Oh Candada!

"Politeness is half good manners and half good lying." - Mary Wilson Little

We now had four days in Whitehorse, the capital of the Yukon Province.  Unfortunately, the B&B at which we already had reservations could only take us for the first of the two extra days.  So, while we couldn't go as far north as Dawson City, we decided to at least head in that direction and found a place to stay in a town called Carmacks.

I was afraid it would be a similar experience to Beaver Creek, but while the accomodations were less than luxurious, it wasn't too bad and the little town of Carmacks was quite quaint.  It sat right on the Yukon River and had a wooden boardwalk along the river road.  While strolling along and enjoying the view, a little girl road her bicycle up behind us.  "Excuse me, please" she said and rode past us.  "Thank you." she called over her shoulder.  They say Canadians are a polite group of people.

We drove to an overlook of a place in the river called the Five-Finger Rapids.  It was a place where 4 rocky outcroppings rose up from the river causing some rough water, that apparently cost many lives of miners heading north to make their fortunes.  I hate to say it, it didn't look so bad to me, but apparently some work had been done later on the river to make the area safer for boat passage.

My instinct that night was for fish and chips in the small restaurant across from the hotel, but I couldn't resist the salmon.  I should learn to go with my instincts.  Over cooked, yet again.

Back down to Whitehorse and the Red Door B&B.  Wonderful place with a welcoming atmosphere and hostess.  And the sourdough pancakes were to die for.

I had a quick glance of what looked like some men carving a totem pole under a tent from the little historic trolly that ran through the town.  We were going to stop on the way back to get a closer look, but unfortunatley, they had already stopped work by the time we passed by again.

We spent a morning at the Yukon Wildlife Preserve.  I dislike seeing animals in captivity but this place was one of the better ones with quite a lot of space for the animals to roam and many were being nursed for injuries.

We had lunch down the road in a little organic, fair trade cafe.  It was run by a guy from San Diego who came up to "get away from it all."  I just wonder how he makes a living running a cafe in the woods on a road to not much of anything.  But the food was fantastic and the area beautiful.  I have to say, I envy the man.

I could see myself living in a town like this.  Quaint, historic, but large enough to have most modern conveniences.

Yukon River

Roadside scenery

Elk

Arctic Squirrels

Baby Dall Sheep and friend

Dall Sheep

Arctic Foxes

Bean North organic cafe