Day 337. July 9, 2014. Dawson City, Yukon, a Gold Rush Town

LOCATION:  Dawson City, Yukon, in western part of territory, near Alaska border

WEATHER:  Nice. Highs in 60s

Last night we stayed in a government park.  All across BC and the Yukon, there are provincial/territorial campgrounds along the highway.  Although there are no showers, the pit toilets are pretty ok.

In the Yukon, they provide free firewood

And this one had an easy pull-through site, all for $12/night.

We drove northwest to the Dempster Highway, and took it north for a few miles, just to say we did it.  It is an unpaved road, in pretty poor condition, that goes to Inuvik, Northwest Territories.  It takes two long days of driving at about 40mph to get there.  Then, 2 days back.  George did it about 10 years ago.

On to Dawson.  It was a crazy Gold Rush town of about 30,000 people in the 1890s.  There is still gold mining, but the town has shrunk to 2000 people, and most of the "gold" comes from tourists.

Our campground is across the Yukon River.  There is no bridge, but a small ferry that takes cars, trucks, and pedestrians across 24/7 in the summer.  In the winter, it is an ice bridge.

We got settled at the campground and walked to catch the ferry back to town.  We had lunch in a saloon, and walked around.  We bought a steak for dinner.  

DINNER:  We grilled the steak and ate with more of the morels, sautéed in garlic butter.  We had a kale salad, from a local gardener, and some sourdough bread we bought from a lady who has a tiny bakery located down a dirt road off the Klondike Highway.  She even grinds her own wheat.

Then, we walked back to town, via the ferry, for the evening.  We went on a guided walking tour, then went to Diamond Tooth Gerties for the can-can show.  

We arrived just as they were starting, so took the only seats available......right in front.  George was selected for a lot of the  audience participation!  It was hilarious.....see next blog.