Thursday, July 31, 2008
Tok, Chicken, Top of the World, and Dawson City
[Be sure to click on the photos for larger versions.]
This installment covers Sunday (July 27) through Wednesday (July 30).
Sunday was a short driving day from Tok to Chicken. We left Tok about 11:00 a.m. and arrived in Chicken just before 2:00 p.m. It was cloudy this morning, but the sun came out and it warmed to the low 70s by mid-afternoon. We joined the four other couples with whom we are traveling for lunch in New Old Chicken. We then visited the three gift shops in town before taking a long afternoon nap and eating supper in the RV.
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Monday was a drizzly, foggy, muddy driving day over the Top of the World Highway from Chicken to Dawson City. The 100 mile trip took just over 4 hours. We left in a group at 6:00 a.m. so that we would arrive at Canadian Customs close to its 8:00 a.m. opening time. This ensured that we had no oncoming traffic for the trip to the Canadian border, since U.S. customs opens at the same time.
After taking the ferry across the Yukon River into Dawson City, we checked in to the Gold Rush Campground. Carol and I then took our car to the local do-it-yourself car wash and ate lunch downtown at Sourdough Joe’s.
This evening we went to the Palace Grand Theater to see a performance of Fiddle Rush Too. This was a musical play set in a Dawson City graveyard, where people who died during the gold rush of 1898 came to life 100 years later to tell their stories. It featured piano playing, guitar, singing, clogging, and five fiddlers, including one 5-year old boy. Carol and I sat in the balcony and it turned out to be a very entertaining show. No photos were allowed during the show.
Tuesday was a nice, sunny, warm sightseeing day. Carol and I started the morning with a walking tour of 1st and 2nd Avenues. We visited the small Firefighters Museum and saw a line of Airstream trailers waiting to cross the ferry to the Top of the World Highway. Since the ferry takes two or three trailers at a time, and the day started with a total group of over 30, some of them had a long wait.
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We stopped at the Visitor Center and window shopped at souvenir, grocery, and drug stores. The troupe from last night’s show was entertaining on a downtown street corner, so we were able to get some photos today.
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After lunch we drove out of town for a tour of Gold Dredge #4. This dredge was in operation on and off from the early 1900s to 1959. Basically the dredge sits in a man-made pond and moves by dredging ore in front of itself and depositing tailings behind.
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We also visited the site of the Discovery Claim, the first gold mining claim on the Yukon River.
On our way back to town we drove up Dome Road to a high peak overlooking the town and the Yukon River.
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In the evening we had dinner with several other couples at Klondike Kate’s Restaurant, then visited Diamond Tooth Gertie’s casino for some gambling and a show. I played Blackjack at $2 and $3 tables for a little over and hour, and finished down $20.
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It rained Wednesday morning, so Carol and I stayed in the RV. Carol sewed and I planned out our trip home from Prince George to Tallahassee. Since we have good WiFi service, I made a lot of ferry and campground reservations. We had lunch out at Sourdough Joe’s again – the Greek restaurant we wanted to try was closed today.
It cleared up this afternoon, but we continued our activities in the RV. Our group – which has expanded to include two additional couples – had a pot luck supper in the campground featuring fish tacos with halibut from the fishing trips in Homer.
I returned to the casino this evening, where I played blackjack for an hour and 45 minutes and broke even. My goal was to win back last night’s $20 loss – and although I was slightly ahead much of the evening, I never got that far up.
This installment covers Sunday (July 27) through Wednesday (July 30).
Sunday was a short driving day from Tok to Chicken. We left Tok about 11:00 a.m. and arrived in Chicken just before 2:00 p.m. It was cloudy this morning, but the sun came out and it warmed to the low 70s by mid-afternoon. We joined the four other couples with whom we are traveling for lunch in New Old Chicken. We then visited the three gift shops in town before taking a long afternoon nap and eating supper in the RV.
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Monday was a drizzly, foggy, muddy driving day over the Top of the World Highway from Chicken to Dawson City. The 100 mile trip took just over 4 hours. We left in a group at 6:00 a.m. so that we would arrive at Canadian Customs close to its 8:00 a.m. opening time. This ensured that we had no oncoming traffic for the trip to the Canadian border, since U.S. customs opens at the same time.
After taking the ferry across the Yukon River into Dawson City, we checked in to the Gold Rush Campground. Carol and I then took our car to the local do-it-yourself car wash and ate lunch downtown at Sourdough Joe’s.
This evening we went to the Palace Grand Theater to see a performance of Fiddle Rush Too. This was a musical play set in a Dawson City graveyard, where people who died during the gold rush of 1898 came to life 100 years later to tell their stories. It featured piano playing, guitar, singing, clogging, and five fiddlers, including one 5-year old boy. Carol and I sat in the balcony and it turned out to be a very entertaining show. No photos were allowed during the show.
Tuesday was a nice, sunny, warm sightseeing day. Carol and I started the morning with a walking tour of 1st and 2nd Avenues. We visited the small Firefighters Museum and saw a line of Airstream trailers waiting to cross the ferry to the Top of the World Highway. Since the ferry takes two or three trailers at a time, and the day started with a total group of over 30, some of them had a long wait.
.JPG)
We stopped at the Visitor Center and window shopped at souvenir, grocery, and drug stores. The troupe from last night’s show was entertaining on a downtown street corner, so we were able to get some photos today.
.JPG)
After lunch we drove out of town for a tour of Gold Dredge #4. This dredge was in operation on and off from the early 1900s to 1959. Basically the dredge sits in a man-made pond and moves by dredging ore in front of itself and depositing tailings behind.
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We also visited the site of the Discovery Claim, the first gold mining claim on the Yukon River.
On our way back to town we drove up Dome Road to a high peak overlooking the town and the Yukon River.
.JPG)
In the evening we had dinner with several other couples at Klondike Kate’s Restaurant, then visited Diamond Tooth Gertie’s casino for some gambling and a show. I played Blackjack at $2 and $3 tables for a little over and hour, and finished down $20.
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It rained Wednesday morning, so Carol and I stayed in the RV. Carol sewed and I planned out our trip home from Prince George to Tallahassee. Since we have good WiFi service, I made a lot of ferry and campground reservations. We had lunch out at Sourdough Joe’s again – the Greek restaurant we wanted to try was closed today.
It cleared up this afternoon, but we continued our activities in the RV. Our group – which has expanded to include two additional couples – had a pot luck supper in the campground featuring fish tacos with halibut from the fishing trips in Homer.
I returned to the casino this evening, where I played blackjack for an hour and 45 minutes and broke even. My goal was to win back last night’s $20 loss – and although I was slightly ahead much of the evening, I never got that far up.
