Snowshoeing

Overlooking the Klondike River and the Helicopter Pad.

The Klondike River

This river starts somewhere up the Dempster Highway, then known as the North Klondike. When it reaches the Klondike Highway it makes a 90° turn to the right and begins to flow north west.

During the summer months there is rafting for the tourists, one way to see the twists and turns, the wild life, and little seen areas of the river. But once the river has frozen solid the snowmobiles and skijorers make their way up and down the river. The section of the river you see below is also used by the Yukon Quest mushers to arrive or leave Dawson.

I am sitting at the top of Crocus Bluff, looking down at the Klondike Highway just in front of the Helicopter pad. With this type of snowshoe it is easy to climb the steep hill leading to the bluff, and to go down. Those who come up with boots usually do the switch back trail along the outer cliff, and slide on their back-side going down.

2009 - 2010

Somewhere around the middle of November the Klondike River froze over leaving a good surface for travelling on, but by the middle of December the river had broken up, leaving a trail of 3-4' chunks of ice all along the shore. Once again the river was running free. It has taken until the middle of January to refreeze, but still the snowmobilers are staying off, Dawsonites are just hoping it will be solid enough to clear a trail for the Yukon Quest, due through here in the middle of February.

Helicopter Pad

The Helicopters are owned by Trans North Air (not to be confused with Air North the planes) are are used to transport miners in and out of their claims up the Yukon or up Bonanza. Tourists also hire them to take them on the tours of the areas of the Yukon valley