Sadie Jo is still hanging in there with us.  She has found her favorite perches both in the trailer and the car.  What a trooper!

FRIDAY, August 23, Day 41

We are now on our way to Skagway.  We have already traveled portions of many of the roads we are now on again.   On the way to Whitehorse, again on the Alaska Highway, we were treated with the sight of wild horses along the roadside.  The mountains appeared black this morning and the waters below reflected that black color.  Amazing.  The pullout to a viewing of Moon Lake was incredibly busy and impossible to pull into.  That’s ok, we were certainly able to see it from the Highway.
We took the South Klondike Highway down, down, down, to Skagway, going through customs once again since Skagway is back in AK.

Skagway is a charming port town popular with cruise ships.  Once again we were lucky enough to get a very nice site - this time at the Pullen RV Park, just a short walk to town and to the port.  It has been too cold to lower our trailer deck and sit outside, but jackets were perfect for strolls around town.

Downtown Skagway looking towards the harbor

SATURDAY, August 24, Day 42

Today was rainy and lazy.  We were going to take a ferry to Haines or Juneau but it was cost prohibitive.  Everybody is grumbling about the Government cut backs on their ferry system.  The earliest we could get a ferry to Juneau was Tuesday at 11:something pm with a return time just as crazy.  We checked into fast ferry’s to Haines and that seemed possible but since we had not scheduled with a tour, there was no easy way to get around Haines once we got there.  This became a time to cut our losses and save a little money.  We really enjoyed and needed the down time.

We found a great old porcelain coffee pot at this antique shop as a souvenir

This shop had the most gorgeous Alaskan themed material.  I may have drooled a bit.

SUNDAY, August 25, Day 43

We woke to fog this morning, which we have come to expect.  Today are taking the White Pass Railroad through the mountain pass.  So glad we scheduled a 1:00 tour.  The morning mist was perfect for browsing through shops and checking out the many cruise ships.  By mid morning the mist had lifted and the sun was peaking out.  What a perfect afternoon for sight seeing!  Our tour guide told me she had some mighty unhappy guests at 8:00 this morning.  Visibility was zero.

After enjoying beautiful scenery and hearing many stories and tales of the mountain pass, it was time to do a little more walking and call it a day.

White Pass bridge

Our White pass Railroad Train

An interesting fact that I’ve discovered while reading the many brochures that are provided along the way is that President Donald Trump’s  grandfather was very much a part of the AK gold rush during the late 1800’s and very early 1900’s.  But he wasn’t panning for gold, he was providing top notch restaurants, liquor, and every comfort a man might wish for.  As the speculation for gold would move, so would his “hotels” and restaurants.  What is it that they say about the apple not following far from the tree……

MONDAY, August 26th, Day 44

Travel day with a lot of backtracking over roads we had already traveled.  Back through customs and back into CA

TUESDAY, August 27th, Day 45

The plan was to take Junction 37, the Cassiar Highway.  The turn-off to Cassiar was like any county roads you might find in Missouri.  We came very close to missing it and once we took it were questioning if we had made a mistake.  As we drove we saw mile after mile, thousands of acres of devastation from forest fires, apparently from a long time ago.

Finally the scenery opened up to a tree lined highway that reminded us a bit of the Natches Tres minus the cudzu.  There was very little traffic, so we were able to drive slow and appreciated the beauty – just because we could.  The vastness of the wilderness was almost overwhelming.

The tourist trap on the Cassiar Hwy is the Jade Store, advertised to have the largest selection of Canadian jade and affordable prices.  The claim about the huge selection was absolutely true.  Jade was everywhere, huge blocks along the side of the road, waiting to be worked up and smaller pieces everywhere.  But the prices were definitely not cheap.  As we entered the store we passed a sign that a film company was filming a TV series on the Jade shop and if we entered, we were agreeing to be filmed.  No cameras were rolling and we are still trying to figure out how they could get enough content for a TV series at the Jade Shop.

Raw had was everywhere

It softly rained off and on all day, making for a fairly easy drive.  Our plan was to stay at a Lodge at the Junction of Cassiar Hwy and 37A, the Glacier Highway.  The park was full so we took our chances with the RV park at the end of Glacier Highway.  What a treat!  The name of the highway held true to the views.  Glaciers were visible all along the highway.  The road wound down through Bear Creek Canyon to Steward, CA.  A very tiny town with a few shops and a very welcome site of an RV Park.  Steward is on the Pacific Ocean.  The US owns a very small strip of land on the other side of Steward, the town of Hyder.

WEDNESDAY, August 28th, day 46

Glorious sunshine!  We drove into Hyder, AK before getting back on the road.  What a sad little town.  Buildings are mostly boarded up, and those occupied probably should not have been.  At the end of town the US Park Service (I think) had built a viewing platform for tourists to see bear getting salmon.  We had thought of trying to see that, but the water was out and the ranger was nice enough to tell us that only one bear had been seen in several days.  The crazy thing is to get back to Steward….. you guessed it.  We had to go back through customs.

We are pretty seriously headed for home at this point.  Glacier Highway, back up to Cassiar Hwy and then back on the Yellowhead Highway heading for Prince George, Icefield Parkway, Jasper, Lake Louise and Banff then home.