On to the Yukon

YUKON
How can I make a decision on the Yukon. I have to mention at least Watson Lake, White Horse, and Dawson City. All three are such amazing places.
Watson Lake caught us by surprise. We didn’t realize until we pulled into there that is was famous for the Signpost Forest. It’s a l-o-n-g way to drive, but it’s an amazing tourist sight you don’t want to miss. I had to look up some info, of course, and it was started in 1942 by a guy who was homesick for Illinois while building the Alaska highway. So he made a directional post, and others liked the idea so did too….and now a half century later, there’s some 100,000 signs of every type and style from around the world. Since we hadn’t brought a sign along, I begged Mom for one of the old tin pie pans she brought along for cooking. Using Dad’s hammer and a nail, my sister & I pounded out “The Kauffmans were here”. Dad laughed at the effort it took us to make that, but we got it up and had the privilege the next morning to see the sunlight shining through our punched out holes to prove we’d been there. So if any of you readers get up thataway, please look for a pie tin among those 100,000 signs and let me know if ours is still hanging properly! :0)
Whitehorse can’t be missed if you are a history buff. Even Dad, who was NOT into going to touristy places enjoyed taking a tour through the SS Klondike – a sternwheeler used to run freight between Whitehorse & Dawson City. And of course, Dawson City, which was at the heart of the Yukon Gold Rush. I wasn’t there to be impressed by the gold, although I found that time period fascinating, but I was very anxious to go to the homes of Jack London and of Robert Service. London was interesting, but I loved Robert Service’s poems about the Yukon. He had such a quirky sense of humor. If you’ve never read “The Cremation of Sam McGee” and have a sense of humor – find a copy.
Both these men had a way of writing to give us a mental image of what that famous (or infamous) and short-termed gold rush was like. It was great to have a chance to be there in person; but it certainly brought 1 Peter 1:18 to mind. “…ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold…” So many people did crazy things, and struggled and died – all for gold, which did them absolutely no good once they were dead. I’m so thankful that I have the money I need to survive, but that I don’t have to be blinded by the obsession of it.
I thoroughly enjoyed our time in the Yukon – would love to spend an entire summer there sometime – but not sure I’d care for the extreme dark, cold winter. What would pull you to go to the Yukon if you had the chance?