When we were in Skagway in June, we learned that Skagway was a lawless town in which there were many gun fights and murders, including the killing of a young US Ranger just hours after the birth of his son. The interior of the Commissioner’s residence was opulent for the time and designed to show wealth and power. The residence was only used during the summers until 1916. The residence of the ‘Commissioner’ who was appointed by the federal government in Ottawa to oversee the growing Yukon Territory in 1901.

Before he died at age 40, he had written dozens of books, including ‘White Fang’ and ‘The Call of the Wild’. The name Klondike came from the native name Tr’ondek which non-native people mis-heard as ‘Klondike’.Īuthor and adventurer Jack London’s cabin (reconstructed) in Dawson City. This marks the place where the Klondike gold rush began in 1896 with the ‘discovery claim’. We couldn’t imagine trucking fuel up here throughout the year! The microwave towers at the summit required two huge fuel tanks for a generator that obviously had to run 24/7. On route, we scared a young black bear that scurried into the woods rather than pose for a picture. Our progress so far: 8,240 miles, 10 states, 3 provinces and 1 Territory.Ī dirt, loop road took us 56 miles into the wilderness and up to King Solomon’s Dome (4,049’) and Hunter’s Summit where we had a picnic dinner.

Modern dredg