Alaska at Last!

Heading south from Whitehorse in the Canadian Yukon, we crossed back into the United States and found ourselves in Skagway, Alaska. This is an old gold rush entry port that went from boom to bust and now is a stop for the cruise ships in Alaska. The stores all close after the last ship leaves for the day.

We were a few days ahead of schedule so we spent some time hiking the area and walking around town. Our first hike was Smuggler’s Cove which was relatively easy compared to some of the hikes we’ve been on – that is until the kids (notice the mountain goat reference) decided to keep going at the end of the trail and we all climbed a 40 foot cliff to continue or hike. Going up was not bad, coming back down was not as easy.

Our second hike in Skagway was more challenging than the first. We did the Upper Dewey Lake trail which was 3 miles long and 3,500 ft up. That was quite a climb. At the top we saw a lovely alpine meadow and a beautiful lake surrounded by mountain peaks. As we were right at the tree line, the cold wind blew steadily. Keegan built a fire to keep us warm with wood we scrounged from the area while we had lunch.

The hardest part of the Upper Dewey Lake trail hike might have been the 3 mile 3,500 ft decent. Climbing can be tiring, but going down can be just as difficult. The kids (again a reference to mountain goats) basically ran down the mountain while Michelle and I took a more leisurely pace.

Once at the bottom, we headed straight for the Red Onion Saloon and Brothel. We both stayed at the saloon part. We had a few margaritas and hobbled back to the RV.