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Published: September 8th 2016
Transport to Skagway
My buddy Denny looking for the keys before we fly from Juneau to Skagway.Given the limited internet in these parts, this travel blog will have only a few entries, so sorry if they are a bit long!
Arrived in Juneau, Alaska on Wednesday, August 31 and was met by old friend Denny Bousson who immediately popped me into his single engine plane for the 100 mile flight up the Lynn Canal to Skagway. In spite of a low-level wind shear alert and a tricky head wind, we made great time and landed softer than any commercial flight I have ever been on. Having traveled all day to get here, we made a short trip through town, where ever we went meeting friends of Denny. Met his wife, Lara, who runs the docks in Skagway, had my first of many Halibut sandwiches, and then headed out to Dyea where Denny and Lara live. If you remember your Klondike Gold Rush history, Dyea is where the 'rushers' would begin the trek to the Chilkoot Pass and the 'Golden Stairway, up over the mountains and into the gold fields. When, in 1903 or so the railroad decided to go to Skagway rather than Dyea due to the deep water port there Dyea quickly became a footnote
Coming in for a Landing
The view on approach of Skagway in history and is now just a few homes on the edge of a state park.
On Thursday, Sept. 1 we spent most of the day in Skagway. Started off with a National Park walking tour of town. As Skagway was one of the two major ports of entry for the 1898-99 Klondike Gold Rush it has plenty of history. This tour was called “Mining the Miners”. Learned about the 2,000 lbs of supplies that every miner had to have with him in order for the Canadians to let them into the Klondike and the perils of prostitutes, pickpockets, and fake telegraph scams all devoted to getting the miners’ money. The classic scam was to tell a poor miner that a telegram had come in from home and that they needed money wired back. So he would fork over all he had and then it would be sent out on wire--straight into the bay where the wires ran as a ruse. By the time the miner returned home, broke, he would realize that the money wired never left Skagway. Some 100,000 gold rushers made the trip here, and only about 100 ever found any gold, the main
Glacier Faceplant
Drinking from a glacial stream on Ferebee Glacier while one of the helicopter pilots photo booms me. claims being staked and worked out before the word ever got back to San Francisco that started the rush.
Denny has been part of lots of local library, park and recreation initiatives, including the large, 7,000 acre recreation area that borders the town to the south. We took a hike through part of it, up to Lower Dewey Lake overlooking town. After a great salmon sandwich I was treated to a helicopter flight up to the Ferebee Glacier. Three choppers carried 18 of us up through the mountain peaks to the south and west of Skagway, and at times all that could be seen out of the front dome of the helicopter was a wall of granite that it seemed we could not avoid….we did, of course. We landed on the glacier and walked around, my pilot being a trained geologist filled us in on all the various nuances of glaciation and the ice. On the way down we had a special treat as the weather allowed us to sneak over a couple of mountains and cruise through what is known here as the “Grand Canyon”, a deeply cut valley between two towering walls of rock.
Atlin Cabin
Denny and Mazzy the dog at the Atlin Cabin. Returning reluctantly to earth, we then took a walking tour of town, visiting with Denny’s many friends and enjoying the work of a variety of local artists. Local knowledge being the best, we went to galleries that Denny knew were run by artists who featured some of the best First Nation and local artists.
On Friday we headed out of town after first stocking up on groceries and stopping in the Sweet Tooth for the best halibut sandwich I have ever had. If you make it to Skagway, you need to stop in, grab a window seat, and enjoy. We motored to the north and the Yukon, heading for Carcross, The Yukon, where we would meet up with Lara and a group of mountain biking pals. But, there were stops on the way there, the first being at the former train stop of Portage where the first of many Artic Grayling were caught on flies I had tied especially for this trip. On the advice of Lara I had tied up a bunch of mosquito and gnat patterns and the Grayling were more than happy to oblige. We later stopped at Conrad and climbed in
the Windy Arm Lake and caught Grayling until we had to quit in order to make it in time for dinner. The road between Skagway and Carcross was great for wildlife spotting, this time yielding a cluster of mountain goats high up in the mountains and a black bear.
The weekend was spent with Lara and Denny rolling up and down Montana Mountain on their bikes while I opted for a hike up Mountain Hero trail and, yep, more fishing. On Saturday night it was my turn to cook in their camper and pan-fried Grayling were on the menu. Afterwards we were treated to a great show of the Northern Lights.
Sunday night Denny and I pressed on to Atlin, British Columbia, where he and Lara have a cabin on Atlin Lake. Monday was spent canoeing on both Atlin and Palmer Lakes, with some fishing but no luck. We also made a short, exploratory hike up part of Monarch Mountain. We came back to Atlin and stopped in for a pint at the recreation hall where the hurling lanes are (hurling, look it up!). We swapped stories with several locals, doing a little inquiring
Monarch Mountain
From the peak with Atlin Mountain in the background. about moose hunting for future trips. Having learned Cribbage from Lara, Denny and I returned to the cabin for dinner and passed the evening pegging out.
Tuesday we hiked up the Monarch Mountain trail, a 2200 foot climb starting out in light weight shirts and ending with layers, gloves, and hats on the wind-whipped summit. In case the photos do not show it, the weather has been great and it is a beautiful fall here with the golden aspen leaves set off by the bright red fire weed. On the hike up, before breaking out of the tree line, the trail seemed to be paved with gold from the fallen leaves. After we hiked back down we headed out to tour some more of the lakes in the area, and I was able to land a few more Grayling in Surprise Lake. We also hiked in to see an old abandoned dredge that was built in Marion, Ohio and shipped here in the 1930s for work in the gold mines.
Speaking of mining, there is a great deal of gold mining activity in the Atlin area as miners are now resifting through piles of
Glacier Transport
I need one of these things at home! mine tailings for gold that was missed the first time around. Locals are big supporters of the work, as it brings jobs and income. But when you look at the streambeds that have been ripped apart and the piles of tailings that are probably leeching a wide variety of heavy metals you wonder about the cost.
We packed up and shut down the cabin on Wednesday morning and started the trip back to Skagway. It is about 50 miles as the crow flies, about 200 miles via road as there are no roads crossing the lakes and valleys meaning we go north, then east, then south to the boarder. On the way back we stopped at Montana Mountain in Carcross and hiked up above the tree line where we watched for caribou, moose, and wolves but were not able to spot any. That night we were back in Denny and Lara’s home, time to do laundry, clean up equipment, and get ready for the next adventure which will be a trip to Kluane National Park in the Yukon.
Thursday, today, has been a ‘town’ day, doing laundry, meeting friends of Denny, and
Windy Lake
Turn in any direction and the views are incredible. generally getting ready for the next trip. Of course, we also had to stop in for another Halibut sandwich at the Sweet Tooth and looks like we have arranged a motorized raft tour of the bay and harbor if the weather is bad enough--the worse the weather, the better the waves. Tomorrow we head out for Kluane National Park, probably no internet or any other communications until a week from now.
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Sally Gorman
non-member comment
Hi George
I have also visited Alaska....on a cruise. It is wild and beautiful! Be safe. Much love❤️?