Yukon Trip Part IV - ALASKA!

Friday took us on another road trip and this time it was to an area that was a little familiar.  In May for our 30th Anniversary Ron and I did the Alaskan Cruise but unfortunately I lost my camera at the end of the trip so this gave us time to gain some pictures to add to our memories.  It was hard to believe that we were already in the Yukon and now in a couple of hours going to be in Alaska.  I only wish that my Dad would be able to make this trip with me.  It was always his dream to see Alaska.  I will make sure and share all my pictures with him.

First stop Carcross, Yukon.  We had taken an excursion to Carcross from the cruise where we toured the area, found the Mountie's house, saw some totem poles  and a recreation of a ship but one of the most amazing areas is the Carcross Desert.  If you watched the Amazing Race Canada you would have seen this destination as one of the legs of race. 



As we were driving along the highway Ron spotted a Mountain Goat way up on the side of the mountain.  After stopping and taking a look we noticed that he wasn't alone.



The scenery was spectacular and as we travelled over the pass we encountered a bit of snow and then the sun peaked out.

I had to take a quick picture at Fraser, B.C.  This was were we had boarded the White Pass & Yukon Railway in May to ride the train through the mountains into Skagway.

We arrived in Skagway around 11:00 a.m. and had a big brunch and set out to see the sights.  There were not many stores open and the town was a bit of a ghost town.  It was quite different in May with a cruise ship at port and many eager venders wanting to part with their wares.

This is where our cruise ship was.

Overlooking Skagway

 We then went to check out Dyea.  It included winding roads, beautiful scenery, a cemetery for avalanche victims and we did see a few sea lions.

 It was another beautiful day and very early we saw the sun hide behind a mountain.

 

Stephen was an excellent tour guide and still more to come.



Yukon Trip - Part III - Exploring Whithorse

Thursday and Friday we stayed around Whitehorse and enjoyed the domestic animals.  

On Thursday we went for a drive.  Snow had blanketed the ground and it made for some nice backgrounds for pictures.

Thursday night consisted of a fancy dinner made by Stephen.  He is quite the chef.  It was delicious!

And since Stephen does not have internet or tv we became quite the game players.  Our favourite was:

I just can't remember who won all the time!

On Friday we went to the Yukon Wildlife Preserve.  It was such a beautiful spot.  We walked through the area and enjoyed the amazing scenery and wonderful wildlife. 

Elk

Caribou or Reindeer

Muskoxen

My personal favourite - the Arctic Fox

Stephen with the Thinhorn Sheep

 

Stephen keeps busy with making sure that the City of Whitehorse obeys all the rules and he also visits all the animals that get taken into the shelter.  He is quite the animal lover. 

We decided to have a Thanksgiving/Christmas turkey dinner since we did not and will not have that opportunity this year.  I did the cooking for the night but Stephen made dessert....nope, not pumpkin pie but delicious chocolate chip cookies.









Another great couple of days....next to come....ALASKA!

Yukon Trip - Part II - Liard Hot Springs!

Stephen took a few days off for us to be able to explore a little further around the area.  We set off on Tuesday morning for a trip to Liard Hot Springs in northern British Columbia. 
Between Whitehorse and the Hot Springs lay 6 hours of highway and amazing scenery.  .

Our first stop was Watson Lake, Yukon....signs from all around the world were posted here.  We took some time to explore.  There was no way to see all of them but we did find some familiar ones.

This was close to where we
use to live.

Prince Albert is 3 1/2 hours from us.

After a stroll through the thousands of signs we started south to our destination and were amazed at all of the wild buffalo along the side of the road.  At one time we counted 32 in a herd and the scenery was spectacular or as Ron would say "spec."

 

We arrived late afternoon at the Hot Springs and checked into the lodge.  We strolled down the boardwalk through the woods, bathing suits and flashlight in hand.  It was the most rustic hot springs I had ever seen.  We changed quickly in the unheated change rooms and rushed to the spring.  The area were the water comes in is around 40 degrees Celsius.  The further way you move from there the cooler it gets.  I moved to my perfect temperature and relaxed on a bench in the water enjoying the soothing feeling and the nature all around us.  It was really "spec."

 After a evening of board games at the lodge, another soak in the springs in the morning we set off towards Whitehorse.  We found more amazing views and lots of chances to photograph wildlife.

Stephen insisted that he could get a better picture from
below and so he slid down an embankment, ran to the edge,
took the pictures and climbed back up panting and puffing.
I will stick to my long lens!

While looking for a deer in the woods, this one ran in front of us.

A Yukon Wolf let us follow him down the road
while his pack called to him.  We were in the vehicle!

Reindeer (or you can call them Caribou) but it is close to Christmas.

This beautiful little fox was hunting.

Please join me tomorrow for Part III. 

Yukon...Part I

Catching up with Natalie

I will need to divide our Yukon trip in pieces as there was so much to see and I want to share some thoughts and pictures.  After Ron finished working nights on Halloween night we left the next morning to travel 5 hours to Saskatoon.  We stayed overnight there and went to the airport on Saturday morning.  We had a long wait there due to a storm that rolled into Calgary and that was where the plane
was coming from to pick us up and where we were headed for our next part of the trip.  We
were just getting a snack when up strolled a girl that I had taught in Sunday School back in Ontario.  She is now a young married lady and works as an medevac pilot....very impressive.  She was flying from Saskatoon to Edmonton.

Once we finally boarded we flew to Calgary, circled in the sky a few times waiting for the runways to open due to the storm and landed there.  From there we flew to Vancouver where we had a long wait and then flew north to Whitehorse arriving just before midnight.



Stephen picked us up at the airport and we got settled in for a holiday.
  Curley was not really interested but was happy to find a resting place close by.



Stephen's Place

The next morning (Sunday) Stephen had to go to work but before he did he took us for a little drive around Whitehorse so that we could understand a little better where we were located.  Since he is so close to his work he can walk and so after we went to a great church service in the morning we were able to drive around and see some sights.



Stephen's work vehicle

Part II tomorrow....Trip to Liard Hot Springs