Day 6 -- Welcome to the Yukon; Good Luck Gettin' Out

June 24, 2014

It was eight o’clock before we were back on the road, after the sun had been up for quite a while.  We started hitting patches of dirt road.  The dust made it hard to see anything.  And we went for many miles going back and forth between pavement, and then loose gravel.

At 9:35, we caught sight of another black bear.  Black bear: Number 12. 

At 9:40, it began to rain.  The misty rain blocked the mountain views, as clouds swept over the mountains.   There might have been beautiful views, here, but the rains made it impossible to see much beyond the nearest ridge. 

We made it to Whitehorse, the capital of the Yukon Territory, about 12:30.    We could look across the misty rains and see the S.S. Klondike sitting in the Yukon River.

We stopped to re-fill at1.41/liter at The Real Canadian Superstore. 

Afterwards, we went inside to a department/grocery store where we stocked up on bottled water.  Leaving town, on Two Mile Hill, is a large metal horse over-looking town, rising out of the rain.

At 2:45, just outside of Whitehorse, we stopped for at a roadside turn-off for lunch of leftover lasagna, and turned off the Alaska highway and onto to the Yukon Highway.

We stopped at the remains of the Montague Roadhouse Historic Site to stretch our legs.  Here, we strolled through the remains of a historic roadhouse.   

Creepy Jason (Above).  Wild Primrose (Left).

Yarrow (right).

At 5:27, we stopped for fuel at 1.53 per liter in Carmacks.  

We crossed the Yukon River.

The rains had turned the dusty roads into muddy roads, and Jason remarked about the nasty dirt on the camper.  Catrina looked in the rear view mirror and agreed.  However, within ten minutes, the rain had managed to wash the camper down.  The pavement was not without its problems, as we began to experience the dips and bumps of frost heaves.

We paused at the Five Finger Rapids, named by miners for the five channels formed by rock pillars.  The channels had been a particularly dangerous navigational hazard. 

In Steward Crossing, we made a hard left turn.  To the right, the road led to the Silver Trail and the town of Mayo.

At 6:44, we stopped to look for wild strawberries on the side of the road.  The berries hadn’t even begun to form, and all that Catrina found were blossoms. 

We stopped at Gravel Lake, a lake filled with waterfowl.  

At about eight o’clock, the low tire sensor alarm sounded.  We pulled off within a few feet at a roadside turn-off.  The rear driver’s side tire was completely flat.  We sprang into action, emptying the trunk, gaining access to the car jack and the spare donut.  We were expecting to find a rock, a nail, something, anything, puncturing the tire.  We were hopeful we could fix the problem with a plug and we would be on our way.  

However, when Catrina circled the car, she saw another problem with the tread on the other rear tire. 

When the tire was off the vehicle, it was easy to see the issue.  The inside edge of about a half an inch of tread had completely wore off the tire.  Closer inspection of the back tire on the passenger side led to an almost identical discovery.

We had no choice.  Dawson City was still close to thirty miles north.  It was already eight o’clock and all the tire shops were closed.  We dropped the camper.  Loaded the trunk up with our toolbox, and our inflator/jump box.  We loaded the camper up with the things that had been in the trunk. We ate a quick dinner, and then, it was bedtime.

That night, a good rest was had by no one.