RV ALASKA - Alaska Highway Eastbound: Whitehorse to Watson Lake

From the time we left Alaska, until we branched off on the Cassiar Highway southbound from Watson Lake, Alan and I were just retracing our steps through Canada.  We had no planned stops; we were simply working our way back east.  As we ate up the road miles, we marveled at the incredible scenery in western Canada.  We also talked about how much we were enjoying the provincial parks in the Yukon Territory.  This was our first experience with public parks in Canada, and I have to say that we enjoyed them as much as we have enjoyed the public parks and campgrounds in the United States.  I was intrigued by the fact that we would find excellent campgrounds even in remote areas – and that they were being enjoyed by a fair number of people.  Even though government and provincial parks came with few (if any) amenities, we had quickly become devoted fans.

RV ALASKA - Alaska Highway Eastbound - Destruction Bay to Whitehorse

When we had rolled into Whitehorse on our westward journey, we had no camping reservations, got in too late to snag a spot at the nearby government campground, and ended up next to the RV Wash at Hi Country RV Park.  Their system said we’d fit into site 26, but there was absolutely no way that was going to happen – even with Alan’s decades of trailering experience.  So, on the return trip, I went with my favorite resource (RV Life’s CampgroundReviews.com), found another private RV park, paid our money and took our chances.  That’s one bet that didn’t pay off.

RV ALASKA - The S.S. Klondike National Historic Site (& Other Adventures in Whitehorse, YT)

Alan and I had been steadily on the move, covering the distance from Jasper, Alberta, to Watson Lake, Yukon, over the course of three days.  We usually try to drive no more than two full days before taking an R&R day, but traffic was light and we had been unusually lucky in finding three campsites in a row that didn’t require us to unhitch.  Not that unhitching is difficult, but not having to do it saves a little bit of time and makes for a quick and easy getaway in the morning.  We had been looking ahead to a two-night layover in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, that would allow us a break from the road, time to reprovision and the opportunity to visit the S.S. Klondike – one of the last remaining steam-powered paddle wheelers that transported goods and passengers up and down the Yukon River between the 1860’s and 1950.  The Klondike exceeded our expectations by a longshot.