Yukon Territories to British Columbia to U.S. of A…. all in a Day!

This is the trail the Gold Rushers Traveled on!!!

 Our first big group event took place on Monday when we traveled in buses (nice not to have to drive) to Frazier then boarded the a train on the White Pass and Yukon Route; this route was designated an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1994. This is an honor shared by other world civil engineering marvels such as the Eiffel Tower, Statue of Liberty and the Panama Canal. 

Some history….The route was started because of the Klondike Gold Rush of 1896. Gold was discovered in 1896 by George Carmack and two First Nations companions Skookum Jim and Dawson Charlie. The first few flakes they found in Bonanza Creek in the Klondike barley filled the spent cartridge of a Winchester rifle. However, it triggered an incredible stampede for gold: the Klondike Gold Rush. The Seattle post-Paper broadcast that “Sixty-Eight Rich Men on the Steamer Portland” arrived in Seattle with “Stacks of Yellow Metal”.

The news spread like wildfire and tens of thousands of gold crazed men and women steamed up the inside passage to arrive in Dyea and Skagway to begin the overland trek to the Klondike. Six hundred miles over treacherous and dangerous trails.

Train we were on

 It was because of the danger of these trails that two men, Thomas Tancrede and Michael Heney got together and decided to build a railroad over the coastal mountains. The White Pass and Yukon Route began on May 28, 1898 and it climbs from sea level in Skagway to almost 3,000 feet at the summit in just 20 miles and features steep grades of almost 3.9%. The tight curves of the White Pass called for a narrow gauge railroad; the rails were three feet apart on a 10-foot wide road bed. Building the one hundred and ten miles of track was a challenge. Construction required cliff hanging turns of 26 degrees, building two tunnels and numerous bridges and trestles.

Work on Mile 16 took place in the dead of winter with heavy snow and temperatures as low as 60 below. The railroad was finished in July of 1900

One hundred thousand men and women headed north, but only between 30,000 and 40,000 actually reached the gold fields of the Klondike. Four thousand or so prospectors found the gold but only a few hundred became rich

And what happened to the original discoveres of the gold - George Carmack’s gold allowed him to have a more adventurous life with two wives inSeattle and California. Dawson Charlie solds his mining properties and spent his later years happily in Carcross, and Skookum Jim continued as a propspector and died rich but worn out from his tough life!

 The trip along the route was the most amazing scenic train ride either Fredric or I had ever had. And, to be quite honest, we ran out of adjectives to describe what we were seeing.  Here are a few photos - they will speak for themselves!

Drinking the Local Brew!