My Return From The Chilkoot Trail

Last weekend I was fortunate enough to have the chance to hike the 33-mile Chilkoot Trail with 6 friends that I have gotten to know since arriving in Skagway 5 weeks ago. It was an incredible weekend; not only was it rejuvenating to escape from the busy port of Skagway for a few days, but it was incredible to hike this historic trail that thousands of stampeeders poured over just 100 years ago.
We left bright and early Friday morning, with the intention of hiking 13 miles to Sheep Camp, where we would then attempt the most treacherous section of the trail aptly named 'The Golden Staircase." The weather didn't exactly provide for an enjoyable first day; it poured all day. Despite the harsh conditions, we kept a good pace (maybe to keep from stopping too long in the rain) and even had a chance to get out of the rain at the warming shelter at Canyon City. But the time we arrived at Sheep Camp, it was about 6 pm and we were exhausted. Since the camp was full, the back country ranger there let us set up our tents on the heli-pad landing, with strict orders to move as quickly as possible in the event of a medievac. Fortunately, no helicopters blew away our tents in the night and we awoke to drier, albeit not much more welcoming, skies.
The next morning, we packed up our tents and began the 3 mile hike up Long Hill, to the base of the Golden Staircase. I almost had a hard time moving forward because I couldn't stop looking up; with every 5 minutes we seemed to gain entirely new awe-inspiring views. We hiked along the undulating geography, stopping to admire the cascading waterfalls and azure glacier pools. We took a brief snack break before beginning the 45-degree climb to the summit. The climb to the top involved scrambling up a half mile long boulder field, where the mountain is too shear for any plants to take root, let alone any soil to develop.
At the summit of the Chilkoot Pass, we were greeted by a Canadian flag, marking the boarder, and a 25 degree temperature drop. We enjoyed some hot tea before descending across several slick snow fields to our next camp, Deep Lake.

Along the trek to Deep Lake, the terrain was dotted with several cirques, glacier-fed lakes and babbling streams. It was surreal how quickly we transition from the temperate rain forest surrounding Skagway to alpine tundra. In a mere 17 miles, it was as if we had entered a whole new world.
It was incredible to be surrounded by hanging glaciers- it almost made the 10 strenuous miles we covered that day a little easier, as each step forward yielded more scenic vistas. By the time we got to Deep Lake for the night, we stayed awake just long enough to cook dinner and lock up our food before collapsing into our sleeping bags. I have never felt so comfortable sleeping on the ground!
One the third day, noticed a small patch of blue sky while cooking breakfast, which raised all of our spirits for another 10 mile day. Fortunately, the terrain was a little more forgiving on the third day, and we transitioned into yet another new ecological zone, boreal forest. We even briefly crossed an area that is categorized as glacial desert, but it just seemed to be a sandy patch to me.
We enjoyed a leisurely lunch at a sheltered lake, where we laid on the sun-warmed rocks and listened to loons in the distance. We covered 4 more miles before finally reaching the end of the Chilkoot Trail, at Lake Bennett in British Columbia. We were so exhilarated that we jumped into Lake Bennett, which is the origin of the Yukon River. Needless to say, it was ice cool and we all ran right back out. We spent the night playing cards and relaxing on the somewhat sandy shore of Lake Bennett, enjoying the seemingly endless night until the sun finally set just after midnight.
The next morning, we explored the lake before boarding a train back to Skagway. The train ride was really unique- the tracks ran along a precipitous cliffs and crossed thousand-foot chasms. It took us home across the White Pass, which served as an alternative route to the Chilkoot Trial at the time of the 1887 gold rush. We were all slightly delirious, happy to be returning home, exhausted from lack of sleep, and overwhelmed by the endless mountains.
After walking back into town to drop our packs, we immediately went right back out the door to go to the Skagway Brew Co. for celebratory cheeseburgers and veggie burgers. A perfect ending to a perfect getaway.

More Wildlife

Fortunately, I have seen a lot more bald eagles this summer than bears, which I am very thankful for! This bald eagle was hanging out along the Tiaya River for a few days, which indicated to all of us that the salmon runs were going to begin any day. We watched him for much of our lunch break, scouting for pink salmon.

The Real Bigfoot

After learning about how many bears are spotted in the Dyea townsite, I have now resolved to participating in every Ranger-led tour when I'm out there, to avoid being a sitting duck at the picnic tables. While I have come to learn their dialogue nearly verbatim, I do learn something new each time. Or at least observe something new, and this morning I happened to notice I was shuffling along the same path a black bear had moseyed along earlier that morning.

Sourdough

Today I officially became an Alaskan "sourdough," as I finally saw my first grizzly. From what I've heard around town, apparently the same day we embarked on the Chilkoot Trail, the salmon began to run upstream. This trend of running upstream is a phenomenon in which salmon leave the frigid salt water they have spend much of their adult lives in to return to the fresh water streams where they were born to spawn, before passing on in the circle of life. This usually begins in late July and continues through August, with several types of salmon including Chinook (King), Sockeye, and Pink. They return upstream in droves, making them an easy meal for grizzlies, wolves, and eagles- it's even common to see a lucky escapee fish with a bite out of his side fighting his way upstream.

With the salmon came the bears, and I finally got a chance to see a cinnamon-hued grizzly scouting out dinner on the Tiaya River of Dyea, Alaska. Although the Ranger I was working with that day claimed he was small at only 300 pounds, he still appeared massive to me. We watched him explore for about half an hour until he crossed the river, after which we high-tailed it out of there.

Our Classy Bathroom

Much of my time in Alaska so far has been spent trying to avoid seeing bears. I talk to the woman who works at the reception desk at the Skagway gym about how I run indoors to avoid seeing any brown bears. I talk to the guy at the post office about how lucky I've been to have not yet crossed paths with a brown bear. I always breath a sigh of relief when my roommates sullenly report that they didn't see any bears while out on their tours.

Well, I've spent so much time avoiding bears that karma has come full circle. Today, I walked into the bathroom one the first floor of our house after yet another day of successfully dodging grizzlies to find this posted on the back of the door. Nice.

Devil's Punchbowl

It is rare to have a blue-sky, sunny day in Skagway. It is even more rare to have a blue-sky, sunny day on the weekend, when I don't have to be working. Earlier today, I hiked up to a glacier cirque alone because I couldn't convince any of my roommates to take advantage of our good fortune and go with me. But I didn't know if I'd get the chance again and was so curious to see this glacier-fed tarn. So I after leaving a detailed plan with my roommates, packing bear spray, and filling my pack with more than enough food, water, warm clothing, and medical supplies for three people, I rode my bike over to the trail head. Even though I was scared the entire time that I was going to get mauled by a bear, and when I finally arrived, it was breath taking. All my fear was gone. I read that John Muir once described Alaska as looking like it "remains at the time of Creation," and I feel like that is exactly what I witnessed today.

View from Upper Dewey Lake (you may recognize the name from a previous hike, but the view today made it feel totally new).
Hiking from Upper Dewey Lake to Devil's Punchbowl; all above the treeline.
Again, Upper Dewey Lake; entirely fed by glaciers.
View of Upper Dewey Lake from the ridge line leading to Devil's Punchbowl.
Feeling a lot of respect for mountain goats.
Devil's Punchbowl; a tarn nestled in an alpine cirque, just 4.04 (strenuous!) miles from my apartment.

I think I also might have set a record on this trail for fastest ascent and descent, covering 8.08 miles in a mere 2 hours 47 minutes up and 2 hours and 23 minutes down, while singing Lady Gage and Cat Stevens (I prefer singing as an alternative to yelling "hey bear" every hundred meters).

The Chilkoot Trail

One of the most esteemed hikes of Southeast Alaska is the 33-mile Chilkoot Trail. Once described as "little better than hell on earth," the trail was originally used as a trade route between the Tlingit tribes of the southeast with the Natives of the Interior before the prospectors of 1898 claimed rights to the trail. Today, many still make the journey from Dyea, Alaska, to Bennet, British Columbia, trekking through what some consider to be the largest museum in the world.

At the peak of its use, the Chilkoot Trail served as an alternative route to the longer, albeit less treacherous, White Pass Trail to Dawson City, Yukon Territory, where gold was struck in 1896. Despite its reputation as a dangerous trail, the Chilkoot became to most popular route as it was the most direct and least expensive. The trail was so dangerous, in fact, that Canada's Northwest Mounted Police required all stampeders to carry one ton of goods- the estimated amount of gear to allow a prospector to survive one year. Among the recommended items were 150 lbs. of bacon, 5 yards of mosquito netting, 2 pairs snag-proof heavy rubber boots, 1 dozen heavy wool socks, and, of course, a pan for mining gold. Packing one ton of goods required that each prospector shuttle their goods a few hundred meters at a time, before turning around to make the trip again with another 50 lbs. of material. It was estimated that each stampeder covered the trail between 30-40 times in total after this arduous process was complete.

Most stampeders covered the 33-mile trail in the winter, as the snow cover made the terrain easier to navigate. 16 miles into the trail, prospectors reached "The Golden Stairs," a 45-degree slope that was so steep, the bare boulders were often exposed, posing an additional challenge. In case it wasn't difficult enough, there are two false summits, which often prompted a premature celebration.

I am preparing to hike the Chilkoot Trail this Friday with 7 Park Rangers that I have met since coming to Skagway last month. When they invited me to join them, I hardly hesitated- who better to hike with than a group of well-trained, experienced Rangers? Although, as the trip nears, and as I learn more about grizzly safety, navigating in alpine conditions, and preparing for extreme weather, I am beginning to realize this is going to be a trek unlike any I've ever done before.


Snow covers the trail for most of the year, and while avalanches are rare, much of the trail is above the treeline and is characterized by extreme weather.

We are planning on hiking 13 miles to Sheep Camp on Day 1, 10 miles to Deep Lake on Day 2, and 10 miles to Bennett on Day 3, where we will have the next day to explore before taking the White Pass- Yukon Route Railroad home to Skagway, where warm beds and hot showers will be waiting for us.