#7 – Kluane Park: Bears, Hikes and Lakes!

We were excited to head west after we stocked up in Whitehorse. With our loaded, charged and full Camper, we merged onto the Alaskan Highway and headed west. Kluane National Park is well known for some amazing views, lots of huge mountains, including Mt Logan, the tallest mountain in Canada. Lots of glaciers, bears and sheep to see as well.

Pine Lake

We first stayed at Pine Lake, about two hours west of Whitehorse, and had a great time riding our bikes into Haines Junction. We enjoyed the views and slowed down for a couple of days. We found an amazing rasberry patch and enjoyed the fruits of summer.

Fireweed Season

Congdon Creek was a pretty exciting place to stay, as it was right on the “bear corridor”, or the Bear Buffet as we called it. The feeling was that they built this campground on the wrong spot, as the giant grizzly bears have been using it as a highway for a lot longer. The tenters had to stay in an electrically protected enclosure, but our camper kept us safe and warm once again. We used Congdon Creek as a jumping off point for a great hike called the Sheep’s Creek Trail that overlooked an amazing river delta

lots of erosionary processes going on

This was a very interesting region to explore. We drove up the Alaska Highway as far as Burwash Landing, which was still about another 150km to get to the actual border. It was still closed to Canadians when we got there, so we will have to come back again for an Alaskan adventure.

Here is our video for this chapter. with some photos linked below!

Photos from this chapter of our trip: https://photos.app.goo.gl/cBm6KaU9RotERVABA

Next video is all about Kathleen Lake, Cacross Dunes and Atlin BC!

# 6 – Back to Whitehorse!

After a lot of hiking around Tombstone Park and with some sore feet, we decided to head back south. Tombstone was the northern zenith of our trip, the literal high point and the most north we have both ever been. We had such a great time, and with such amazing weather, it was hard to turn the truck around and head down south.

We camped for a night at Tatchun Lake and caught the tail end of a pleasant thunder and lightening storm. We were safe, dry and warm in our Camper and had nothing to worry about. We got to swim before hand and the lake was super pleasant!

The world’s biggest Cinnamon Bun from Braeburn Lodge, Yukon.

We treated ourselves with a very tasty treat, a Cinnamon Bun from the Braeburn Lodge, halfway between Dawson City and Whitehorse, near the five finger rapids of the Yukon River. We heard these were big, but really, they were gigantic. We shared one, over three solid sessions, and were stuffed! Glad we got only the one.

We were returning to Whitehorse to restock, restore, and refresh ourselves and our camper. We needed supplies and a shower mostly. We also wanted to see some of the more touristy stuff of Whitehorse, mainly the Beringa Museum and the Transportation Museum, conviently located next to each other at the side of the Alaskan Highway. We enjoyed both!

One of the most important planes to the north after WWII
Yolo’ing the rapids at Miles Canyon

We also checked out Miles Canyon, a very scenic spot just outside of Whitehorse, with hiking along a narrow canyon, full of white water that was a serious hazard for the early prospectors of the gold rush.

We had a great second visit to Whitehorse and we are feeling that we are getting to know the city a little better. We stayed at the same RV park and were able to get some laundry done, some more showers and charged up our batteries. Here is our video from this segment:

As well, we have more photos from this segment of our trip at the link below!

Next chapter we will be heading to the Kluane National Park, near Haines Junction and visit Pine Lake, and Congdon Creek. Apparently there is lots of Grizzlies!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/kv8Rpw6XauvSH9Bg7

#5 – Tombstone Park and Dempster Highway

After a great time in Dawson City. we headed north for Tombstone Park, 70kms up the Dempster Highway. The Dempster Highway is well known for blowing tires, huge pot holes and long distances between fuel stops. It traverses the arctic for over 700kms through the Northwest Territories to the Arctic Ocean.

We wanted to explore it a bit, but not go all the way. Plus, the Northwest Territories were closed to non residents. We decided to just go to Tombstone Park, a beautiful valley 70kms north of Dawson City.

Our Camper all setup for the sun!

We stayed for four nights as the weather was phenomenal and our site was fantastic. We were right beside the early North Klondike River, when it was still more of a creek. Every day was sunny and hot, above 30 degrees Celsius. We loved every moment there.

A panorama of the valley we stayed in.

We did lots of hiking from this camp spot. Just above us was the Goldensides Trail, and it provided amazing views.

Staying cool beside the North Klondike River.

We saw lots of wildlife during our stay in Tombstone. We saw a cow Moose just 400meters from our campsite, as well as a flourishing beaver den with a beaver swimming around collecting dinner. We saw marmots, foxes and thankfully, no grizzly bears!

Looking north from the Goldensides Trail
We harvested a bunch of wild blueberries and made some Jam. Delicious!

We were at the right place at the right time and the wild blueberries were in full harvest. Everywhere we hiked, we snacked as we went. One night we collected a bunch and made some Jam. It was my breakfast of choice for the next few weeks!

Looking west towards Tombstone Mountain (in the middle) from the Grizzly Lake trail lookout.

South of Tombstone Park, we hiked the Grizzly Lake trail, or at least half of it. We hiked up into the alpine to the “lookout” and were rewarded with this amazing view, looking over Grizzly Lake to Tombstone mountain.

After these hikes, we were a little sore and ready to head south, back towards Whitehorse to resupply, shower and map out our exploration, into the Kluane region and Haines Junction.

Here are some photos from this part of our trip! https://photos.app.goo.gl/aL6rcCuiaD4gZsU19

Here is the video we’ve put together of our experiences from this amazing place:

#4 – Dawson City!

Riding our bikes into Dawson City

We made it! Dawson City was a big part of our Yukon trip and what we were heading for right away. We had a long weekend planned for lots of fun, exploration and some gold panning! We stayed at a RV park on Bonanza Creek, just out of town, and we took full advantage of the programs and tours that were available around town.

Lots of good advice around Dawson

We settled into our site and were enjoying the very sunny hot weather. The drive up was a little bumpy with a couple of construction segments and small detours. Our first full day was spent exploring Dredge #4, one of the largest dredges from its era and very well preserved to this day. We got a guided tour as a part of a small group.

Dredge #4

We also got a tour of the SS Keno, a much smaller paddlewheeler that will go from Dawson up to Mayo to collect ore and other resources. It was a interesting tour through the boat and our guide, a local paddler was very informative and entertaining!

SS Keno

The other big historical site outside of Dawson is the Bear Creek worksite. This was a huge village of workers who would build, maintain and support all these dredges and equipment. They also cleaned up the gold and kept everything locked up. It felt like a time capsule into a long past era of hard work, lots of noise and dirt to produce thousands of ounces of beautiful gold.

Some gold we panned on Claim #6

The other important things to do in Dawson are more entertainment based! We explored the town, did some shopping, biked all the streets. We happened to be in town for the very famous Dawson International Outhouse 5km Race and Dirty Limerick Contest! We saw the launch and were impressed with the creativity of the teams, the “Harry Ploppers” vs “Skid Row”. It was hilarious and a fun activity.

The other big activity for a lot of people who visit Dawson is to have a drink with the Sour Toe at the Downtown Hotel. I made sure we did this, as Caroline was not interested. A shot of Whisky with the Toe and the famous call: “You can drink it fast, or you can drink it slow, but your lips must touch the Toe!” I enjoyed it and am fully certified if you need to see my certificate!

Earned my certificate!

Our four nights in Dawson went by so quickly. We tried to make it into Diamond Tooth Gerties, but with Covid restrictions, they were at capacity, so we did not get to catch their popular show. All the more reason to come back again. We got to see Moose swimming across the Yukon river, we explored the old cemetary on top of the hill, and we got a good feel for the town and met some locals. Overall, we loved it and would come back in a heartbeat.

Next we are off on the Dempster highway to Tombstone park for some hiking!

Click here for some photos from Dawson City and of our trip!

Here is our video from this segment, enjoy!

#3 Into the Yukon!

Rancheria Falls, Yukon Territory

We finally made it to the Yukon Border! We’ve been pushing to get through most of BC quickly as we’ve seen a lot of it, and the wildfires were not good. We decided on the Cassiar highway, definitely the road less traveled to get to the north, but we appreciated the views and experience.

We crossed over the territory boundary and went through a checkpoint to register us and fill out some forms. It was quick and easy. We were happy to be fully vaccinated and elgible to enter!

Our first day driving in the Yukon on the Alaskan Highway was great. Good weather, empty roads and lots to see. We saw a moose and 4 Chinook Helicopters fly over us.

We stayed at Teslin Lake Campground that night and also were able to reposition our camper on the back of the truck as it had shifted to one side a little bit. We’ve gotten pretty good at it now!

Testing out her bug helmet. This was the only time its been used.

Our next day was a drive into Whitehorse and some touring of the SS Klondike, a massive paddlewheeler parked right as you enter Whitehorse from the south. We had a great day exploring Whitehorse and we were staying at an RV site, so we could shower, get some laundry done and recharge the camper batteries!

SS Klondike

Here is a video of this part of our trip. You can follow along on YouTube and subscribe for notifications when we publish new videos.

As well, here is a photo album of our adventures during this segment. Click here for Photos

#2 – Famous Places – Bear Glacier, Stewart BC, and Jade City

Our second and third days on our journey north went through some pretty famous spots. We started on the Cassiar Highway, famous for being a very picturesque highway with lots of beautiful lookouts and stops. Its also known for being a little rough or ‘bumpy’, we which can confirm. 100% correct. We bounced and bumped our way along, visiting Stewart, BC a quirky little city with a big past and a close town, Hyder, USA, that we wished we could visit.

We also drove past Bear Glacier, which has been retreating away from the highway over the last few decades, but still provides a beautiful view of ice and power to move mountains!

Caroline checking out the Glacier

We drove through Dease Lake on our way north and ended up spending the night boondocking in the Jade City parking lot, which offered “FREE RV PARKING” which immediately appealed to us, of course. I also happen to be a huge fan of the tv show “Jade Fever” which explores a family Jade mining operation nearby. During our travel through, we followed Scrappy Larry, a scrap dealer from the show for a while, and saw Larry himself and his son at the Jade City store. We also got to watch Gary fire up “SixPack” their old, broken down work truck that is a big part of their mining operation and show.

Our video below shows some of these explorations and more, with some bonus footage of the Jade City work truck “Six Pack” from the tv show “Jade Fever”

Here is a link to some more photos from this segment of our trip!

A&C

#1 – Heading North!

We are ready with out first video from our grand adventure! We have been exploring northern BC and the Yukon for the last two weeks now and have seen so many beautiful and amazing places. We have driven over 3000km so far and everything has been going great. We are spending lots on gas, but we are appreciating every moment we have.

I’ve got a couple of videos completed and ready to share of our trip so far. Wifi is rare up here, and wifi with any kind of upload is even more hard to find! We are settled into an RV park in Whitehorse for a night to do laundry, have showers and upload a couple of videos!

Our first video is from the beginning of our trip, as we left Vancouver and headed north, with route unknown, as the forests were on fire in southern BC. We drove the Coqihalla #5 highway until 97c and then headed north through Williams Lake and then onto the Hundred Miles Houses. We drove almost 800kms that day!

We hope to be sharing videos and posts a little more frequently going forward. Its been so good to disconnect up north, where the cell phone signal is non-existant. We’ve been enjoying being in the present more, and to slow down lots. We have been to some remote spots, rough roads and beautiful vistas and can’t wait to share them with you.

We’ve got lots more fun content, videos, and photos to share over the next few weeks as we continue to explore the Yukon!

I’ve got some photos from this leg of our trip that you can view here in this link!

Follow along on my twitter account if you want to see a few more up to date photos of where we are! @aaronmueller