Day 22 - Burwash Landing, YT to Watson Lake, YT

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Journal date: September 15, 2009 (5:00 am). Awake after fitful night sleeping in primitive shelter. Need to move on and try to find food and drink on the trail ahead. It’s 4 below zero this morning (Celsius). Winter is coming on fast; need to keep moving further south. Still dark; need to navigate by the moon and stars. Constantly looking for signs of wildlife that might jump out of the darkness and harm me or my trusty steed. It’s treacherous in the Yukon Territory and a man can’t be too careful.

UPDATE: Well, the sun finally came up, the Miata heater is working fine and I found a restaurant along the trail for breakfast. Everything is fine now.

The weather today started out “dark”, followed by totally sunny (all morning) then partly cloudy, then mostly cloudy, then totally cloudy (but no rain). Even with the 26 degree Fahrenheit start this morning, it managed to get up to the lower 60’s by afternoon.

The Yukon Territory IS a desolate part of Canada. There are times when I’ve driven for several hours and not seen a single building (you need to buy gas whenever you get the chance!). When I hit the road this morning, I drove for more than an hour before I saw my first vehicle on the road.

I spotted some moose crossing the highway directly in front of me today (I had plenty of time to slow down). There were five of them and they slowly sauntered across the road while I fumbled trying to get my camera out. By the time I had the camera ready, they were already into the bushes on the other side of the road, but if you look carefully you can see all five of them in the photo. That brings my moose count to 14.

Stopped at Whitehorse (capital city of the Yukon) and walked along the Yukon River for about an hour. Whitehorse has had two significant roles in Yukon history; first as a major destination and staging area for gold-miners heading for the Klondike in 1898, and secondly as the primary construction staging area for building the Alaska Highway in 1942.

Drove about 440 miles today (the most of any day on this trip). Combined with yesterday's trip from Delta Junction to Burwash Landing, I've now traversed about 750 miles of the Alaska Highway which is a little more than half of the total length. I've driven the "upper" half but won't be driving on the "lower" half because tomorrow I'm taking a detour on the Cassiar Highway which is a shorter and more scenic route towards home.

I'm staying in a much nicer facility tonight. The place is rather new and has individual cabins.

More to come!

Jack

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Comments

[dani]

thank you!
Your journal today was the biggest chuckle of my whole day!! Gets pretty scary out in that big old world sometimes:) Love dani

[WG Oliver]

Fauna...
I feel I must inform you that you have seen 9 Moose and 5 Elk... Just for the record, the pics in this post today are Elk. Thought you would want to know. I hope you have had fun, sounds like you have... Happy Trails.

[Wendy Flint]

Terry (from Alaska) was worried you were going to get hit by a winter storm. He said winter comes fast in Alaska. Glad you escaped! Love Sis Wendy

[soytnly]

Early winter in Alaska
Wendy and Terry, Some of the folks I talked with in Alaska told me that they sometimes get the first hard snow in early September, so Terry is right that this is a good time to be leaving Alaska. Jack

[Jeffrey Moade]

Nice Blog and Pictures!
Hi Jack, Thank you for writing this blog about your adventure to Alaska and back! It is truly an awe-inspiring story and has many beautiful pictures. I used to live in Alaska in my pre-teen years (Ft. Richardson right outside of Anchorage) and can relate to all of the picturesque scenes and wildlife that you have come across. I've been wanting to go back and bring my family with me so that they too can see what untouched nature truly looks like. I currently live right across the Hudson river from NYC in New Jersey and can honestly say that there is not a whole lot of untouched nature in the area. My wife is from the area and has never really been on a vacation that was based on nature as opposed to man made objects and attractions. However, after viewing the pictures in your blog and reading your stories she is really interested in going on a trip. Thanks for kindling her fascination as I am sure without this blog she would never have believed me about the beauty that nature beholds! On a side note, there is a picture in your blog on day 22 in which you took a picture with the sun just starting to light the horizon with the moon and a star blazing steadily in the sky. I think that is a beautiful picture and was wondering if it would be possible if you could send me the original. I think it would make a beautiful background for my computer desktop. Please also feel free to include any other pictures of scenes that you feel are great (by seeing your choice in photos there seem to be tons of them). After a hard days work in the concrete jungle I enjoy coming home and viewing these types of pictures on my computer to remind me that not everywhere is made out of concrete and steel. Once again, thanks for taking the time to create this blog and offering the sights and stories that you encountered on your incredible journey! Jeffrey Moade Bayonne, NJ

[soytnly]

So glad you wrote!
Jeffrey, I can't describe how pleased I am that you and your wife were following my blog and enjoying it! Thanks for taking the time to share your comments with me; they're greatly appreciated! I'll email the photo that you requested. I put all of my favorites on the travel blog, so if you see any others there that you want, just let me know. Jack