Blogs from Skagway, Alaska, United States, North America - page 5

Advertisement

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway July 11th 2012

I forgot about the wind. When Walter warned me about bears in the Carcross Desert and suggested the little patch of sand between the water and the warehouse, I forgot about how windy it was that afternoon. And I had even read an information plaque somewhere about how the Tagish First Nation name for the spot translates to “always windy spot” or something like that. I was woken several times by the wind smacking the side of my tent into my face as I slept. This, of course, was the result of my having anchored the tent at each corner with tent pegs anchored in sand. Hmmm. At the first flutter of wind, they came up and were free to move about and cause slack, letting the tent walls sag enough to smack me in the ... read more
Into the White Pass
The White Pass
Skagway Harbour

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway June 24th 2012

We arrived in Skagway about 7:00 in the morning. It was another of those early wakeups for me. I gave up trying to get back to sleep at 4:30 and headed up to deck 14 to see the scenery. The further north we've gotten the longer the daylight has been. It didn't get dark until about 11:30 and at 3:00 AM it was rather light. By 4:30, it was definitely daylight. The ship traveled ever more slowly as we got closer to Skagway because the waterway got very narrow. Skagway was high on my personal list of places to visit because I've always been interested in the gold rush days and the adventures of the propectors in this rugged part of the world. Reading Jack London's books as a young guy stoked that interest. In a ... read more
Skagway Harbor-View to the South
Entering Skagway
Skagway (3)

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway May 23rd 2012

An early morning arrival in Skagway finds Cecil still a little groggy from all of the previous day's activities, so Deb heads out into Skagway on her own until he can catch up. At the port the Skagway cliffs are covered in ship and captain's names dating back to the early 1900's. It became a tradition, and many of the cruise ships who port here have their ship and captain's names painted on the rocks. The story says that the more highly a ship's crew thought of their captain, the higher they painted the names. I have no idea how some of those got up there - it looks pretty precarious! Skagway is a cool little historic town that has a very rustic and authentic feel to it. Less than 1,000 people now populate the town, ... read more
The Red Onion Saloon
Beware Pickpockets and Loose Women
Cecil and his "lady"

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway September 21st 2011

Slept til 8 this morning - latest since the trip started. Had to shower in a hurry to meet Jack for breakfast in Cagney's. he got a one day pass from the restaurant manager and invited me to see how the other half lives cause ron does not do breakfast. Eggs benedict- really good. Service was fast and it was quiet. Back to the room to rest a little. Met ron and jack again while walking thru the garden cafe. grabbed a very tiny sandwich to hold me til dinner. Went outside in the drizzle and walked to the train. Toni saved me a seat in her car with roseanne and frank. Helen, frank and lorraine got seats in there too. The tour was okay but got very foggy on the way back so we could ... read more

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway August 10th 2011

Night three; my first night in a real bed; my first night on dry land. Three giant cruise ships pulled out of Skagway as our humble ferry pulled in. I could almost hear the citizens of Skagway collectively groan: You again? It must be like having your poor relatives show up while you're still counting the loot your rich uncle left behind. I had to tramp through town in the dark to get to my hostel. Skagway looks charming: wooden sidewalks, noisy saloons, assaying offices. I can't imagine what it's like with 9000 tourists wearing I've been to Disneyland T-shirts crowding its streets. I rented a little cabin behind the hostel for a couple of nights. Over the phone it sounded cool. Just before she hung up, though, Janylin, the proprietress referred to it as the ... read more
Mama Bear
Ice Berg Pond
Ice Bergs I

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway July 29th 2011

At White Pass Summit, we entered Skagway, Alaska, USA. I think the first thought that came to both of us was that we never expected to set our shoes in Alaska again. It felt different driving into the US. Border formalities greet you just before you enter the town. Fairly empty & we got through fine. Just had to part ways with imported tomatoes & bell peppers. Hmm..Will have to be more thoughtful in the future. And we paid some $12 to enter the US. I am not sure why I did not ask the reason for the charge. Anyways, my head goes blank in front of a US authority. Skagway: A very cute little town. One drive on broadway st & you have seen it all as a tourist. The place is filled with jewellery ... read more
A glacier right in Skagway
Just exiting the tunnel :)
Skagway

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway July 14th 2011

July 14, 2011 – LEISURE DAY IN SKAGWAY Three things happened today. First we went up on Dyea Way to get an overview of Skagway and some pictures of the layout of the city. It is long and narrow with the waterfront being only five blocks wide. The Skagway River valley is very narrow and hemmed in by almost vertical rock walls. The view from up on the hill gave great perspective to the town. Second, we visited the Gold Rush Cemetery which was used for only a few years from 1897 until just after the turn of the century. By then it was full! Most of the grave markers are for adults in their 20s, 30s, and 40s and a number of children. Most interesting are the graves for the two most famous (or infamous) ... read more
2011-07-14  - Looking down on the city of Skagway
2011-07-14  - Reid Falls, Skagway 2
2011-07-14 -  Reid Falls, Skagway

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway July 12th 2011

July 12, 2011 SKAGWAY – WHITE PASS AND YUKON RAILROAD. Against all odds, this iron trail was born of the 1898 Klondike Gold Rush and built through some of the North’s most ruggedly beautiful terrain. The building of the White Pass and Yukon Route was the engineering marvel of its time. Completed in 1900 with British financing, Canadian contracting and American engineering, it hauled miners and supplies over the 3,000 foot pass between Skagway and the Yukon. Today’s train was pulled by 3 diesel engines and was 15 cars long taking us over the most scenic portion of the line, viewing spectacular panoramas of the Sawtooth Mountains and the Lynn Canal, passing cascading waterfalls, craggy mountainsides and steep cliffs. Interesting sights included several trestle bridges, two tunnels carved out of solid rock, remnants of the original ... read more
2011-07-12  Skagway - White Pass and Yukon railway - trains coming and going
2011-07-12  Tressle bridge over the Skagway river
2011-07-12  Skagway - waterfalls along the White Pass and Yukon railway

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway July 6th 2011

Skagway, Alaska, 6 juillet Après trois jours dans le patelin, après de belles randonnées en nature, le côté mercantile de l’endroit ne peut que vous frapper et le professeur en moi ne peut s’empêcher de vous parler aujourd’hui de tourisme de masse. Je vous ai déjà dit que la petite ville de Skagway (862 habitants) est littéralement envahie par les croisiéristes au cours de la belle saison et lorsqu’on se promène sur Broadway, l’artère principale de la ville, on réalise à quel point le commerce est ici le véritable maître des lieux. Par exemple, en plus des incontournables boutiques de souvenirs, j’ai compté sur moins d’un kilomètre de distance une vingtaine de bijoutiers-diamantaires qui ne font pas dans la pacotille. Diamants, émeraudes, saphirs, topazes, pas du toc et du très très cher! L’argent coule donc ici ... read more
Skagway, Alaska
Skagway, Alaska
Skagway, Alaska

North America » United States » Alaska » Skagway July 5th 2011

Skagway, Alaska, 5 juillet Après toute cette route, j’ai trouvé un autre petit coin de paradis! Le terminus des croisières vers l’Alaska mérite bien sa réputation! Mais deux mots sur les derniers jours avant de vous parler de Skagway. Whiterhorse, la capitale yukonnaise, est une petite ville sans trop de cachet mais la nature environnante est intéressante. Une jolie promenade le long du fleuve Yukon m’a amené vers le lac Schwatka (réservoir créé par un barrage et où l’on trouve la plus longue passe migratoire à saumon au monde) et le Miles canyon, où le fleuve s’encastre entre des parois de roches basaltiques. De là, une petite incursion vers Atlin, un bled isolé de la Colombie-Britannique qui n’est accessible que par le Yukon. ‘La petite Suisse’ offre un coup d’œil séduisant sur les montagnes et le ... read more
Whitehorse, Yukon
Whitehorse, Yukon
Atlin, British Columbia




Tot: 0.105s; Tpl: 0.007s; cc: 11; qc: 83; dbt: 0.0387s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.2mb