THE YUKON - British Columbia: Including the Alaska Highway - page 665

keep pace with the powerful Yukon itself. Yet the town also has a warm, homespun vitality
to it, like huddling around the fire on a cold Northern night.
The name Whitehorse was given to the treacherous rapids encountered by stampeders,
who likened them to the flowing manes of Appaloosas. A few men drowned; many man-
aged to hang onto their lives but lost their boats and grubstakes. Regulations were put in
place that allowed only expert handlers to pilot the rapids. Undoubtedly, this saved count-
less lives and supplies in the more than 7,000 boats that passed through in the first, crazy
rush to the Klondike. Soon after, an eight-kilometer (five-mile) horse-drawn tramway was
built around the rapids to the present site of Whitehorse, where goods were reloaded into
boats to complete the journey to Dawson City. A tent city sprang up at the tramway's lower
end, and Whitehorse was born.
SIGHTS
In addition to providing big-city comforts before folks head into the wilderness, Whitehorse
has enough attractions to keep you busy for at least a full day. Many of these are within
walking distance of downtown and most accommodations. One natural attraction that is
well worth extra time is the Yukon River. The riverfront along downtown has undergone a
dramatic transformation in the last decade, with Shipyards Park, at the north end of down-
town, featuring a wide-open green space, picnic tables, viewing platform, playground, and
a summer market.
MM SS Klondike
Start your visit to Whitehorse with a tour of this national historic site—the largest stern-
wheeler ever to ply the waters of the Yukon, the SS Klondike (867/667-3910, 9:30am-5pm
daily mid-May-mid-Sept., $6.05 per person for the tour), which is dry-docked along 2nd
Avenue at the south end of town. Launched in 1929 and rebuilt after it sank in 1936, the
Klondike made 15 round-trips a season, requiring one and a half days and 40 cords of wood
for the downstream trip to Dawson, and four and a half days and 120 cords back to White-
horse. The Klondike is beautifully and authentically restored, right down to the 1937 Life
magazines and the food stains on the waiters' white coats. Bridges erected along the road to
Dawson in the mid-1950s blocked the steamer's passage, and she has sat in the same spot
since her last run in 1955. The best way to learn about the vessel and her colorful history is
by joining a tour that runs every 30 minutes, proceeding from the boiler, freight, and engine
deck, up to the dining room and first-class cabins, and finally up to the bridge.