June 17th, 2012, On the Way To Dawson

June 17^th, 2012, On the Way To Dawson

We really didn’t decide which way to go until this morning. I checked out the weather forecasts and the road reports for the Top of the world highway. It looked like the weather would be nice next week and the delays and construction on the Top of The World Highway said that delays would be less then twenty minutes.

So we turned north, onto the Klondike Highway. Our plan wasn’t to make it to Dawson but to drive at least to Carmack or maybe even Selkirk Landing on the Pelly River. The Carmack area is reported to have agate trails and the Selkirk area has a Native Hude Arts and Craft center so they both seemed like a good bet.

Soon after driving up the road we saw two tundra swans, a mated pair, serenely gliding across a small lake. It’s really not a good road for wildlife viewing, the road has no shoulders and a steep drop off. It also has the dreaded frost heaves and I only hit one badly before I gave them the respect they deserve.

Before long we reached mile ninety three. There a sign talks about the plume agates and geodes found there an so we backed the rig, yup all fifty five feet of it, onto a cobble side road. Locking the dog into the fifth wheel we headed up the trail. Soon Renita and I were grabbing rocks and occasionally stopping to examine the wolf scat.

Renita suggested we talk loudly so as not to startle a grizzly bear and you knew she was right. I had forgotten all about bears as we hiked up the heavily forested trail. The trail ended in a small turnaround and you could see where others had camped and then looked for the beautiful plume agate.

Now the problem is that we really didn’t know what the local plume looks like on the outside or rind. We do know what Rio Grande plume looks like but perhaps it was different. It wasn’t until our hands and pockets were full that Renita let out a shriek and grabbed a probably true Yukon plume agate.

Returning to the truck we loaded the rocks into the back end and headed north to Carmack. After filling up with diesel we talked with a shop owner who told of the beautiful blue agate found by some and then showed us the one piece of geode she had. It looked like Iris agate, found in the Wind Rivers of Wyoming and so left for Selkirk Landing.

The frost heaves got worse but the scenery was fantastic as we drove across and along the Yukon River. We stopped for lunch at the Five Fingers rapids, where the paddle wheels had winched their way through the five up thrust fingers of rock.

Too soon the drive was over and we found a great free campground at Pelly Crossing. After setting up we walked to the arts and crafts center and admired the beautiful moose skin and beaded clothes. They also had a list of rules for the Hude, the First Nation People their and I admired the main theme, called Dooli. It’s a creed based on respect, respect for the animals, respect for each other, and a respect for nature. It gave examples of behaving badly and stressed the importance of honoring the elders.