Wandering the Yukon - Dempster Highway, Northern Lights, Hot Springs, Great Food, Wildlife and More

Whitehorse, Yukon  (45 degrees, lots of rain)

Driving over the Top of the World Highway in the rain took its toil. Cleaning up the jeep and motorhome took a lot of time and effort. We had planned to stay at Tombstone Territorial Campground on the Dempster Highway but again rain was predicted and its a very rugged pot filled road. We were feeling a little beat up and decided to pass and take a road trip in the jeep instead. 

The Dempster Highway extends 457 miles towards a small Inuvik community and basically follows an old dog sled route. We drove about 62 miles of it. We have seen a lot of Alaska and wondered how different this road would be and whether it was really worth the effort.  It is!  Even though we were out there on a very rainy day it was so beautiful. What was especially interesting was the vast stretches of tundra. 

The campground, Tombstone, is about 45 miles in with primitive sites and very popular. There are some sites which would be great for big rigs. The sites are first come, first served and from what we have heard you would want to arrive early to snag one. There are a few pull out places further north which could be used if not available. The Visitor Center was very helpful and the warm fire and hot tea were so appreciated.

From Dawson City we headed further southeast to a small town called Pelly Crossing. This was just a stopover and it turned out we were in the right place at the right time to see the Aurora Borealis late at night.  I had downloaded an app on my phone which alerted me conditions were favorable for seeing it. John set the alarm clock for 1 a.m.  He got up to look out and rushed back to wake me up. What a cool phenomenon. It was like a thin lacy green ribbon streaking across the skyline. One minute it was visible and the next it was gone.  A few minutes later it would streak across again. We woke up our friends Bob and Becky and together we watched it in awe for quite awhile.  What an experience. Our pictures are terrible but we will remember this night forever.

From here we went to another hot spring outside of Whitehorse. The drive here was so pretty as we drove by many lakes and forests. The Yukon has a raw beauty all its own. We like it.

TIP:Be sure to stop at the Five Finger Rand Overlook. Take the stairs down to the overlook for a beautiful view.

Five Fingers Rapids (over 230 stairs each way to see it but well worth the effort)

The campground at the hot spring was very peaceful and nice. Although the hot spring is dated (a renovation is planned) it was very clean and felt great. It's also very reasonable and the staff are helpful and courteous.



Next to our campground was the Yukon Wildlife Preserve. We spent the afternoon on a pretty day walking around and getting some up close looks at the wildlife.  There is a van trip you can take but we would have had to wait quite awhile to take it and opted to walk instead.

Male Elk

Thin horned sheep

Mountain goat

Lynx

Red fox

Arctic Fox

Caribou

Male moose

Our friends Randy and Fran passed through the area and we all met at the Klondike Rib and Salmon for a delicious dinner together in Whitehorse. It was a long wait but the food was so well prepared and so yummy.  Randy and Fran told us all about a NOMADS project they had led for three weeks. They sure accomplished a lot with  a very limited amount of volunteers.  

TIP:  Go early to the restaurant 

Campground Reviews: 

Pelly River Crossing, Pelly Crossing, Yukon, 2 stars, free ($0-wow), maintained by a First Nations in area, no hookups, no water or dump, free firewood, dirt sites with trees and privacy, somewhat run down, a few can accommodate a big rig, near river, campers nearby "celebrating" late into the night, good Verizon signal

Hot Springs Campground and Hostel, Whitehorse, Yukon, 3 stars, 30 amp pull thru, no water or sewer, dump and water available at campground, level, gravel sites, close together, in pretty birch tree forest, poor Verizon signal, poor WiFi, walking distance to hot springs

Caribou RV Park, Whitehorse, Yukon, 3 stars, 30 amp/water pull thru, no sewer, dump on site, great RV/Car wash on premises, slightly run down, owner  is very friendly and helpful, very limited WiFi (check email only), no Verizon signal, 

TIP: Be sure to make reservations for dinner at the Wolf Den, a Swiss/German restaurant next door. We enjoyed an excellent dinner together.