The Dawson City

admin — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:09:58 +0000

We’re spending two nights in Dawson City, Yukon Territory Canada. What can I tell you about Dawson? It is the home of the Klondike Gold Rush and gold is still being mined today. The charm is that it looks the same , in most respects, as it did 1898. There is one paved road that goes through town, the rest are still dirt and gravel. In the winter, -40 to -65 degree temperatures are not uncommon. Even though there are sunset and sunrise times designated, there’s 24 hours of sunshine today and 75 degree temperature.
There’s Diamond Tooth Gertie’s, an original casino and saloon with a Can-Can Show that runs three times per day, seven days per week. Our group was set-up by our Tour Director and ended up in the front row not even thinking about what might happen. Well, I, and one other guy from Texas, ended up on stage attempting to dance the can-can with ladies in the show. For my fun and embarrassment, I got to remove the garter from the lady who was training me to dance – I still haven’t figured out if that was worth it, but I kept the garter!
Next, most of the group went to the Sourtoe Saloon where the brave and crazy down a shot of liquor, with a human toe in it (ugh!), just to get a signed certificate. A little over 26,000 people have done this over the years.
Sourdough Joe’s restaurant quickly became a favorite of many in the group. They had excellent Halibut & Chips, Split Pea and Fish Chowder Soups and an Apple Crisp Dessert with whipped cream.
There is an Information Center that you should visit as soon as you get to town. You can find out about Walking Tours given by folks dressed in the attire of that time period.
The Grand Palace is worth a visit. It has been beautifully refurbished by Parks Canada and is still utilized today for special occasions.
There is an opportunity to see a working gold mine and to visit Dredge #4, which was used to separate gold from rocks, sand and dirt.
Dawson City was a nice, peaceful place to spend two nights.

Skagway

admin — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:09:59 +0000

We’re settled into our hotel for the night. Our Tour Director is Juli, a wonderful, energetic college senior from Texas. She has spent the last three summers up here working with Holland America Line Tours. We look forward to spending the next nine days with her. Today we learned about the 1897 Klondike Gold Rush that was launched from Skagway. Skagway never had any gold, it was 600 miles away in Dawson City, Yukon Territory Canada.
Skagway is four blocks wide and twenty-three blocks long. It was home to a notorious character by the name of Soapy Smith – if there was angle to get the gold speculators’ money, Soapy had figured it out. For example, he would offer to send a telegram back home for people who had arrived so their loved ones would know that they arrived safely. There was only one problem, there were not any telegraph lines in Skagway. He died in a gun battle with another man who was working with the people in the town to get rid of Soapy and his gang.

Josephothomasjr.com » Klondike Gold Rush

The Dawson City

Skagway