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Monday  July 15        Cycling Day 10

      Dawson City (Y) to Bush Camp#2

Distance:  (Km). 92

Time:  4:49

Average Speed: (Km/ hr). 18.85

Ascent:  (m) 562

Heart Rate: (beats / min). 108

Cumulative Distance:   (km). 1024

Cumulative Ascent :  (m). 8674

Punctures so far : 0

Back on the road again after a great Rest Day. Our location in the Westmark (on 5th Ave!) was ideal. Possible to walk everywhere within 10 minutes. Bags loaded up onto a replacement van and trailer. The TDA dinner truck developed serious back axel problems and out of commission for the last 4 days. It messed things up for the crew but has not affected us at all. Should be back in operation in a few days.

A good breakfast, Gold Miners Buffet again in the hotel, riders meeting (nothing very complicated) and the crowd moved off each in his own good time.

Our first call was at St Andrews Presbyterian Church, on Church Street, where Walker’s grandfather was a pastor from 1920  till 1926. Nice coincidence. Now preserved, it illustrates the problems with building on permafrost. Many other buildings in town are similar.

It’s pavement/ tarred road all the way today and 92km on that is comparable to 40 km on the Dempster at its best. Granted traffic was heavier but not threatening. Just needed to bit a bit more aware. Passed by the Dawson Airport ( all terminals ) and soon saw signs to beware of moose on the road. But unfortunately spotted nothing except a few squirrels. I’m armed now for encounters with bears with an air-horn and a canister of bear spray. And Walker also has bear spray. I bet now that we’ll meet no more.Last night I remarked to myself that I had not visited any thing in Dawson City dealing directly with the search for gold and regretted the fact. At the 11km mark this morning Walker and I pulled in to view an information board dealing with the search. We heard machinery operating over a dyke and in behind trees on the bank of the Klondike River. We parked up the bikes and wandered in to view a large earthmoving operation. Nearest to us was a Hymac dealing with a pipeline. The driver approached us ( presumably to warn us off) but with a kindly look. We enquired if all this was a gold operation. “You a gold miner?” I enquired. “Sure am” replied Mike in an instant ( I neglected if he was a MacGabhann )He patiently explained to us what was going on all around. At present they’re stripping the top 30-35 ft of dirt from the top and dumping it in previous excavations. Then the gold is expected in the 6 to 8 feet above bedrock. This is excavated and fed in to a washer / screener/grader and the remaining prospective precious stuff is taken for further examination. It’s gold nuggets that they find here, not flake gold. He took up two pebbles to indicate size they find - from an orange p to a plum stone.

Dredge#4 which operated on Bonanza Creek nearby  till 1966 could sift through 16,000 cubic yards in 24 hours and recover 800 ounces of gold in the day, that’s 50 lbs per day ! A dredge could scoop up bucket after bucket of earth, was and screen it with the gold dropping to the bottom. I know a young(ish) man with access to that type of machinery that could make a million here!

Mike returned to sort out his pipeline, Walker keeping a watchful eye and I scaled a pile of tailings to get a few photos. So, I met a real deal of the Gold Rush meeting a living breathing gold miner.

Heading for the Dempster ?

 The first 40 km today was backtracking on the last 40  km as we arrived last Saturday. Scenery wise it hadn’t much to offer. At the 40 km mark we threw a nostalgic look up the Dempster Highway and didn’t experience and sudden urge to have a re-visit.

Our route today, the Klondike Highway, generally follows the course upstream of the Klondike. Till 50 km we were near neighbors but then we started to ascend. That ascent continued almost unbroken till lunch stop at 60 km. The road twisted gently and turned so we never knew if we were near the top. It was generally around 4% with the worst at 8%.From the lunch stop there was a magnificent view and an indication of how high we had climbed over the last 12 km.

That view from the top was less clear because of smoke pollution. Later on nearer to the end of the ride I could actually smell the smoke faintly. The Yukon is getting it tough this year with forest fires (2 in this immediate locality). Last year it was British Columbia that suffered.

Parts of the roadside were lined with that purple flower - fireweed which is the territories official flower. The raven ( seen and heard everywhere) is the official bird.

Camp finally arrived at 92 km by Gravel Lake ( thought we were finished with that stuff) . It’s a Bush Camp but some lovely spots between the trees and by the lake. 

Just across the road is Gary’s home, Gary is the unofficial warden of this spot. My next cabin will be like his 8 - sided gem.

We were all in camp and set up when the heavens opened at 2:30 with plenty of ripping thunder about. It lasted for an hour or so but all clear by dinner time at 6 pm. The air is much clearer now; hope there’s no more of it through the night. We have been so lucky with the times that it has rained. Long may it continue.

So today, I passed the 1000 km point and the cumulative metres climbed comparable to Everest. Plenty more to come.

Hope all our good people are safely back in San Jose.

Thank God for the health and thank God for the energy.