I have updated yesterdays blog with some pictures. I think I exhausted the Dawson Peaks bandwidth and could not upload any pictures.
This morning I decided to make a detour on my way to Whitehorse and route via Carcross. Formerly known as Caribou Crossing, this has now been shortened into its current form. Carcross is on the route into Skagway, There are two famous dead end routes which start on the Alaska Highway, both of which towns are in the USA and not Canada. If you look at the map of Alaska, it has a slice that runs down the coast between the sea and British Columbia. There are these two small villages nestled into the glaciers and the sea that draw literally hundreds of thousands of visitors every year, being Haines and Skagway. Almost every visitor comes to them by sea in the huge cruise ships which leave Seattle and Vancouver and which then sail up the Inner Channel, then through Princess Charlotte’s Sound and from there up the Chilkoot Inlet. This inlet has mountainous glaciers towering thousands of feet above the sea, literally meters from the boats. It is home to some of the most exotic forms of sea life and marine birds.

View riding into Carcross. Skagway glaciers in the background

Famous Railway Bridge in Carcross

Ticket Agent at Carcross Station

The only way to travel from Haines to Skagway directly is via a ferry. The alternative is a 600 mile road trip. If you start in Haines, you drive back to Haines Junction and then down the Alaska Highway to Whitehorse and from there through Carcross and on to Skagway. In both cases you will have to pass through customs and immigration twice in each direction. I was not going all the way to Skagway, only to Carcross which is about 60 kms of a 160 km road.

The ride was, as all of them have been mind blowing. Shortly before turning off the Alaska Highway I stopped at Jakes Crossing to fill up with gas. I noticed a BMW 1200 GSA like Bonnie with its rider underneath it. So I went over to help. I had never seen his problem on a BM in all 25 years I have owned them. His drive shaft was leaking oil. It had been to the BMW dealer in Fairbanks for another problem and this was the outcome. More embarrassingly his riding partner was on a Harley and we both had to endure 200 tons of Harley “shit”. Anyway although I had all the correct torx sockets we were not able to fix the leak. They then told me that the BM dealer in Fairbanks has recently been acquired by the Harley Dealer. This explains the poor work. Remember that I had the same experience with my tire.

So I gave them the name of the dealer in Whitehorse and off I went. ON the way I saw baby bear in the middle of the road wandering along. I put Bonnie in neutral and idled up to him/her, hoping to get close enough for a camera shot. as soon as Baby realised I was there he was off like a shot and no photo.

I have seen a disappointing amount of game. everyone tells me how many bears they have seen. It is like the lion in the Kalahari, I always hear about how many everyone else sees. So I have this dominant male theory. All wild animals are territorial and whenever a really dominant male appears in the area, all but the most vigorous of males duck for cover. This has to be the reason that I get to see so little of these animals.
On the way I pass Emerald Lake. The intense colour is caused by the formation of “marl” on the bed of the lake. This comes from the limestone hills in the area and the Lime combines with the Calcium to form Calcium Carbonate (CaCO3) for the chemists. this reflects the light and gives the water the intense colour you see in the  photos.

Emerald Lake

Then back onto the Alaska Highway to Whitehorse and the Yukon Liquor Board. As I am arriving, the Snowbirds also arrive in formation with their support aircraft. I make a note to tell the Canadian Government that this level of adulation is not necessary and they do not have to send the whole team to meet me in every stop over.

The people I have to meet at the Liquor Board must have thought I was joking when I said I was coming by motorbike to see them. When I arrived they came running out to look on in amazement and I was ushered into the head of the boards office for an introduction. An hour later I went to see their store in town and was proudly shown Miss Molly “In my bed” on the shelves. It commands a better price than a Graham Beck Red blend and a Saxonberg Red Blend. It is also selling well.

Famous sign for Whitehorse Airport

Miss Molly In my Bed on the shelf in Whitehorse

At about 16h00 I hit the road for Haines Junction. This is where you drive to Haines. It is nessled between the glaciers and I have lucked in on the accommodation this time, with a great single room suite at a small B and B. I have dinner at a small Hungarian Restaurant and meet a young Swiss couple going in the same direction and also staying over in Tok tomorrow evening. After a beer and good laugh we arrange to travel together and have dinner in Tok tomorrow evening.
It is now very late here. After midnight and finally dark.

My next blog will be from Alaska. All going well I should cross the order before lunch. I then loose another hour of time and will be 12 hours behind SA.

Good night and good luck