University of Alaska Museum of the North - Fairbanks

The next day we visited the University of Alaska Museum of the North....located in Fairbanks, this museum has award winning exhibits which give the visitors an introduction to this vast and diverse state. Exhibits focused on the cultures, wildlife, geography, and history of each of Alaska's five major geographic regions. Highlights included Alaska's largest public display of Alaskan Native culture and Blue Babe (the world's only mummified steppe bison) on exhibit. Of course, we can't forget about Otto the Bear... Otto is a male bear weighing 1250 pounds and standing 8 feet 9 inches tall.....he was taken at Harendeen Bay on the Alaska Pennisula in 1950 and donated to the museum in 1951. This bear has greeted guests at the entrance to the Gallery of Alaska since the exhibit opened in 1980. Here are some photo highlights of our visit.

Bubbie and Papa Go to the North Pole

Lydia, Braydon, and Sophia......guess what?? Bubbie and Papa went to the North Pole which is located in Alaska!

We visited the Santa Claus House where we had our picture taken with Santa!-

We saw a lot of letters written to Santa by children from all around the world...did you know that this is where your letters to Santa go...yes indeedy, right here at the North Pole...here are some pictures of those letters that Santa received!

We also visited the Santa's reindeer at the Antler Academy...we didn't see Rudolph but here are pictures of his friends.

Top of the World to Chicken

We settled in at our campsite in Tok and our first excursion in Alaska was the Top of the World Highway to Chicken...yes my friends, I said Chicken, Alaska. Chicken is located 80 miles from Tok on one of the most awful roads ever...gravel, dips, heaves, etc...we purposely did not take our motorcoach.

Chicken consists of 3 businesses each with their own unique attraction...Downtown Chicken, Chicken Gold Camp, and the Town of Chicken/The Gold Panner/Chicken Creek RV Park. There is no city water, sewer, or electric service in Chicken...can you say wicked rustic??? Each of these businesses have a chicken statue....

We had lunch at the Saloon in Downtown Chicken and guess what we ate...chicken. The bar was wicked funky with hats, license plates, and other paraphernalia. Lee and I both enjoyed some Alaska Amber beer which was so good that we planned on picking some up when we got to Fairbanks.

Here are some random pictures I took which gives you the flavor of Chicken, so to speak!

Welcome to Alaska

Destination Bay

Today we were back on the road and our next destination, Destruction Bay….located on the shores of Kluane Lake, Destruction Bay is one of several towns that grew out of the building of the Alaska Highway. It earned its name when a storm destroyed buildings and materials here. Destruction Bay was one of the many relay stations spaced at 100 mile intervals to give truck drivers a break and a chance to repair their vehicles. A repeater station was also located here providing telephone and telegraph service. Our trip took a little longer than expected because some of the roads were pretty messy with lots of gravel. Lee drove very carefully along these roads, not like others who raced by and caused a piece of gravel to hit and make a little crack in the windshield😥. But the scenery was amazing…the beautiful Kluane Lake and the snow capped mountains. At one point we were able to see The Hubbard mountain settled between the Kluane Mountain Range. I was able to take some really nice pictures!

This is making us excited about Alaska….and you know what???? Tomorrow is the day we arrive in Alaska! Woohoo!

Whitehorse - Yukon Preserve and Klondike Follies

The next day we took a self guided tour of the Yukon Wildlife Preserve first thing in the morning…..Lydia, Braydon, and Sophia, this is where Bubbie and Papa saw some wildlife and I took some pictures.

We walked about 5k (3 miles) and were a little disappointed that we couldn’t see all the animals we wanted to but here are some pictures of the ones we did see!

We then returned to the campground for some lunch….it was quite late in the day since we made a few stops along the way. I was pooped and needed some down time, so Lee took off to get the car washed and then take a tour of the Transportation Museum….a place recommended by our friend Steve Chalmers. Since I was not with him, Papa forgot to take pictures…..so here is one from the Milepost book of the Douglas DC-3 plane which greets you as you arrive…..this plane is actually a weathervane and Papa saw it move!

When Papa came back, we got ready to go to a dinner theater in town to see a performance of the Klondike Follies….what a great show..it included comedy, singing, musicians, and, of course, the Klondike Kickers which are Can-Can dancers.  What made the follies even more unique was that the master of ceremonies picked your Bubbie to go on stage and to start the show by hitting a big cymbal…Papa tried to take a picture but the stage lights were too bright. And just when you think that I had my 15 seconds of fame, I was called up again after intermission to start the second half of the show by hitting a drum. Wow….I think I was almost a celebrity!  Here are some pictures of the show and the performers.

Whitehorse - SS Klondike

Later in the day, we had the opportunity to visit and take the self guided tour of the SS Klondike National Historic Site.  The SS Klondike was the largest stern wheeler on the upper Yukon River and the flagship of the British Yukon Navigation Company fleet. What makes the Klondike a sternwheeler is the location of the paddle wheel which is in the back.  It has two rudders, one on each side of the paddle.
Built in Whitehorse in 1929 as an ore hauler, she was holed and sank in 1936.  Rebuilt the following winter using the original superstructure and machinery salvaged from the wreck, she was re-launched in the spring of 1937, and continued carrying passengers and cargo until 1955 – the last Yukon River sternwheeler in active service.

Whitehorse Rapids Fishery

We were back on the road heading toward Whitehorse, the capital of the Yukon. On my quest for the best cinnamon bun, I read an advertisement in the Milepost Book that stated that the Historic Johnson’s Crossing Lodge and RV Park was the Home of the Best Cinnamon Buns!  So we stopped and I purchased a couple for the road and you know what?  There were the best tasting buns ever...better than the ones in Testa!
Lee was hoping to see more wildlife but the only thing we saw was a low flying peregrine hawk diving into the highway to pick up some food….sorry that I couldn’t get a picture since it happened so fast.
We crossed over the Yukon River which is the fourth or fifth longest river in North America.

We arrived at the campground early enough to go sightseeing.  Our first stop was to the Whitehorse Rapids  Fishery to do a little salmon spotting….unfortunately the salmon had not yet arrived but are due very soon…we were able to learn about the life span of the chinook salmon.
The fish-ladder allows migrating salmon and other species of fish to travel past the Whitehorse Dam…
The fish ladder is built in a series of steps that span a rise of more than 15 meters.  Each step has a vertical baffle and a submerged opening, allowing the option of jumping over or swimming through.
The flow of water through each section creates a series of eddies, allowing the fish to rest between each step, while providing enough flow to encourage the fish to continue swimming.  Halfway along the ladder, the fish enter a holding area where the staff can observe and record the size, sex, origin (wild or hatchery) and condition of the fish.  At this time some chinook salmon are collected for the hatchery.
The Hatchery raises and releases about 150,000 chinook salmon fry each year!
Once the chinook are fully grown (living in fresh water for a year) they are ready to travel in salt water and head out for the Bering Sea.  When they are ready to spawn, the will swim all the way back to Whitehorse (1700 miles) to begin the cycle again!

They had a cute fenced in sitting area to view the dam and the falls.  On your way, you were treated by a mural of hand decorated fish.  This mural was created in 2009 to commemorate the 59th anniversary of the Whitehorse Rapids Fishery…members of the public and Yukon schools participated in painting the fish.