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who was immortalized in Robert Service’s
poem, The Cremation of Sam McGee
(www.macbridemuseum.com ).
Visitors can indulge in a little time
travel at the Yukon Beringia Interpretive
Centre’s displays and dioramas of the
prehistoric subcontinent of Beringia—the
dry, unglaciated land bridge that once
linked Alaska and Siberia. Beringia was
home to animals like the woolly mammoth
and steppe bison (www.beringia.com ).
In the summer months, the carefully
refurbished S.S. Klondike National Historic
Site is open in dry dock for public tours
(guided and self-guided). The craft was the
largest sternwheeler to travel the upper
Yukon River in an era in which steam-
SS KLONDIKE NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE • PARKS CANADA/FRITZ MUELLER powered riverboats shuttled cargo and
passengers between Whitehorse and Dawson
multimedia exhibits, workshops and guided 1800s, when an estimated 100,000 City (www.parkscanada.gc.ca/ssklondike ).
tours explain the history, challenges and prospectors crossed through town before The world’s biggest weather vane—a
arts of the First Nations People in original beginning their trek north to Dawson City, restored DC-3 aircraft—marks the entrance
and authentic ways, educating guests while braving the wilderness of an unknown land to the Yukon Transportation Museum. The
extending a warm welcome (www.kdcc.ca ). in their quest for riches. They were a quirky, exhibits relate tales of bush pilots, Klondike
The United Nations has declared 2019 strong bunch who left their stamp on stampeders, dogsledders and their spirited
The Year of Indigenous Languages and, in late Whitehorse’s history, architecture and sourdough perseverance and ingenuity
June and early July, the centre is the site for frontier mentality. (www.goytm.ca ).
the annual Adäka Cultural Festival, featuring That natural and cultural mark is found On the edge of the historic copper
a mixture of traditional and contemporary at the MacBride Museum of Yukon History, mining region, The MacBride Copperbelt
art, music, dance and storytelling to celebrate a treasure trove of the Yukon’s largest Mining Museum shines a spotlight on the
the Yukon’s diverse and distinctive First collection of artefacts. Exhibits highlight northern mining and rail history of the
Nations (www.adakafestival.ca ). the traditions of the First Nations culture, Yukon (www.macbridemuseum.com ).
the history and role of the Royal Canadian In the heart of downtown, the Old Log
EXPERIENCE AN Mounted Police, the territory’s mining Church Museum is one of the oldest
HISTORIC JOURNEY history and the importance of the momen- buildings in Whitehorse. Inside, exhibits
Nothing shaped the history of Whitehorse tous Klondike Gold Rush. On-site is the tell the stories of early missionaries,
like the Klondike Gold Rush of the late original cabin of prospector Sam McGee whalers, explorers and Yukon First Nations
(www.oldlogchurchmuseum.ca ).
YUKON BERINGIA INTERPRETIVE CENTRE • TOURISM YT
KLUANE NATIONAL PARK
AND RESERVE
Canada’s highest mountain—Mount Logan—
is found in the dramatic mountain and ice
ranges of Kluane National Park and Reserve,
a UNESCO World Heritage site just a two-
hour drive from Whitehorse. Kluane’s lakes
and rivers are ideal for avid paddlers;
mountain bikers and hikers can fi nd their
perfect challenge from a network of trails;
wildlife watching, camping, horseback
riding and mountaineering round out the
choices for the active adventurer. Summer
or winter, sightseeing fl ights cross over the
world’s largest non-polar icefi elds—the vista
of the glaciers and mountains is breathtaking
(www.parkscanada.gc.ca/kluane).
For more information, contact
www.travelyukon.com.
