A Guide to Alaska-Yukon Highways
Alaska Highway & Canol Bibliography

To Page 1, Dawson Creek to Fort Nelson
To Page 3, Whitehorse to Delta Junction

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This view is from the Liard Highway back to the Muskwa River valley that the Alaska Highway runs through. The junction of the Alaska Highway and the Liard Highway (BC Highway 77) is at Km 483, 27 kilometers north of Fort Nelson. This photo was shot on August 23, 2011.

Km 532 (Historic Mile 351): Steamboat Mountain Lodge in October 2002.

Km 534: Below, a panoramic view from near the summit of Steamboat Mountain. The view is across the Muskwa River valley to the Rocky Mountains.

The view north from Steamboat Summit on August 31, 2011.

Heading north, down from Steamboat Summit.

Steamboat Mountain was one of the legendary "bad spots" on the Alcan. This photo from October 2002 shows the old road and the new bypass, completed in 1998.

Km 573: The Tetsa River on October 1, 2002.

Truth in advertising - yes, Virginia, there are caribou on the highway! This is in Stone Mountain Provincial Park in October 2002.

Km 598 (Historic Mile 392): Summit Lake is in Summit Pass, which at 1,295 meters (4,250 feet) elevation, is the highest summit on the Alaska Highway. This photo of ExploreNorth editor Murray Lundberg was shot on August 31, 2011 while he was returning to Whitehorse from a trip to Yellowknife, NWT.

Northbound along Summit Lake on October 1, 2002.

Km 602: The limestone gorge where where the Alaska Highway drops steeply down to the broad MacDonald River valley (northbound) has always been one of my favourite spots along the highway. Stone sheep are commonly seen here. The photo was shot on August 31, 2011.

Km 605 (Historic Mile 396): Below, a panorama of the MacDonald River Valley in October 2002.

Stone sheep at about Km 608 on August 31, 2011.

Northbound at about Historic Mile 415 (Km 636) on January 27, 2003. This flat light, quite common in the winter, makes seeing the shoulder berms and other irregularities quite difficult.

The Racing River at about Km 642, on August 31, 2011.

Km 647 (Historic Mile 422): The community of Toad River as seen northbound on October 1, 2002.

Another look at Toad River from the south on August 31, 2011.

Northbound, a couple of miles north of Toad River on January 27, 2003.

Looking southbound at about Km 656 on August 31, 2011.

Km 668.2: This interpretive sign explains the flash floods that are common in the area, and the type of gravel deposit known as an alluvial fan seen across the river. This photo was shot on August 31, 2011. The Northern Canadian Rockies are famous for their summer downpours. When heavy rains fall on mountains largely bare of trees and other soil-holding vegetation, the water carries sand, gravel and even boulders into the gullies between the peaks. Everything washes out onto the flat valley floors. This is one such deposit. It is called an alluvial fan because its outline resembles an open fan. Material carried by streams is called alluvium. This becomes distributed evenly over the fan as the stream slowly sweeps back and forth, changing its position constantly.

Northbound at the top of Peterson Hill, about Mile 445 (Km 682). January 27, 2003. When meeting large vehicles after a snowfall, you're going to be completely blinded by the blowing snow for several seconds, so slow down!

Clearing the highway after a heavy dump of snow overnight. The plow is southbound at about Km 695 on January 27, 2003. After one more pass of the plow, the road reports will call this "normal winter driving conditions" (yes, I am serious!).

Looking north across Muncho Lake from about Km 700 on August 31, 2011. The lake, at an elevation of 817 meters (2,180 feet), is about 11 kilometers long and 1.6 kilometers wide (7 x 1 miles) and offers excellent fishing including monster Lake trout.

Stone sheep along Muncho Lake at about Km 702 on August 31, 2011.

Km 712.2: Looking south across Muncho Lake from a large viewing area on August 31, 2011.

This young bull caribou was alongside the highway at about Km 720 on August 31, 2011.

Liard Hot Springs in December 1999. Summer or winter, the springs are a great spot to take a break from the road. For more information, click here.

This was the closest I've ever been to a bison - she was in the middle of the road, perhaps 6 feet from my car window, and showed no nervousness at all - if she had, I wouldn't have risked taking this shot! Altogether I saw about 150 bison, with 2 large herds and many smaller groups and stragglers, most of them within 50 km of the springs. This photo was shot on March 23, 2007 during a trip from Whitehorse to Liard Hot Springs and back - that trip has its own photojournal page.

Km 792.3 (Historic Mile 514): On the north side of the Smith River Bridge is a small gravel side road to Smith River Falls. The turnaround at the end of the 2.6 km long road is small, so it isn't recommended for larger rigs. From the parking area at Smith River Falls, you get a view of the entire double fall. This photo was shot on August 31, 2011.

At Smith River Falls, there used to be a trail with extensive stairs leading down to a closer view of the double falls, and then right down to the river. A forest fire in about 2008, though, burned the stairs and they haven't been replaced - the route down now is steep and hazardous. This photo was shot on June 21, 2004.

Km 822 (Historic Mile 533): The new and old bridges at Coal River, seen in very heavy rain in early October 2002, soon after the new bridge had opened.

A herd of wood bison did a good job of blocking the highway for a few minutes as I was southbound on my motorcycle at about Km 850 on August 22, 2011. The bison have been dramatically increasing their range in recent years and now may been seen anywhere between Watson Lake and Muncho Lake.

A few miles south of Watson Lake, a short side road takes you to the Native village of Lower Post, which sometimes offers some good photo possibilities. A trail of beer cans along the road spoiled "the moment" on this trip, though, and I didn't get anything other than some deep-snow record shots. March 23, 2007.

The Air Force Lodge in Watson Lake, Yukon (Historic Mile 635), is a restored Air Force barracks. Just down the road is the famous Signpost Forest. This photo was taken in late September 2002.

Looking north up the highway near the Continental Divide in September 2002.

Km 710 (Historic Mile 733): The community of Swift River, Yukon, looking southbound in early October 2002.

Km 1186.8: Below, a rough road that climbs up to a microwave tower north of the community of Swift River also offers a panoramic view over the Swift River valley, seen here in September 2002.

Km 1242: This rest area offers a great view of the Nisutlin Bay Bridge and the community of Teslin. This photo was shot on April 13, 2008.

Km 1295 (Historic Mile 835): junction with the Canol Road, or "South Canol". A hundred yards up the Canol is a large rest area with outhouses, several old trucks, and several interpretive panels. This photo was shot on April 3, 2011. The South Canol is a gravel road that gets increasingly rough as you proceed north - there are no services until reaching Ross River, 226 km away, and services there are minimal.

The view southbound at Historic Mile 863 (just south of Jake's Corner, Yukon) as seen in May 1998. White Mountain is a popular hiking destination for locals, with a good, though steep trail going up the back side.

Km 1393 (Historic Mile 897): The Yukon River Bridge and Marsh Lake Dam on September 3, 2007. See this post on the ExploreNorth Blog for much for information about the dam, including some historic photos.

Trucking the Alaska Highway. A semi goes by as the shutter was open for a 30-second exposure to capture the aurora borealis at the Yukon River Bridge east of Whitehorse. This was shot just before midnight on March 16, 2012.

The wonders of winter driving on the Alaska Highway. This view of the aurora borealis (Northern Lights) was captured from the shoulder of the road just north of the Yukon River Bridge near Whitehorse, Yukon, at 5:17am on February 20, 2012, with the thermometer sitting at -18°C.

Southbound on the Alaska Highway at Km 1595, along the Yukon River, with a canoe on the roof on September 3, 2007.

The southern entrance to Whitehorse, with the sternwheeler Klondike sitting on the bank of the Yukon River, on September 13, 2001. For more photos of Whitehorse, click here.

To Page 3, west of Whitehorse to Delta Junction

All photos are © 1998-2013 by Murray Lundberg, and are not to be reproduced without permission.