Catching up from Haines Junction, Yukon Territory

June 15 we left Pink Mountain RV Park and drove through over 200 miles of windy, narrow mountain roads without any shoulders in the drizzle and rain…When we stopped for lunch along the road I took this shot of the hillside that had recently given way. You can see how green it is here—and you can also catch a glimpse of the tree roots overhanging at the top.

One bright spot of the day was stopping at The Trapper’s Den which was a small log cabin turned into retail outlet for furs, camping and hunting equipment, books, and good conversation with the trapper who is native to the area and traps over 500 square miles of area each year. He sells the fur and the meat of some of the animals. It was like going back to childhood and watching Saturday morning television about the Yukon, even if this place is south of Fort Nelson.

The MilePost is a great tool. We found our campsite for June 16th at the Muncho Lake Provincial Park which has 17 lakeside campsites without services. I was a bit dubious at first, but we pulled in and found wonderland. Our site had a private pathway to the lake and as you can see, it was beautiful. We enjoyed a few cocktails out there and John caught three fish in 21 minutes. I only caught two of them on camera because I was trying to enjoy my wine!

On Wednesday we left about 6:30 in the morning and within an hour John spotted a herd of buffalo, including two young ones and two bulls who were wrestling around. They were on the east side of the road and difficult to photograph, but about a mile or so north there was a lone bull and John got this image.

We spent time in the City of Watson Lake and visited the Sign Post Forest which was started by the men working on the road in 1942. Originally it had about 10 signs from one central post but today there are over 65,000 signs from around the world. If you plan ahead you can bring a city sign, your own license plates or a homemade one with whatever you want on it. The visitor’s center has a map to a local hardware store where they will sell you a piece of wood and the centers provides paint or markers, nails and a hammer—just install yours where there is a space.

Just before stopping for the night, John spotted this bear along the side of the road and I'll pulled over and he shot this image.  Note that the legs and belly are wet--he was coming up from the river.

Last night we stayed at Dawson’s Peak Resort and RV Park. It is right on Teslin Lake in the Yukon Province. The lake is 85 miles long and beautiful. We followed it almost all the way to Whitehorse today. Here are a couple pictures of the park.

After we parked yesterday a huge motor coach from South Dakota pulled in next to us and the owner, Merv, came right over to talk to John. He has absolutely no concept of personal space…at dinner at the lodge John and I were eating and he joined us with his wife. In less than 10 minutes of talking to me he asked for a bite of my salmon dinner! We know way too much about this dude, his ranches, and his health, his everything…had just celebrated his 50th wedding anniversary and the wife only had an opportunity to say “hello” during the evening.

Today we stopped at Whitehorse and visited the Yukon Beringia interpretive Centre which provided information about the ice ages and the original land bridge from Asia to North America. They had several exhibits that were interactive and one, how to hunt allowed one to use an Atlatl which is a throwing board used for throwing a dart. John is pictured practicing this art. The animals had nothing to worry about!

Then we drove to Haines Junction and stopped early in order to clean the trailer, do laundry and just rest. All of those tasks are done and we’re going to barbeque pork loin for dinner. Tomorrow John will probably fish and we’ll explore the little town. Should be in Alaska by Sunday—so far we have driven 4374 miles.