there was once a house of ill repute----you get the idea. Anyway, we drove around and looked ... read more