Yukon

Introduction

Mt. Tombstone

© Q'

Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of the three territories in Canada, the others being Northwest Territories and Nunavut. Yukon has existed since 1898, though up until 2003 its official name was Yukon Territory. The capital and largest town is Whitehorse, which holds about two thirds of the territory's 33,000 inhabitants.

History

Long before the arrival of Europeans, central and northern Yukon escaped glaciation as it was part of Beringia. The volcanic eruption of Mount Churchill near the Alaska border blanketed southern Yukon with a layer of ash which can still be seen along the Klondike Highway. Coastal and inland First Nations already had extensive trading networks and European incursions into the area only began early in the 19th century with the fur trade, followed by missionaries and the Western Union Telegraph Expedition. By the end of the 19th century gold miners were trickling in on rumours of gold. This drove a population increase that justified the establishment of a police force, just in time for the start of the Klondike Gold Rush in 1897. The increased population coming with the gold rush led to the separation of the Yukon district from the Northwest Territories and the formation of the separate Yukon Territory in 1898. Sites of archaeological significance in the Yukon hold some of the earliest evidence of the presence of human occupation in North America. The sites safeguard the history of the first people and the easiest First Nations of the Yukon. More information is found in the Yukon Archaeology Program.

Geography

Yukon is slightly less than half a million square kilometres big, making it the smallest of the three territories in Canada. To the west, Yukon shares its border along the entire length with Alaska, while to the east is the Northwest Territories and to the south and southeast is the province of British Columbia. Yukon has the highest mountain in Canada and the second highest in North America (after Mount McKinley in Alaska, USA). Mount Logan towers 5,959 metres in the air and is located in the wild and beautiful Kluane National Park and Reserve.

Cities/Communities

• Whitehorse - the capital
• Dawson City
• Watson Lake
• Haines Junction

Sights and Activities

Kluane National Park

Kluane National Park and Reserve are two units of Canada's national park system, located in the extreme southwestern corner of Yukon, Canada. Kluane National Park Reserve was established in 1972, covering 22,013 km2.

The park includes the highest mountain in Canada, Mount Logan (5,959 metres) of the Saint Elias Mountains. Mountains and glaciers dominate the park's landscape, covering 83% of its area. The rest of the land in the park is forest and tundra - east of the largest mountains and glaciers - where the climate is colder and drier than in the western and southern parts of the park. Trees grow only at the park's lowest elevations. The primary tree species are white spruce, balsam poplar and trembling aspen. The park contains about 120 species of birds, including the rock ptarmigan and the golden and bald eagles.

The bi-national Kluane-Wrangell-St. Elias-Glacier Bay-Tatshenshini-Alsek park system comprising Kluane, Wrangell-St Elias, Glacier Bay and Tatshenshini-Alsek parks, was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1979 for the spectacular glacier and icefield landscapes as well as for the importance of grizzly bears, caribou and Dall sheep habitat. In a 2009 census of the Kluane herd, there were 181 northern mountain caribou, a distinct ecotype of the woodland caribou.

Other Sights and Activities

• Klondike Gold Rush memorials and activities
• Northern Lights Centre in Watson Lake

Events and Festivals

• Yukon Interational Storytelling Festival
• Dawson Music Festival
• Yukon Quest
• Frostbite Music Festival

Weather

Weather in Yukon, just like neigbouring Alaska and Northwest Territories, is characterized by short summers from June to August and long, dark and cold winters from October to April. Temperatures during winter can drop below -40 °C, while summer days can enjoy temperatures as high as 30 °C. Still, variation is huge, as summer frost at night is possible, while during the winter months occasionally the mercury rises above zero, even in the northernmost regions. Precipitation on the whole is not that high, and mostly comes in the form of snow during winter. Some heavy thunderstorms might occur after some warmer summer days.

Getting There

By Plane

Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport (YXY) is the main gateway by air, with flights from Whitehorse to Edmonton, Fairbanks, Calgary, Inuvik (Northwest Territories), Old Crow and Vancouver with Air North and to Vancouver with Air Canada. Air Canada Yazz has seasonal flights to Calgary as well (summer). There are even seasonal flights (summer) with Condor to Frankfurt, Germany!

Dawson City has flights to Alaska and Inuvik as well.

By Train

White Pass Railroad

© deannajuli

There are no trains going as far north as Yukon on a regular basis, but in the summer season the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad provides trips from Skagway, Alaska, as far as Carcross in Yukon, with coach connections to Whitehorse.

By Car

The most important routes include the Alaska Highway, the Klondike Highway (between Skagway and Dawson City), the Haines Highway (between Haines, Alaska, and Haines Junction), and the Dempster Highway (linking Inuvik, Northwest Territories to the Klondike Highway), all paved except for the Dempster Highway. Another less popular route is the Stewart-Cassiar Highway from northwest British Columbia that joins the Alaska Highway.

By Bus

Alaska Direct Bus Line has services to Tok in Alaska (8 hours, 3 times a week) via the Alaska Highway and Haines Junction (2 hours).
Greyhound Canada has buses going south towards Dawson Creek with connections further towards British Columbia and the rest of Canada.
Yukon Alaska Tourist Tours has daily buses from late May to early September to Skagway (4 hours).

By Boat

Many travellers also come to the Yukon as part of a tour with an Alaska Cruise. Generally as part of the package it is possible to include a bus tour of parts of the Yukon. In some cases it may be possible to stay over in the Yukon for one or two weeks and return on the next cruise.

Others may arrive into Yukon through the Alaska Marine Highway system which operates a ferry from Bellingham, Washington to Skagway in Alaska.

Getting Around

By Plane

There are flights between Whitehorse and Dawson City and between both places and smaller communities throughout Yukon. Check Air North's website for more information about flights to these communities.

By Car

Having your own car or a rental car is the best way of seeing as much of Yukon as you can and gives you maximum freedom. You can drive across Yukon by rental car from other parts of Canada or from Alaska, but within Yukon the only rental cars available are in Whitehorse and these can be expensive. Book well ahead in summer, especially July!
Some of the options to rent a car include the following companies:

• Avis
• Budget
• Discount
• Hertz
• National
• Enterprise
• Thrifty

Eat

Food has to travel a long ways to get to the Yukon, so you will not find quite the variety of fruits and vegetables you would in the south, and the prices are significantly higher.

Historically hunting is a way of life in the North and Yukoners still tend to eat a lot more meat, especially wild game, than southerners.

Whitehorse is a major supply centre and therefore despite the small size you will find all of your favourite chain restaurants as well as many very nice local restaurants that have diverse menus.

Drink

The legal drinking age in the Yukon is 19. The Yukon Liquor Corporation operates 6 liquor stores in the territory. These are located in Whitehorse, Watson Lake, Dawson, Haines Junction, Faro, and Mayo. Alcohol is also available from "off-sales" of bars. There is a 30% premium for purchasing from off-sales. The liquor stores in the rural communities also operate as government agents and provide services such as driver licences, fishing licences, motor vehicle registrations, property taxes, business licences and court fines. If you require all of these in a single trip you receive a Yukon Yoddeller award.

Some communities in the North are officially "Dry" communities. In these communities alcohol will not be available and bringing in excess quantities of alcohol may be illegal.

External Links

• Official Governmental Website
• Official Tourism Website