Saturday 7/14:
Last night our pristine site at Crooked Creek was invaded by a parasitic 5th wheel trailer. As you may remember, we were camped in a huge pullout next to the creek. We stopped there at about 10 PM. At midnight the trailer pulled in and parked right next to us—I mean RIGHT next to us. I think the driver must have a near terminal case of R-V Parkitis. This cruel disease strikes the central nervous system causing an uncontrollable need to be within touching distance of at least one other recreational vehicle. Thankfully this guy was gone before we arose in the morning and we were able to avoid acute neighborliness, which is a frequent side effect of RVP.
Tried the fishing at Crooked Creek with no success and then we pushed onward toward Dawson City. Although we’re still surrounded by mountains, we get the sense that the terrain is flattening. The wide road continued to tempt us with the expectation of wildlife and finally delivered a moosette and her toddler. Thank you wide road.
Late in the afternoon the road merged with the Klondike River. Images of the gold rush and Jack London leapt into our minds.
Dawson City is a study in contrasts. The downtown area is a quaint collection of period houses and shops perched on the banks of the Klondike. The unpaved streets and antique buildings give you a strong sense of what the city must have been like in its glory days. In contrast is “suburban” Dawson. For miles as you near the city there are seemingly endless piles of rock tailings from the gold dredges. There’s even a suburban housing development called “Dredge Pond”. We haven’t visited “Dredge Pond” yet, but I’m sure it’s interesting. “Yup, we live over in Dredge Pond…corner of Chlorine and Mercury streets…right across from Mud Sludge Park”.
One thing we noticed right away about Dawson City—they have the best selection of tennis-racket, electrocuting fly swatters we’ve seen anywhere! Good, Better, and Best models from $6.99 to $15. Since Nancy’s been using hers so effectively we thought we’d buy another. That way we can play doubles. We may need to/two. Every thing we read suggests that the bugs are going to get bigger and badder as we move on. A couple of days ago we added fly-paper to our arsenal. It’s been deadly—not on the bugs, but on Nancy. She brushed into it yesterday and it grabbed her hair like some extraterrestrial man-eating plant. She was lucky to escape alive and coiffed.
Tomorrow we head up the Dempster Highway on our way to Inuvik near the Arctic Ocean. We expect the round trip will take us 3 or 4 days. It’s a 500 mile, all gravel road adventure so we’re leaving the Admiral here in Dawson City and taking the Cheap Jeep. We’ll spend one night in a hotel in Inuvik, but the rest of the time we’ll tent camp on the tundra. Nervous about bears and wolves, but more nervous about making sure we properly fill in the spaces on our Tourists’ Bingo Card. Wouldn’t want to miss out on the chance for the thousands of dollars of gold nuggets.
