Northern Exposure!!!

Dawson City, Yukon Territory, Canada

Klondike Highway

June 13 -15, 2016

Leaving Moose Creek, we encountered our first traffic jam due to a very slow Porcupine Crossing! This dude was taking his time and there was not hurrying him to the other side.  Other than that, no car, truck or RV seen for 40 some miles.  The very lonely Klondike highway continued North with its 2 lanes and purple Fireweed lining the sides.  Lots of frost heaves, which Kevin has learned to avoid quite nicely.  After our porcupine encounter, we saw a Cow Moose with her baby off in a marsh on the side of the road.  Nice morning.  Only drove 100 km to Dawson City.

Dawson City!  Wow.  Not a touristy feeling at all.  People here were so genuine and nice.  After walking the city boardwalk and checking out the few museums in town, we headed off for a pub.  Well.....that was interesting.  Our first

pub turned into a few pubs and then a pub crawl.  We had some interesting conversations, especially at the local pub, THE PIT.  hmmmm.

This town is the Sicily from Northern Exposure.  We just don't have the moose walking down the street.  Great photo's from all the houses, stores and churches.

NORTHERN EXPOSURE????

Dawson City Factoids! 

(Kevin became good friends with the docent on the paddle boat ride he took!! - lots of good Education here :) )

Sicily Alaska??? from Northern Exposure????

• There is a Westside of DC, across the Yukon.  Population is 50.  They have to take the ferry or canoe or snowmobile after freeze-up or break-up (2 important times of the year)
• A few years back, the break-up was not happening fast enough, beer was running out for the Westsider’s.  They pooled all their monies together and hired a helicopter to buy beer
• A recent softball tournament had to be cancelled due to Grizzly family in the outfield
• The school currently has 6 graduates and Kdg has 22 (population boom!)
• The children learn Han (the First Nation Language), French and English
• There is a housing shortage and the city allows 3 new lots a year to be built and this is done by a lottery
• Babies are only born in Whitehorse (Yukon territory does not recognize Midwives as a medical practice)
• Only the 1st baby is paid for which includes housing in Whitehorse prior to delivery
• Way across the Yukon is the George Jones Ferry - paid for by the Yukon Territory 
• Paddleboat graveyard is located up river….after the highway was put in, some of the boats were just pulled up on shore  
• It takes 6 to 7 days to go up river to Whitehorse by a paddle boat
• Why don’t they have a bridge???  City of Dawson and Mining Co were going to split the costs, but DC did’t want to spend that money - they still don’t want to spend the money…hence, the George Jones Ferry ( the ferry costs a million dollars a year to operate)
• Hair dryers are located in the plumbing section of the hardware store so you can thaw your plumbing out
• living in a small town is very interesting, everyone knows everyone else.  
• More Woman than Man, “Odds are good, but the goods are Odd!”
• Dating is almost incestous, most likely you have dated your friends friends
• Bring in your own boyfriend from the OUTSIDE. INSIDE is Dawson City and the Klondike
• If you fart for breakfast, everyone knows by lunch

The Streets of Dawson 

Jack London's cabin (the other half is in the Bay area!)

If you have never seen Northern Exposure, watch some of it.  This is SITKA, except haven’t seen the Moose walking down the street yet! Play that theme music in your head and check out these pics of their downtown and the neighborhoods.  Special little place settled right along the Yukon River. Pretty nice people - the docent at the Jack London house has lived here 40 years!  Not a warm place in the winter.  Kevin and I found the coolest little local bar and spent a good hour chatting it up with the bartender and 2 locals (that was the total bar crowd that afternoon).  

They were the one’s who told us to go to The Pit if we really want to see the local bar scene. We had an absolutely wonderful 2 days in Dawson City!!!

The neighbor hood trash containers....bears

Effects of Permafrost on buildings