Friday, May 21, 2010
Today is our last day on the bus.  We had a departure time of 8:30, and drove past Emerald Lake on our way to our next stop.  Emerald Lake is a gorgeous lake in the Yukon Territory.  There is one cabin on the lake, and Jordan told us his dream was to find and marry the daughter of whoever owned that cabin.  He thought it would be easier to find that daughter than it would to convince his wife that it would be a good idea for him to marry the girl.  (another bit of Jordan humor for you to enjoy!)

It was a spectacular view, and this is in the early spring when the flowers have not yet blossomed.  You can imagine how beautiful it would be in the summer months. 

A short drive away, we pass the Carcross Desert, known as the smallest desert in the world.  The area was originally covered by a glacial lake.  As the glacier retreated, the sandy lake bottom material was left behind.  The strong winds from Lake Bennett have prevented plants from establishing themselves in the area.

We arrived at Carcross and had some time to walk around the town for an hour or so before we boarded the White Pass & Yukon Route Railway which will take us to Skagway by way of Lake Bennett.  Sadly, this will be the last time we ride the coach, and had to say good bye to our driver/guides (from left: David  Harris and Jordan Mower) and tour director Peter Gaspar.  We grew to love these boys....can't we take them home with us?

The WP&YR Railroad is a narrow gauge train, which I didn't enjoy very much.  I laid on the seats and slept a good part of the way, but did catch some of the beautiful scenery in bits and pieces.  The railroad itself is an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark, just as the Panama Canal, Statue of Liberty and Eiffel Tower are.  Built during the gold rush of 1898, the $10 million project was the result of British financing, American engineering and Canadian contracting, and although it was considered an impossible task, it was completed in only 26 months.  It goes through two tunnels and over numerous bridges and trestles.  My pictures don't do it justice.

Before our arrival in Skagway, we stopped at the Lake Bennett Eating House for our last serving of miner's stew.  I must have looked pretty rough because many of our group stopped Don to ask if I was going to be ok, and the engineer of the train asked if he could do anything to make me feel better.  I wasn't up to having lunch, but I did sit in the Eating House with the rest of our group for a while.  A real, live female Royal Mountie was having lunch with our group.  That was pretty cool !

We had a break of nearly two hours at this stop, so after Don has his lunch, we took a leisurely stroll up a trail to St. Andrew's church, which was built in 1899.  Lake Bennett was a booming community during the gold rush days, but today it's known for little other than a tourist stop on the WP&YR.