June 22, 2009 by Rae

A Night on the Town

When I arrived in Dawson City, I promised myself a night on the town with dinner and a show soon as I got my first pay cheque. Since getting first said pay cheque, no night felt ‘right.’ But, after today’s grueling workload, a night on the town was just what I needed, so I went out and had some fun.

First stop was Sourdough Joe’s for dinner. I’d heard good things about this restaurant, so I didn’t explore other options. I had the ‘special’–king salmon with lemon-butter sauce, steamed veggies (carrots and green beans), and herbed rice. The meal was very good; nothing fancy or special, but the price was just right for a homestyle dinner. I had a beer with it and came out at 26$ with tip which would not be considered expensive south of the 60th parallel for such a meal. I will definitely go back to this restaurant and try their ‘famous’ fish and chips.

Next stop was Klondyke Cream & Candy. As it turns out they rotate flavours, so the triple chocolate brownie I was addicted to is no longer available. No problem, I am now addicted to New York-style cherry cheesecake over peanut butter chocolate. 😀

And, then, the pièce de résistance: Diamond Tooth Gerties. This is the oldest casino in Canada and it is non-profit to boot, so all the money taken in goes back to the community. There are three cancan shows a night. Entrance to Gerties for two nights is 6$ per person. In case that’s not clear, a 6$ pass gets you access to all three shows for two nights. What a bargain! As an employee in the tourism industry, I get an even better bargain, a free season’s pass! I like to go out for a drink on occasion and will make it a point to time these outings with a Gerties show!

I went in a bit early tonight and played the slot machines, something I do very rarely, but which is fun on occasion. I never play more than my budget and I find it sad to watch the compulsive gamblers who are so stressed out and focussed on winning. I played the penny slots and had fun watching my fortune wax and wane. Then I sat down in front of the stage and ordered a drink, trying out a house special called ‘Gertie’s Garter’ which is rum, some sort of fruity liqueur, and cranberry and pineapple juices; very tasty!

The show started promptly at 8:30 (next shows are 10:30 and midnight) and it was a lot of fun. I loved watching the incredibly athletic gals kick up their heels, showing off beautiful coloured petticoats. All the staff at Gerties is dressed to the nines, with the servers and show girls dressed in period costumes. When the music starts, you are transported back 120 years in history to the Gold Rush days; it is quite an experience!

When leaving Gerties, I suggest putting on sunglasses inside the dimly lit building as the glaring 9PM sun will just about blind you. 😀

June 21, 2009 by Rae

Into the Tundra

This post is a bit out of order as I have two other outings to write up, but this was the most exciting. 🙂 The internet has been misbehaving (a territory-wide issue), hence why I’m behind in my posting. Believe me, a lot has been going on and I’m making the most of my nightless summer in Dawson City!

Today is the solstice, the longest day of the year. Up here, the sun sets for just a short moment; it is the night where we come as close to 24 hours of daylight as possible. True 24 hour daylight is found further north, past the Arctic Circle.

Last year, I set as a goal that I would spend this solstice on the Dempster Highway at the Arctic Circle. I didn’t think it was a realistic goal, but it motivated me to at least be north of 60 by June 21st.

Sunday is a short work day for me, 7AM to 9AM, so I decided that a day trip onto the Dempster was in order. I drove 100km up the highway to Two Moose Lake and celebrated the solstice a ‘few’ hours early (I have to get up at 6 tomorrow!) at the southern limit of the tundra, 300km shy of the Arctic Circle. Wow! 😀

My original plan for the day was to just go hiking in Tombstone Territorial Park, but my manager told me to go 30km further north to Two Moose Lake so I could see the tundra. Great advice! I drove straight to the Lake, then did my planned hike on the Grizzly Creek Trail.

The Dempster has a reputation for being a very rough road, but the 100km I drove were easy. There were perhaps two sections with really bad potholes, but, otherwise, it was very smooth going on a road that was more dirt than gravel. My average speed was 70kph, but my return was more at 80 and 90kph since I knew what to expect. If the road is like that all the way to Inuvik, I am not worried about taking Miranda on it. I was disappointed that the first 30km or so are incredibly boring and that there are far too few turnoffs once you start to hit the incredible views! Small quibbles. 🙂

I only drove one seventh of the Dempster and was already struck by the sheer isolation of the land I was driving through. I saw a homestead or two that were obviously self-sufficient, but, otherwise, there is nothing but mountains and tundra as far as the eye can see. It was land a person could disappear in.

The Milepost guide has a section about the Dempster and includes the following helpful information about Two Moose Lake:

Moose can be seen at twilight.

What about the season when there is no twilight?! 😀

Even though I wanted to keep going after the lake, I knew I had a long drive home and an even longer hike planned, so I turned around and headed back into Tombstone Park. I stopped at the campground and information centre to get the latest trail report and to find out if there had been recent bear sightings on the trail (nope).

The day had dawned very grey with heavy clouds and they let loose during the time I was the information centre. By the time I reached the Grizzly Creek trailhead, the sun was out in full force. I always have ‘luck’ with the weather the day I decide to climb a mountain. Hopefully, that streak will hold up with the Chilkoot!

The trail leads to a backcountry campground, but my goal was the observation deck, about halfway. I hadn’t done any reading on the trail, so I didn’t know what to expect and was prepared for anything. My pack had everything I needed to take care of myself if ‘anything’ happened in the bush. I set off at 2PM with an ETA back at the car of 4 or 5 based on the little information the Milepost gave me.

The trail starts off gently, meandering through thick forest and lush vegetation, following the eponymous Grizzly Creek. The going is a bit treacherous as the trail is composed almost entirely of exposed tree branches, which are very slippery. The path slowly and sneakily starts to climb until you reach a staircase. From there, the slope is obvious and it’s a hard haul to the summit, with a patch of rock scrambling. Without exaggeration, the bit leading from the stairs to the top of the rocky area could be described in the same way as the trail from Sheep Camp over of the Chilkoot Pass is described in books, only in extreme miniature.

What impressed me the most was how the trail takes you up above the treeline to fantastic views of the valley below. Standing up at the summit was very humbling; I felt very small and insignificant, but, ironically enough, very much part of the world around me.

The hike down was much harder, jarring my poor knees. I would have twisted my ankles in a couple of spots had I not been wearing proper hiking boots with high tops. But what great practise this was for my next backcountry hike!

At the trailhead, there is a box with forms for ‘voluntary self-registration.’ The purpose is to find out how many people go into the park and for what reason so that the Yukon government can best manage the land. I filled in some of the info, such as where I was going and how long I planned to be there, but did not fill out the personal information as I am growing a bit paranoid in my older age ( 🙂 ). Upon returning to the trailhead, there is a second form to complete, which asks if there were changes made to the itinerary or length of journey. One of the last questions is “Did you encounter any wildlife?” I replied “Yes, mosquitoes.” Next question was “Why do you think this encounter occurred?” To which I replied “I didn’t wear bug spray.” I’m such a smart ass. 😀

I was back at the car by 4, where I inhaled a snack of yoghurt and a granola bar before heading back home, about an hour and a half away. I am very amused by the fact that I had to stop halfway and take a short nap! I haven’t had a real solid night’s sleep in weeks and have been surviving on catnaps, which explains my exhaustion. 🙂

What a fantastic day it was! I am so thrilled that I got a ‘taste’ of the Dempster this year; it will tide me over until next year, when I will finally go to Inuvik.

shortly after leaving pavement

heading into the Tombstones

the car was fully brown by the time I got home; the mud was about a half inch thick in parts!

icy lake

Never thought I would be so close to Inuvik!

Two Moose Lake

tundra

I fell in love with this peak and want to climb it one day!

Tombstone mountains

Tombstone mountains shrouded by fog

you start off at tree level and then climb up above the treeline; very impressive!

first sign of moose; I learned to watch my step!

the first part of the trail is tricky, with tons of slippery roots underfoot waiting to trip you

there was water before the bridge, but none under it. LOL!

still among the trees

the view makes it easy to forget the climb

upwards and onwards

a mini Chilkoot preparation (exaggerating!)

climbing

still climbing

above the tree line

I love this cloud; it started off looking like a pig and morphed into a horse!

June 19, 2009 by Rae

The Dawson City Free Store

A colleague and I took a mini road trip this afternoon and went shopping at the Dawson City Free Store, a euphemism for the Dawson City… dump. 😀

Dump diving seems to be a northern sport, with the dump in Yellowknife, NWT, being the most famous. I wasn’t surprised that Dawson City has one. In a town with few stores, it makes sense that there is a reuse/recycle mentality.

People drop off usable things in a reasonably weather-proof location and can pick through what’s there. What impressed me the most was the mountain of clothes. I found five perfectly good and very pretty tops. My colleague left with a huge pile of items, including a very stylish and perfectly good winter parka. She also found a much needed table and chair and some kitchen items. With the table strapped to my roof rack, it was obvious where we’d been tonight. 😀

There are people who would turn up their noses at ‘shopping at the dump’, but I’m not one of them. I love going through flea markets, used clothing stores, and garage sales to find unique items not available in the big box stores. There is also absolutely no ‘gross factor’ in shopping at the Dawson City Free Store; the reusable items are far away from the household waste.

The free store is open noon to 7pm, Tuesday to Saturday.

June 17, 2009 by Rae

Making the Bed

With my lack of sleep lately, a conversation with Croft, and a recent post by Gypsy, I’ve had beds on my mind lately.

I think I would be a contender for the top prize in a ‘most difficult to make bed in the universe’ contest. I sleep in the bunk over the cab in my class C. I hate the thin, hard mattress that came with the rig, so I put over it my super comfy house-style mattress. This leaves me exactly 23 inches between the mattress and the ceiling. Right over my head, there is a ceiling light that reduces the clearance by about an inch and a half. I cannot count the number of times I’ve cracked my head on it. 🙂 But, otherwise, I can count on one hand the number of times that I’ve sat up in bed and hit the ceiling. It’s cozy up there, but comfortable

I still make my bed ‘normal’-style, with a fitted sheet, flat sheet, and comforters. I hate sleeping in a bag! So, once a week, I find myself spread out flat on my stomach on the bed trying to get the darn inner corners of the fitted sheets into position. Add to that a certain cat who thinks that sitting on the bed and playing with the sheets constitutes helping. 😀

Despite this self-imposed ‘hardship’ I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’ve slept in top bunks and lofts most of my life and much prefer that to sleeping close to the ground. Getting up into the bunk is not difficult. I do not, as my friend Croft believes, climb up and down a ladder to get into bed. Rather, I step up onto the dinette bench then onto its back. It’s really no more difficult that climbing or descending a very wide staircase. In the ten months I’ve lived in this rig, I’ve never found myself up there and thinking “Crap, I need to go back down to do x, y, or z”, getting down is such a non-issue.

Sleeping over the cab might not work for everyone, and it would probably be a pain for a couple, but for me it’s perfect. It also has a great perk.

June 14, 2009 by Rae

Good Thing I Didn’t Come For the Gold

Gold was the theme of the day.

Claim No. 6

The mosquitoes at Discovery Claim sure hit the jackpot with me today! 😀

It was the discovery of gold at this claim on Bonanza Creek that launched the Gold Rush of 1898. Today, you can park at the claim site and stroll down to the water to try your hand at panning for gold. I borrowed a pan and shovel from work and had fun spending about a half hour playing in the mud before the mosquitoes and frozen ground chased me away. I’m pretty sure I struck iron pyrite based on the number of gold-coloured flakes lying at the bottom of my pan. There is no way I am going to even think that they might have been real gold. 🙂

Dredge No. 4

Dredge No. 4 was one of several barges (set in man-made lakes) used to mine for gold from the 1930’s to the 1960’s. How they work is a bit complicated to explain without actually being on site, but I’ll try. I’d say the nearest comparison is a mechanical shovel:

The dredge works on a similar pivot-system and has a thingamabob sticking out of it like the shovel of the digger. This thingamabob gobbles up all the gravel and dirt in front of it in a wide radius and sends it into the bowels of the dredge to be processed for gold. When all the gravel and dirt has been eaten, the dredge moves ahead. It spits out its back the unusable rock forming the Klondike’s famous rock piles called ‘tailings.’ I was surprised to learn that only four men where needed to operate these behemouths. That figure is misleading, however, since a ‘dredge camp’ had more than 100 employees.

The method for mining gold in the Klondike appears to be quite different than in Val d’Or, but this might be because of the permafrost here. There seems to be a lot of tourmaline and quartz in the tailings, so I think we can assume that Klondike miners are looking for the same thing as Val d’Or miners, but have a different way of getting at it.

Dredge no. 4 sank into muck in the sixties and in the eighties the decision was made to salvage it. Work on that project did not start until the early nineties. The lower level had been stuck in silt and ice for almost thirty years by this point, but the structure still came out mostly intact! They were even able to salvage the old floors. What impressed me the most, thought, was that the mechanical parts that had been buried for so long still worked perfectly.

Parks Canada now manages the site and gives a very good hour and fifteen minute tour ending with a ten minute video presentation of the raising of the barge. Well worth a visit!

The statistic I remember best from the tour is something I haven’t been able to confirm or deny. Apparently, Dawson City was the third city in North America to get electrical power after Chicago and Montreal. If that’s the case, I am very impressed!