July 13, 2014 Chapter 5 Watson Lake, YK to Alaska



 



Watson Lake, Yukon, is known for the sign post collection that was begun by a homesick soldier during construction of the Alaska Highway in 1942.



We found signs from places familiar to us, and chose to put our signs with those.

 



Black Bear are common along the Alaskan Highway in the Yukon. We never fail to be thrilled to see bears, especially when they appear so close to the road.



Not all Black Bears are black.  This one is a rich cinnamon color.



An easy ten-minute walk along trail to stretch our legs took us to the picturesque Rancheria Falls.

The Nisutlin Bay Bridge, the longest water span on the Alaska Highway, crosses an arm of Teslin Lake. 



The highway parallels the lake for 34 miles providing a scenic drive bordered on both sides by mountains.



Whitehorse, a Klondike gold rush boom town, was at one time the largest city in the Canada, and has been the capital of the Yukon Territory since 1953. Situated on the Yukon River, it grew into the center for transportation, communications and supplies for the Yukon Territory and Northwest Territories.

 



A wonderful waterfront walking trail connects Whitehorse’s major parks and provides a pleasant, easy way to see the Yukon River.

 

 



The S.S. Klondike, a shallow draught stern wheeler, was built in 1929. It was the largest vessel on the Yukon River, carrying mail, general supplies, silver lead ore and passengers. Powered by a wood burning boiler, it required 6 cords of wood per hour. The wood was cut and gathered along the route while underway. This depleted all the trees growing along the Yukon riverbanks.


 

 



At the Yukon Transportation Museum is a very unique weathervane. A Douglas DC-3 airplane mounted on a rotating pedestal acts as a weathervane pointing its nose into the wind. Originally commissioned as a C-47 during WW II, it was later converted for civilian use as a passenger plane until 1970. For once the wind was in our favor, we watched the plane rotate.



 



Road construction delayed our departure from Whitehorse. So far we have been lucky not to have many road work slowdowns.



The snow-covered Elias Mountains in the Kluane National Park provided a scenic backdrop to our day’s travel.



We were not alone. Our slow-going on rough roads was rewarded with seeing three grizzly bears in less than a 30-minute time span. (Note: At the campground that evening, an AK native and frequent traveler along this route, told us that one was likely a grizzly that is seen so often along road he has been named "Fluffy".)



We were told to look ahead for the skid marks on the road that would alert us to slow down for the frost heaves. These are the result of the freezing and thawing of the upper layer of the permafrost on which the highway was built.



A rest area provided us a scenic overlook of the Kluane River.