Not knowing exactly what our parking arrangements would be in Skagway, Patty and I decided to take the Jeep down for the day, and check out a few things. Nancy decided to stay put, and mentally prepare herself for the drive down from the top of the very steep White Pass.
From Carcross, it's about a 60 mile drive to Skagway. The South Klondike Hwy winds it's way past two large lakes, over the summit of the White Pass, and then descends down an 8-10% grade into Skagway. It's a beautiful drive, and we both commented that it felt like we were returning home.
When crossing over the border, this very beautiful sign is the first thing that you see. It's situated very near the top of the White Pass, and is a very popular stop for tourists and tour buses. From the sign, it' downhill into Skagway.
Lots of hand made wood signs in the area.
This photo of Skagway was taken from the town overlook off Dyea Rd.
While we were in Skagway, we talked to Nancy Corrington, who directed us to see Mark at their property north of town. It turned out that Mark is someone we got to know when we lived in Skagway, and we attended his wedding to Rebecca in 2007. After we left in 07, he went to work for the Corringtons, and Patty and I did not put 2 & 2 together until we arrived on the property and realized who Mark was! It was like a mini family reunion. He had two spaces next to each other, and I quickly figured that the spaces were large enough for our motor homes.
Our next stop was to say hi to Lisa Hollander, who used to work for the same tour company that I did. Lisa & Patty became good friends, and we've been in touch frequently during our 6 year absence from Skagway. We made a few other stops in town, and by mid afternoon, started the drive back to Carcross.
At Canadian Customs (Fraser), a White Pass train is departing for the trip back to Skagway.
We had to pass through Canadian Customs at Fraser, reentering British Columbia for a short stretch, then back into the Yukon Territory at Carcross. This morning, we drove the motor homes from Carcross to Skagway, and got situated on the Corrington property. We'll be here for a week or so, not exactly sure how long. Patty and Nancy are riding the train tomorrow, compliments of Margaret (Maggie) Boughton, who offered them two of her alloted complimentary passes she receives as an employee of the White Pass Railroad. That was an unexpected surprise which was not anticipated. Patty and Margaret were co-workers at one of the Corrington's retail stores, becoming good friends over the summers that we spent in Skagway.
No blog post tomorrow, as I've already described most of our activities for today.
Carcross RV Park (2 days) $52.40 Cumulative - $480.33
Miles traveled (Watson Lake - Carcross - 259 Cumulative - 3,774
Miles traveled (Carcross - Skagway) - 65 Cumulative - 3,839
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