Our final stop, before driving the Dempster Highway north to the Arctic Ocean, was Dawson City, YT (population 1,557). From Tok, we drove a short distance on the Alaska Highway (AK 2), turned onto the Taylor Highway (AK 5) to Jack Wade, AK, then proceeded onto the Top of the World Highway, which ended at the ferry terminal in West Dawson across the river from Dawson City. While AK 2, AK 5 (Taylor Highway), and 11 miles of the Top of the World Highway were paved, everything else was not. The unpaved portions were dusty gravel with conditions ranging from good (but dusty) to time-to-go-slow bad (and dusty). Little did we know how much this was preparing us for the Dempster Highway.
We spent a leisurely morning completing our NYT puzzles, eating breakfast, and calmly making Arthur road ready. Ten miles east out of Tok, we turned north at Tetlin Junction onto Taylor Highway. It was 67 miles to Chicken, and while the road was theoretically paved, there were a significant number of sections under repair.
Summer was the time for doing road repairs in Alaska because of the increase in daylight hours and suitable temperatures. The section of the Taylor Highway we drove seemed to have more than its fair share of bumpy roadwork.
We arrived in Chicken (population 12) just in time to gas up and enjoy our free chicken lunch. We’d heard many positive comments about Chicken from other tourists we’d met throughout our travels. While most raved about it (we admit it was quite unique), I share this video to let you decide what you think.
Gas was reasonably priced despite the remoteness, but we had to enter nearly every business on main street before the waitress in the Chicken Creek Cafe said we could pay her. Visitors obviously enjoyed placing stickers/decals on the gas pump. All four sides were covered. Less than a mile further on Taylor Highway was the Gold Panner Gift Shop and RV Park. Before we went inside to eat, I photographed the Chicken Creek Suspension Bridge and questioned why such a substantial and well designed bridge was built across such an insignificant creek.
We entered the gift shop, and after unsuccessfully searching for the restaurant, I asked at the check out where they served lunch. My question was met with a befuddled “Orphan Annie” look. Then when I showed them our piece of paper, redeemable for that free chicken, light of understanding clicked on. They pointed us to a nearby basket overflowing with rubber chicken keychains (free to us but available for a ridiculous $5.50 on eBay). We’d been had, although it was clearly our fault for jumping to conclusions. We cobbled lunch from the snacks in our Yeti.
From Chicken to Dawson City was only another 109 miles on Top of the World Highway. Except for the 11 miles straddling the U.S.-Canada border, the highway was described as unpaved with frequent washboarding, dust, and potholes. We were on it 4 weeks before it closed for the winter. The highway’s name was derived from the fact it skirts the crest of mountains along most of its length. We climbed out of Chicken, summited at 4,515 feet, and descended to the Yukon River at West Dawson. MFI had nothing good to say about driving this stretch, but there were moments when it felt as if we were on top of the world.
Upon reaching the Yukon River at West Dawson, we got in line to board the George Black, the first of 5 free ferry rides required along our Arctic loop. The ship wasn’t much to look at, because ferries were designed and built to transport people and vehicles not to impress. The George Black could only hold 8 cars, so we watched her cross and come back once before we boarded. Hikers and bikers were passengers too. Sid and Arthur took up nearly the entire right side of the ferry. Only one car could fit behind us. We had to set our brake and remain in Sid, while workers chocked the vehicles for safety. The current wasn’t swift, so the crossing took only minutes.
We stayed at the Gold Rush Campground located in the center of town. This was convenient because we walked everywhere and as a result got a great exposure to the city along the way. I asked at check-in why there was a German flag flying out front and learned a German family had owned the park for a long time. This was yet another example of the significant number of Germans (400,000) whom had immigrated to Canada after WW II. Setting up camp gave us the opportunity to assess how dusty Arthur and Sid had gotten. Not too bad really, when compared to other RVs and tow vehicles that littered the park.
The Klondike and Yukon Rivers joined at the south end of town. This area had long supported the Tr’ondëk Hwëch’in First Peoples who historically survived there as hunter-gatherers. The current settlement was founded in January 1897 by American prospector and business man, Jospeh Ladue, who named the town after George Dawson, the explorer who mapped the region in 1887. Dawson City was the original territorial capital in 1898 until it was moved to Whitehorse in 1952. Dawson City was the center of the Klondike Gold Rush, which lasted from 1896 until 1899. In those thriving days, the city grew to 17,000 residents but dropped to 5,000 by the time it incorprated in 1902. The population dropped to between 600-900 when the Alaskan Highway was completed during WW II, because Dawson City was bypassed by the new highway 322 miles to the south. The city has since recovered somewhat thanks primarily to tourism, but also to profitable placer mining for gold along the Klondike. Placer mining excavated the shallow river bed with specialized dredging equipment. The steel scoop-buckets we saw in Tok and our current campground (they were painted blue) came off the excavation equipment.
Our first impression of Dawson City was that it seemed similar to the other tourist traps we’d encountered, such as Skagway. The building facades appeared a bit too rustic, and the bright exterior colors seemed purposed more to attract tourist-customers than to reflect the historic past. There were a few touristy businesses for sure; however, once we met and talked with the locals, what we were seeing was the real deal. The town and its residents were rough, tough, no nonsense, and hard working; characteristics likely born out of a lineage that lived through the gold rush and survived centuries in the remote arctic north. None of the streets were paved, and there were no sidewalks, but rather boardwalks built up off the street grade and attached to the buildings. This helped when it rained, since the wet streets turned everything a dirty milky gray despite remaining as hard as concrete. They’d long ago learned how to prevent rain from turning the streets into a muddy quagmire.
Our primary agenda in Dawson City was to finish making recommended preparations for driving the Dempster Highway. We purchased and filled a plastic 5-gallon gas-container in case we ran out of fuel. This was a concern, because the distances to gas stations were uncomfortably close to Sid’s mileage range. It was recommended that we carry four spares; however, we had no room. So, in addition to our existing two spares, we instead purchased two Instant Fix Flat Tire Kits with Easy Hose Tire Inflator Air Filler Sealant. Close enough! The owner of the local hardware store, a woman who routinely drove the Dempster, strongly recommended we put paint-tape on all windows and other accessible openings to prevent Arthur from filling with dust. She said, even with taping, Arthur was going to take on more dust than we thought possible. Drats! This would have been excellent advice before we drove the Top of the World Highway, as well. I read there was a gas station at the start of the Dempster, so we made a dry run to verify this and get familiar with exactly where the turnoff was. We felt as ready as we’d ever be.
