A trip to the Yukon and Alaska

[arctictraveller]

Ive been at base camp for way too long due to the need for some heavy maintenance on the van and the house. During this time, ive been doing a lot of research, planning, looking at maps, guide books and watching Youtube videos of several adventure channels. One in particular is “destination adventure”. He is based around Prince Rupert and explores a lot of BC and further North. Ive located a lot of them on my Gaia map and plan to check some of them out. So, Im planning a trip through BC and the Yukon sometime in August or September when the number of bugs are reduced and its not so hot. Currently i don't have a route defined, but just a lot of waypoints plotted. If anyone has any recommended places to visit id love to hear about them. Ill probably spend a couple weeks camping and exploring the area and then its likely Ill continue on to Alaska by way of the Cassiar highway, Whitehorse and then the ferry from Skagway to Juneau. If anyone would like to join me for part or all of the trip, im open to some company. I have driven to Alaska countless times and have a lot of experience with the trip, but i dont feel like Ive even scratched the surface of possible places to visit along the way.

 

[doublevan2]

Hey Jeff - we met at Deschuttes River M&G back in October of 2022 (?). Silver E350 V10 with PH. Would love to join you - but other plans screw that up ! I've done Cassiar maybe 6-8 times - and I always try to stop nust north of Gitanyow (village) and stay on the shore of Kitwancool Lake. It's on your left off Cassiar - and you have to drive on gravel - eventually turning/bearing to your right - and there's 2 trails that drop down to the lakes edge. I usually stay on/off the first road drop down - short narrow sandy beach. Maybe you've been there before ? I had a raft of maybe 20 plus loons at sunrise one time years ago - calling out - SO BEAUTIFUL AND PEACEFUL ! If you go back up the hill/road - turning left - theres another trail drop down to the lake maybe a mile further on. When ready to hit the road again - go up the hill and turn left - and the road will eventually get you back to the Cassiar Hwy to continue north. Wishing you the best of luck and travel safe ! Send photos to the forum - please !

Russ G

Heres a bit of a map - but sure you "know the way !"


https://www.google.com/maps/@55.3603588,-128.0399804,12z?entry=ttu

 

[soloalpinist]

Following. Hope to do this next year.

 

[REF]

Liard hot springs is spectacular, and if you go top of the world hwy, a jaunt up to Eagle is well worth the effort, right up your alley, take the time to get a guide to open up the buildings, including the old courthouse and several housing well preserved WWII memorabilia including some great old army vehicles. There’s pull offs to camp along the way in or out where the dirt road crosses over numerous creeks, great fishing for arctic grayling.
I think I had mentioned McCarthy/Kennicott at some point, but if you’re headed that way, the guided tour through the old Kennicott copper mine is amazing.

 

[BrianW.]

In Skagway we stayed over on Dyea Flats, where there is a free camping area that's primitive but nice and quiet (note this is NOT the NPS Dyea campground). https://www.alaska.org/detail/dyea-campground There's also a decent, but packed-tight town campground near the cruise terminal if you want to plug in or have showers.

Agree with Ref that the Kennicott main ore processing building tour is very cool and well worth it. I did it a few years ago with my family. Back in 1989 I did a very ill-advised "self tour" through the entire building with my friends before the NPS took it over and it was abandoned and derelict. Amazed that we didn't plummet to our deaths in the then-derelict building. (And most of the other buildings were abandoned and open, with furnishings and all kinds of stuff still inside.) But it was amazing.