A Guide to Alaska-Yukon Highways

To Page 1, Dawson Creek to Fort Nelson
To Page 2, Fort Nelson to Whitehorse

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Whitehorse - looking east on Main Street from First Avenue in December 2001. For more photos of Whitehorse, click here.

Otter Falls, at the foot of Aishihik Lake (pronounced Ai-shee-ak), reached by a sideroad leaving the Alaska Highway at Km 1602 (Historic Mile 995). These falls were on the back of the Canadian $5 bill that was issued in 1954 (see it here). Photo taken July 1992.

The bridge across Canyon Creek (also known as the Aishihik River) dates back to 1903, when it was built to access the goldfields in the Kluane Lake region. on the right side of the river, legendary Yukon character Sam McGee and a partner ran a roadhouse.

Construction east of Haines Junction, Yukon, in August 2002. When possible, the new road is built beside the old so traffic isn't held up any more than necessary. Once the new highway is completed, the old one is torn up and seeded.

Sunrise on the Kluane Range, as seen from the airport at Haines Junction at -42°C. in November 1995. Speaking of cold, did you know that the men who built The Road had a special mascot, the Kee Bird? Click here to find out more. A Guide to Haines Junction.

Construction west of Haines Junction, Yukon, in August 2002. The road through here used to be very narrow and very winding, with no shoulders. You can see one of the old sections of road in the distance.

Construction west of Haines Junction, Yukon, in July 2002. Waits like this are seldom more than 15 minutes long. It is local custom that motorcycle riders go to the front of such lines, so they don't have to eat the dust of closed-in vehicles.

Looking north on the highway at Km 1686. The road is on the final climb to Boutillier Summit, at 1,003 meters (3,293 feet) the second-highest point on the highway. In the distance is the Kluane Range. October 1992. This section of the highway was substantially upgraded in 2000-2002.

The Alaska Highway heading north towards Sheep Mountain, home of one of the highest concentrations of wild sheep in the Yukon. September 1990.

Just so you know whose country this is once you leave the pavement! Grizzly pawprints along the Slims River, Kluane Park, Yukon. September 1993.

A huge blast during reconstruction of the Alaska Highway at Kluane Lake, Yukon. Patience paid off here - the blast was delayed for well over an hour, so I'd been standing by the side of the highway with my camera set up on a tripod for almost 2 hours when it finally went off. July 1991.

In 2007 the massive highway reconstruction project known as the Shakwak Project reached Sheep Mountain. The ExploreNorth Blog posted several photos and comments about the project and what it's doing to the character of the Alcan. This photo was taken in a light snow on October 6th, 2007.

Winter driving on the Alaska Highway is enchanting in the extreme, particularly at night when you can easily drive for 5-6 hours without seeing another vehicle. January 1993.

Just west of the Sheep Mountain Interpretive Centre at Km 1706, the Soldiers' Summit trail takes you up the original tote road to the spot where the road was opened on November 20, 1942. This is the view from the trail, over Kluane Lake to the Ruby Range of mountains, with one of several interpretive signs explaining the construction. The Alaska Highway can be seen below, winding around the granite cliffs along the lake shore.

This is Soldiers' Summit, where the opening ceremony took place.

Me, taking a couple of days off from tour bus driving in July 1991. A good 4x4, a cold beer, and a campsite on the beach of Kluane Lake, Yukon, miles from anybody - does it get any better than this? (actually it does - I didn't have either my kids or my dog with me...)

Driving on the ice of Kluane Lake, 6 miles from the nearest road. The nearest community to this island is Burwash Landing, Yukon, also 6 miles away. The car has no special equipment. Photo taken in April 1993, during the Burwash Ice Races.

Morning at Km 1814 on the Alaska Highway, overlooking the Donjek River Valley and the Icefield Ranges. Could you stand to wake up here in the morning? Overnighting is legal in any of these pulloffs along the highway. August 1990.

The Donjek River Bridge, at Km 1820. The width and unstable bottom of this river made the bridge one of the most difficult on the highway to engineer. It originally was 6 miles upstream, but the road had to be built over a lot of muskeg to get to that point. September 1990.

The White River, looking north from the Alaska Highway bridge.

Once past Beaver Creek, Yukon, the character of the country changes as the valleys become very wide. At this point, about Km 1945, the surrounding country is all permafrost, ground which never thaws.

A brilliant sunset at Mile 1192, just west of Port Alcan, Alaska. September 1999.

Looking east from Mile 1192, just west of Port Alcan, Alaska. September 1999.

Winter at a truck stop in Tok, Alaska. Just before 8:00 a.m. on February 18, 2006.

My favourite sign along the highway! The intersection of the Alaska Highway and Midnight Sun Drive, Tok, Alaska. The signs are lit up by using a flash on my camera on this very dull day in January 1993.

The Alaska Range, about 20 miles west of Tok, Alaska. The view is to the south. Photo taken April 2000.

Winter provides some unique experiences. This photo was taken while driving southbound just north of Delta Junction, at exactly noon on December 20, 2002. Yes, that's as high as the sun gets! And in 2002, there really was almost no snow in late December.

All photos are © 1998-2007 by Murray Lundberg, and are not to be reproduced without permission.

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References & Further Reading:

• Alaska Highway & Canol Bibliography
• Ken Coates - North to Alaska (Toronto, ON: McLelland & Stewart, 1992)
  
• Murray Lundberg - Alaska Highway (Whitehorse, YT: Webster, 1999)
  
• The Milepost (Bothell, WA: Alaska Northwest, 1998)
  
• Hope Morritt - Land of the Fireweed: A Young Woman's Story of Alaska Highway Construction Days (Edmonds, WA: Alaska Northwest, 1985)
  
• Iris Woolcock - The Road North: A Woman's Adventure Driving the Alaska Highway, 1947-1948 (Puffin Press, 1990)

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