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Canadian
Canoe and Kayak Wilderness Adventures Teslin / Yukon River: Johnson's Crossing to Dawson City: 21 Days (620 km)
This trip will originate in Whitehorse on July 30, 2012 A complete itinerary along with maps, clothing and equipment list, will be issued upon registration. Included: Transportation from the point of origin and return, camping fees, cooking gear, camp stoves, tents, meal preparations, canoes, canoe carts, paddles, life jackets, canoe dry bags, two night's hotel in Dawson City and 3 days in Whitehorse, meals/snacks/beverages on the expedition, tarps, major first aid supplies, emergency radio or satellite phone, and professional guides. Excluded: Transportation to point of origin, transfers, accommodation and food otherthan included in the itinerary, gratuities, and personal equipment. Meals: All meals while on the river. Day 0: Arrival in Whitehorse. This denotes the day or days spent in Whitehorse before the listed start date of the trip. Day 1 - 6: We will pick you up from your accommodation around 7:00 a.m. and head to our put-in at Johnsons Crossing. We are looking to cover about 40 km per day. Although this sounds like a significant distance, the current of the river makes this a reasonable goal. The river, in its initial stage, is wide and the current slow. At 100 Mile Creek the character of the river changes. The wide open river valley disappears, the river narrows, and the willow covered marshes give way to a shoreline of spruce trees and clay banks. The additional volume from the Boswell, Swift and Indian Rivers results in more gravel bars and islands appearing. The river valley widens and large clay banks with distinctive eroded features called hoodoos become more frequent. It is in this stretch of river that we will experience “Roaring Bull Rapids”. Other than a “rush”, the rapids are not technical or dangerous. We will arrive at Hootalinqua, where the the Teslin River joins the Yukon River. Hootalinqua was an important depot, with NWMP post. Although the permanent population was never more than about a dozen, a telegraph station and trading store was located here. A number of buildings still stand. Day 7- 9: As the river widens out at Hootalinqua, it takes on a completely different character – calmer. At Shipyard Island we will stop to see the 130-foot Evelyn. She was built by the Bratnober Company in Seattle in 1908 - working for the Upper Tanana Trading Company and then the huge North American Trading & Transportation Company (NAT & T), she supplied the trading posts along the tributaries of the lower Yukon River until 1913. At the confluence of the Yukon and Big Salmon rivers is Big Salmon Village. It is the site of an ancient fishing village. During the goldrush a NWMP post, telegraph station, riverboat stop, and trading post was located here. Our paddle will continue to the confluence of Little Salmon and Yukon rivers. Little Salmon village is believed to be the oldest permanent Indian settlement on the upper Yukon. Days 10: Layover day in Carmacks. Days 11 - 18: We will be driven to our put in point at Minto and continue the voyage. It is not practical to give a day by day itinerary for this stretch of river. We will paddle approximately 50 km/31 mi per day. Our plan is establish camp on the many islands and sandbars which characterize this stretch of river. This will lessen the remote possibility of bear encounters as well as reduce our contact with those pesky mosquitoes. The sight of Fort Selkirk (125 km from Carmacks) on a high bank remains one of the trip's highlights. The Hudson's Bay Company established it in 1848. Only accessible by water, Fort Selkirk includes a campsite with well water, tent sites, kitchen shelter with cook stove, bear-proof garbage containers, and a warming cabin. Our trip down the Yukon River normally includes an overnight stay at Fort Selkirk. Today the Canadian Heritage Branch has restored the settlement with the Taylor & Drury store, Mounted Police building, Protestant and Catholic Churches, and schoolhouse among the more than 30 buildings that are open to the public. Once past Fort Selkirk, the surrounding country is at least as impressive as ever. Certainly there is no shortage of historic sites along the banks. The White River (120 km from Dawson) sees a dramatic difference in the colour (and the sound) of the Yukon River. The colour is the result of a combination of glacial silt, and ash from a volcanic eruption about 1,250 years ago. As we get closer to Dawson, a number of old woodcamps and homesteads have been taken over by new owners and new cabins have been built to replace the old ones. The relatively fertile islands were particularly popular spots for combined wood-cutting/farming operations. Little or nothing remains at most of these sites. Some have been lost to river erosion, or were moved to new locations when the original site was no longer viable. The anticipation heightens with each bend in the river as we near Dawson City. Day 18-21: We will be staying at a Dawson City Hotel. We will also drive to visit the original goldfileds and the lookout [Dome]. We will leave Dawson after breakfast on the last day and return to Whitehorse, arriving late afternoon.
Please Note: We are not a travel agency and can not book transportation, accommodations or other travel related services other than what is included in the itineraries which will be booked by the Vancover office. |