Watson Lake to Whitehorse:
288 miles
We were up early on Thursday
so that Craig could do a little more windshield cleaning in preparation for the
day’s drive. He wanted to go over it
with some Bug-Off and Windex. We also wanted to watch a little of the Comey
testimony, which started at 7:00 AM.
Much of our drive was smooth. Once again we saw distant mountains and spruce forests that felt endless.
Most of the time we could not see a vehicle either ahead or behind us.
But when we hit one 17 Km
stretch of construction, we were stopped by a flag lady, and a there was a
small backup. I know there were several more RVs behind us, and in the group
ahead, only a few were cars. Everyone is going to Alaska, and there is only one
road! It’s fun to look around the RV parks in the evening and see many of the
same rigs. I suppose some drive farther, and some stop sooner, but if you
prefer the same type of park we do, the choice is limited.
We all got dirty again. When
we pulled into the Pioneer RV park in Whitehorse, we were glad to see they had
a power wash station available.
We are staying in Whitehorse
through the weekend. Friday night was the fourth game of the NBA finals. The Cavaliers won, so there will be at least
one more game on Monday.
The first of several days in
Whitehorse:
There are a number of
interesting things to see. Friday, we started out at the Visitor
Center, then went out to the Yukon Beringia Interpretive Center.
Inside the Center there were
a number of fossilized skeletons of mammoths, giant buffalo, prehistoric horses
and camels, and informative dioramas about Beringia, which was the land bridge
between Asia and North America during one of the Ice Ages when the world sea
levels were lower.
There was also some art
depicting First People stories. We are going to the Kwanlin Dun Cultural Center
on Sunday, and look forward to seeing and learning more.
The Yukon TransportationMuseum was right next door so we bought a combined ticket. ($9 Canadian each).
This delightful engine was out front. When editing the pictures of the day we noticed how the cloud in the sky looked like it was smoke from the engine. Fun!
Great examples of modes of
transportation: dogsleds, bush planes, snowshoes, trains, trucks, sleighs and
stage coaches were displayed and explained.
This bus was one of a fleet
that was used on the Alaska Highway. It must have been a bumpy ride!
The snowmobile evolved from
machines like this one. The first ones were Skidoos.
One fun quote I read went
something like this:
“If you could drag yourself back onto the sled, the dogs would get you home, a Skidoo could never do that!”
“If you could drag yourself back onto the sled, the dogs would get you home, a Skidoo could never do that!”
Saturday’s adventure was to the Yukon Wildlife Preserveand Game Farm. It is not a zoo. The animals live in huge natural habitats on
700 acres of grassland, marsh and hillsides. Small enticements like water
stations and supplemental foods are located near the fence lines, but the
animals are free to roam out of sight into woods and more distant parts of their
enclosures.
As visitors we had a choice
of taking a bus tour, or walking the 5.5 km (about 3 miles) of road and trail.
We chose the walk. The day was warm and sunny, but not too hot to hike.
Animals we saw were:
How would you like this guy
to land in your bird bath?
I think these were young buck
Mule Deer. They were munching on a scattering of fresh branches next to the
fence. Perhaps they had already eaten all of this favorite kind of tree in
their space, and this was a treat.
I think all the deer in this enclosure were female. They had a large grassy area, and some nice shade trees.
Speaking of shade, this group
of Dall Sheep were snoozing among the trees. We almost missed them, even though
they were pretty close to the fence. Can you see all four?
Most of the caribou were in
more distant parts of their habitat. A few were snacking on some choice tree
branches that had been left for them near the fence.
It seemed all of the mountain
goats were sleeping high up on the rocks or in the shade of the woods. However
as we walked along a wooded path that ran along a fence in a different part of
their enclosure, and I was looking out into the large grass field, Craig said “Merikay”
in a quiet voice. I turned to him and he pointed at a huge mountain goat lying
up against the fence next to me.
As I tried to get a frontal
shot, he got up and kept his back to us. He was in no mood to move, but if he
had to, he was poised to bolt forward. Eventually he moved away, but never
turned our way. Once we moved on, he went back to his favored spot and resumed
his nap.
This thin horn sheep was not shy. He and several of his friends were in an area much closer to the road. There was a large watering station next to the fence and some feed on the ground.
We also saw buffalo, elk, and
several other kind of deer, but didn’t get decent pictures. We got a good view
of a ragged white Arctic Fox that was losing his white fur in favor of summer
gray, but he ran and hid before I could capture his portrait.
The musk oxen and moose were
so far away they really shouldn’t be counted as among animals we saw.
All in all, the Yukon Wildlife
Preserve lived up to its name. Not a zoo, but an opportunity to see wild
animals in wild like settings, where they lived an almost wild life with minimal human
intervention.
It was a good three mile walk too.
More about things we did in Whitehorse in my next post ...
Some interesting sights along the way thatI am enjoying , lots to see and do.
ReplyDeleteglad you are taking your time to see things. Looks like fun, although slightly marred by politics!
ReplyDeleteThat was quite the place to visit. Glad you are Enjoying your adventure.
ReplyDeleteBe Safe!
It's about time.
Whitehorse looks like my kind of place:)
ReplyDeleteLooks like a great trip, thanks for taking us along.
ReplyDelete