Whitehorse to Junction 37 8-27-12

Heading down the road outside of Whitehorse.

Coming upon Teslin Lake another beautiful glacier lake, about 70 miles long.

Getting closer to the foothills of the Rockies, Salmon Mountain Range.

Salmon Mountain Range before the Rockies.

This red weed grew all along this section, like golden rod leaves only brilliant red, you could see it for miles.

These roads are not to bad and the hills are small, tomorrow its back over the Rockies.

More great winding twisting mountain roads.

This shot is taken near the Rancheria Camp Ground we stopped at on the way up. Its where the road got washed out along with Rancheria's hydro plant. We stopped for gas and lunch. Since we were both fighting off colds, we had bowl's of great homemade soup and homemade pierogi's, they were huge, two made a meal.

Aug.27, 2012 Nights are still rainy and cold. Heading down the road to get thru Canada as fast as possible. This section has smaller mountains with plenty of beautiful lakes and plant life. We had lunch at the Rancheria Camp Ground, very nice people and moved onto an old camp ground that's been there since the fifties, looks like it too, but it was peaceful. Had a nice visit with people we met in Anchorage and we have been following them on down. They know the roads well, they have traveled them since 1967. They have seen many changes, the road was dirt when the started, and had many good stories to tell of the Alaska Highway. We were told at Rancheria the caravan of WWII vehicles is just a day a head of us, so we will try to catch them for at least one ceremony before they get back to Mile O.

Beaver Creek Yukon to Whitehorse BC 8-26-12

Leaving Beaver Creek, we've been told it's suppose to be 50 miles of bad roads, dirt, frost heaves an construction.

St. Elias Mountain Range Yukon.

More construction and bad roads.

Mount Logan Yukon, in the clouds.

Mount Logan 19,545 feet high of the St. Elias Mountain Range Yukon. Highest peak in Canada.

More dirt roads Yukon

 

Wrangell Mountain range miles away in Alaska.

Kluane Mountain range, Yukon.

Field of cottonwood weed.

Mountain peaks just before Kluane Lake.

Coming into view of Kluane Lake, the most beautiful lake and surrounding mountain scenery we have ever scene. This lake has a very unique story of its reformation. Around three to four hundred years ago the Kaskawulch Glacier advanced and closed off the Slims River which was the drain for the lake. It ran 140 miles south to Alaska and the pacific ocean. The glacier raised the lake 30 feet, enough to cause it to drain north 10,000 miles to the Bering Sea. When the glacier melted the north drain dug deep and is still the drain today.

Looking east Kluane Lake.

Looking east on Kluane Lake's south shore, from the west end.

North Shore of Kluane Lake.

Mountain peaks south shore of Kluane Lake.

Lower mountains on the south shore of Kluane Lake.

South end of Kluane Lake where Slims River used to drain it to the pacific ocean 140 miles away.

Kluane Lake south shore. There is a road at the base of the mountain you can't see we just drove around on.

Kluane Lake south end where it used to drain.

Kluane Lake south end.

Mountain peaks of Wrangell St. Elias National Park Alaska.

Bill's favorite road, switchbacks.

Ash from a volcano that erupted in Alaska about 500 years ago, we saw it on the other route we took up. It covers hundreds of miles or acres of the Yukon.

Neat rock outcropping.

Last hill on the way into Whitehorse, BC.

Aug. 26, 2012 Traveling south in the Yukon, Beaver Creek to Whitehorse. Nobody comes here unless they have to. This is no where. Remote as can be, nothing but you and the mountains. Only a way to Alaska. But as you can see some of the most beautiful country ever. You can see Wrangell St. Elias National Park in some places miles in the distance.  Then you come to Kluane Lake, it is the largest lake in the Yukon and is breathtaking. Words cannot describe, you never want to leave. No people, no cottages, no traffic, no pollution, no jets, no sirens, no noise at all, no politics, just fresh air and gorgeous scenery. You can hear your heart beat and it feels great. Three hundred miles of god's country, we must be in heaven man.

Galkana AK to Tok AK to Beaver Creek Yukon 8-25-12

Heading out of the camp at Galkana AK,

Here Moosy Moosy, think she owned the road. She was probably headed to a lake we just passed, there was a bull moose there, they often feed near lakes. This is a smaller one. We've seen much bigger.

Wrangell St. Elias National Park in the background.

Notice the ripples in the road, an earthquake went thru here in 2002 the road is still settling, the Trek went air borne a few times between the earthquake and permafrost melting, big dips in the road, slow going.

Headed toward the Alaskan Mountain Range.

Gorgeous mountain views traveling thru the Alaskan Range east Alaska.

Moose Brownies, fresh too, yummy.

Just on the edge of Wrangell St, Elias National Park

Mountains Wrangell St, Elias National Park, notice leaves are changing. Time to head south.

Coming down out of the Alaska Range of Mountains near Tok.

Close to Tok Alaska

Fast Eddy's Tok Alaska, recommended by everyone who's been there.

Prime rib sandwiches and fried mushrooms at Fast Eddy's Tok. The fried mushrooms were double what's left. Food is great and very generous portions enough for two days, probably more.

Bull Moose in the Tok gift shop. We found coupons for free fudge in this gift shop in a RV laundromat so we indulged in Chocolate Fudge 1/4 pound.

Lake near Canadian border.

Sunset at Beaver creek Yukon.

Catholic Church at Beaver Creek, Yukon population 112, don't know how many Catholics, but the church only holds about twenty people, the priest shows up once a month. The keys are at the hotel desk they let you go into the church if the priest isn't in town. These towns are so remote most are even smaller 20-45 people, just a bump in the road to Alaska nothing else. The kid that worked at the rv park office said he was there because he could get a house that would be worth four-hundred thousand dollars in Ft. Nelson for a hundred thousand here. There is a transfer airport for going to Alaska he will take training this winter to get a job there he said. This is really the middle of nowhere. Nothing for over a hundred miles in all directions typical for most of the towns up here.

Aug. 25. 2012 We traveled from Galkana AK to Beaver Creek Yukon today. Another very dreary day rain and mostly overcast, sounds like a broken record. But we're headed back to the states thru Canada of coarse nothing to stop us now, its all down hill. Again beautiful scenery, but the roads are tough, lot of frost heaves, the Trek was air borne many times today, great roads for testing military vehicles. There were two bears in Beaver Creek recently, one they hand cuffed and he went peacefully, the other wouldn't leave town no matter what they did so the had to call the local Clint Eastwood, he went out in a pine box.