Ballad of a Cheechako
"There's a great big land way up yonder"
The following is an account of Tim and Karen White's three week adventure to the Yukon. Along the way I will attempt to weave in observations, history and of course Robert Service. If your interested in what worked for us, we'll give you some leads to a great vacation. For historic photos click on this icon . . . Pix, for personal vacation photos click on this icon . . . .***
I won't feel like I'm going till I start to pack, I won't feel that I've been there til the slides come back And when we stand together by the deep blue Sea I will not quite believe that it is really me. - Copyrighted, Peter Berryman, from "Goodnight Everybody
Friday June 14th - Well the big day has come, off to the "top knot of the world". We stuff our packs in the car and shuffle off to the Dane County Airport to catch an early flight to Seattle. Crossing a couple of time zones in as many hours we land in Seattle, the city built on the great stampede for gold in 1897-98.
From that fateful day the Portland and the Excelsior brought its bounty of gold out of the North, Seattle's wealth has been secured. The city did much to promote the rush and fueled the flames of a gold maddened country. The following description tells of the crazy time when the world clamored for gold, and made Seattle a fueling depot for their gold lust. Pix
Click here for a firsthand account of Seattle during the Rush
We secured a seat on the Belleair Bus to Bellingham Washington and two hours north of Seattle we set up we camp at the Value Inn for the evening. We hustled off to the ferry terminal in the morning to wait in an ever growing line of walk on passengers who will soon stampede to the top deck of the ferry in search of a lawn chair or a tent spot. Within an hour of boarding the ship's solarium is filled with sleeping bag covered lawn chairs and most every square foot of deck has a tent duct taped to it. In a colorful scene of different colored tents and with a diverse crowd of passengers we make our camp for the next three days. Here we watch the scenery go by and let the days get ever longer as we make our way north through the inside passage. Our destination as most of the argonauts of 1897-98 is Skagway Alaska. ***
By modern standards I suppose we roughed this lag of our voyage. We opted for the economy route and left the ships cabins for those who chose to open their pocket books for bit of privacy and a mattress.
"The spectral shores flitted past us, and every whirl of the screw Hurled us nearer to fortune, and ever we planned what we'd do- Do with the gold when we got it - big, shiny nuggets like plums, There in the sand of the river, gouging it out with our thumbs" -Robert Service, from the Trail of Ninety Eight
Most of those that Service wrote of in the above passage from the Trail of Ninety Eight, would find their dreams dashed along the trail. We found our gold! Gold in the midnight sun, the spectacular scenery, a wonderful backpacking trip and new found acquaintances.
But think about those stampeders of the great rush. Most would have been overjoyed to have our plush accommodations. In 1898 the world went mad with the dreams of Klondike gold fields. Fueled by hyped up reports in the papers and word of mouth, all who could scraped together money for an outfit and a passage north. Pressed into service was every conceivable vessel that could float and even those who couldn't. Here is one account of travel in that weird and wild time.
Click here for firsthand account of one vessel in that ill equipped armada
Of course Robert Service did not have to endure those type of hardships on his passage north. During those crazy days of the rush he was living the life of a hobo in Southern California. His passage north would not happen until 1903 when he was assigned passage to White Horse by the Bank of Commerce on his way to find his own gold claim through verse. He writes in Ploughman of the moon;
"It's a tough country," said the Captain as we sailed up the Inland Passage. "Nothing but the God-Damned pines. One get's sick of the sight of them."
I could not share his lack of enthusiasm. To me the journey north was one of wonder and joy. I wondered at the blue blaze of the glaciers. I wondered at the mountains glooming and gleaming in savage splendor. But most of all I wondered at myself- enjoying so much wonder without it costing me a single cent. It was the first time I had made a voyage at the expense of some one else; and, believe me, it tripled the enjoyment. And to think that I was being paid for having a marvelous time! Not only my pleasure was being given me free, but I was being handled two dollars a day for accepting it. To my Scotch mind it just didn't make sense."
For us, our days on the inside passage passed pleasantly. If you are looking for a relaxed vacation, try the Alaskan State Ferry System. It is sort of a forced relaxation that comes from not having any where to travel to besides stern to bow. Nothing to do but sit back and take in the "drop curtain scenery" go rolling by. I had a chance to versify with the others in our little deck camp. Most had heard of Robert Service, for those who had not I filled in the blanks. As Karen put it, it would be "a trip of recitals". Hey, I supply lip Service to anyone who will listen.
An occasional luxury liner would pass us, blocking out the horizon. I could imagine the passenger gawking at us from one of their many decks, wondering what squalor we are living through as they decide whether to take in a shuffle board game or a quick game of tennis. But more on the cruisers a bit later. More interesting were the occasional sea creatures observed en route. We scanned the horizon for spouting whales. Occasionally we were rewarded and then marvel at those great mammoths of the sea.
Having taken the route before I knew to save film as the scenery gets better and better the farther north one goes. Glaciers dot our path, and the mountains rise from the shoreline . . . when I die let heaven be an endless voyage up and down the inside passage.
"The Weltering Mass"
We landed in Skagway where we set up camp in the luxurious Golden North Hotel. We abandoned our economy for a chance to stay at this interesting landmark. For those not on a budget, (rooms run over $100 a night,) this is a very nice place. The Golden North's rooms and stately drawing areas are furnished with period furnishings. Each room is named to honor a particular person from the rush. We were given what was called the honeymoon suite which was is in the Cupola. The walls are adorned with photos from the gold rush. For those who are willing to exchange style for economy Skagway also has a hostile, which I understand is quite nice.
John Muir likened Skagway in its heyday, "a nest of ants taken into a strange country and stirred up by a stick" . Little has changed! Skagway has been moved and rearranged to accommodate the tourist traffic which at times is maddening. Like hawkers at a carnival , tour company agents line the main street, each claiming the best tour for the buck. T-shirt shops, an ivory museum/emporium, book stores, clothing stores, nick nack stores and such, all await the tourist,waiting to sell a bit of Alaska to those who have their pokes open wide.
Of course Skagway has its gems as well. If in town be sure to take in the excellent gold rush museum, as well as the free movies walking tours and talks. The White Pass rail trips depart from here, spend a few bucks and be rewarded with one of the premier train rides in world. While en route marvel how this route could have been accomplished in only two years. I was told the Arctic Brotherhood lodge building is one of the most photographed buildings in the country. It now houses a klondike park informational station. It's facade, made entirely of driftwood is nothing short of spectacular. Those Arctic Brothers obviously a lot time on their hands! When the streets clear and the boat people are back home, Skagway can be a truly charming place. An interesting web site with photos of Skagway can be found at : http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/75skagway/75visual4.htm
But in a way, Skagway remains true to its beginnings. It began as a place to mine the miners, these days Skagway mines the tourists. Hours of operation for these businesses seems to be whenever a ship pulls in. Whenever one of those giants dock, the population of the town swells. As the folks pile off their luxury liners the town goes into high gear and remains that way until the masses, ladened with shopping bags waddle back onto their floating palace to spend the night. Much more gold was extracted from stampeders for goods and services than were ever mined in the creeks of the Yukon. Today it is still the out of towners which drives Skagway's economy. Yes, the ghost of Soapy Smith is still alive and well in Skagway!
Service writes of Skagway in the trail of Ninety Eight,
"We landed in wind-swept Skagway, We joined the weltering mass, Clamoring over their outfits waiting to climb the pass."
Yes, we too were anxious to get on the trail! ***
Dyea
Skagway was considered the jumping off point to Chilkoot Trail, but actually Dyea is the starting point. The White Pass Trail, more accurately named by Jack London the "Dead Horse Trail" , leaves from Skagway. (If traveling on the White Pass Railroad make sure you look down to where the old White Pass Trail can be seen.) During the rush of 1897-98 Skagway was the destination of choice due to its deep water port where as Dyea was at the mercy of the tides. Both towns prospered during the rush. Skagway survived mainly, due to it's link to White Pass and Yukon rail head which made the foot travel on both the Chilkoot and White Pass Trails obsolete. When the Chilkoot Trail died Dyea expired as well.
Click here for a first hand account of Dyea during the Rush.
We called up "Dyea Dave" to drive us to the Chilkoot trail head. Along with seven other hikers and gear. Dave gave us a first class tour of what once was Dyea. A few piling's and a cemetery is all that remains of this gold rush town. Even if your not hiking the trail, give Dave a call. He has researched the rush and his tour is well worth the price of admission! *** You would never know it today but in 1898 Dyea boasted a population estimated at 5-8,000 people, served by 48 hotels, 47 restaurants, 39 saloons and 19 freighting companies. All of this gone, taken back by mother nature.
Click here for a virtual tour of Dyea today . . . hey, who comes up with this stuff?
Of particular interest was the Dyea Avalanche Cemetery. Here the victims of the Palm Sunday avalanche on Chilkoot trail are buried. With simple wooden markers this cemetery commemorates the final resting place for some 52 stampeders. It is unknown how many stampeders actually were buried by the slide. Pix
Robert Service writes of this Avalanche in his first novel the "Trail of Ninety Eight". Service's main character Athol Meldrum seeks out his love Berna. Athol travels the White Pass Trail while his gal Berna , (named for a can of condensed milk in Robert's cabin) and her party travels to Dyea to take on the Chilkoot. Athol hears of the great avalanche and rushes to find out what has happened to his love.
Click Here for Robert's Service's avalanche sequence from "Trail of Ninety Eight"
Well, with thoughts of disasters fresh in our minds we shouldered on packs and started up the Chilkoot Trail. As Karen would later remark near the pass . . . "It was cruel, cruel ".
Click here to Continue on Tim's Travelogue, "The Trail"
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