The rain had stopped earlier the previous day, but it was late into the afternoon before we could view some of the snow capped mountains round Skagway. We could see patches of blue sky, but a lot of cloud still hung about the valley. When I got up, I took a peek through the curtains and the weather was pretty much as we'd left it the previous evening. Warm enough, no rain, but still quite cloudy. So, first things first, get scrubbed & washed then see what was for breakfast. Together with the usual cold breakfast 'fare', our host had made fresh chocolate chip scones - wonderful. We sat and enjoyed our breakfast and the much needed first cup of coffee. We got chatting with another couple staying here, who had come all the way from - Edmonton! It turns out that they have been in Edmonton about as long as we have. I should add that the White House is a lovely old house, originally built in 1902 and restored by the current owners following a nasty fire in the early 1970's. We have a delightful ground floor room which is huge. Although very close to all amenities in town, it is none the less in a very quiet location - take a look at their web link: www.atthewhitehouse.com. Pretty perfect really.
After breakfast, we headed into town and down to the White Pass historical railway. This amazing piece of late 19th century engineering climbs out of Skagway nearly 3000', in about 22 miles, and was initially used during the Klondike Gold Rush days. It is a fascinating piece of living history, and Wendy had booked seats for us on the train leaving the down town depot at 8:15am. If you'd like to read more about this amazing feat of engineering, may I suggest you take a look at this link: www.wpyr.com The return trip takes about two & half hours and strangely enough, we came to a halt at the top of the pass inside Canada! No one is allowed to get off of the train, so there were no border formalities, but we passed the actual border marker which was clearly marked by the two National flags and a large stone. With the engines - three of them - now repositioned at the front of the train, we proceeded back down the mountain. After a fairly swift decent, we were once again back in the centre of town, and the old train depot. It had been a remarkable journey with many many photo opportunities - I'm so glad we did this one!
Back in town we did a little more shopping - window & other! Amongst the standard tourist 'crap' in town, there is still a lot of beautiful local art work to be seen. Over the last few years, it appears that the cruise ship corporations have 'muscled' in on the Skagway high street. Buying up several local business locations, and planting much needed 'Diamond' shops!!!! These 'planted' shops look totally out of place in the old Skagway and most have brought in their own staff. The 'prey' for these shops, are of course the thousands of passengers that pour into town from the cruise ships. However, you can still find fine quality carvings and local artwork without too much difficulty. Some of the shops actually carried signs stating that they were 'locals', so we pretty much restricted our shopping to these shops. Clutching yet more bags, we headed back to the 'White House' for a rest before dinner this evening. We also took the opportunity to fire up the bikes and take them to get refuelled.
It was nice to rest up in our lovely room, then get ourselves ready for dinner. Once again we'd decided on the Skagway Brewery - good food, good beer, why bother trying to find the right combination. We did a little repacking before getting ready to go out - save a little time in the morning. While we were getting some refreshment, we got talking to the Edmonton couple we had met at breakfast. Just before we headed out for dinner, we bumped into Norman & Zahara again and said we were having dinner at the Skagway Brewery. We'd been at our table only a short while before they arrived , also looking for dinner. Long short, we had a great evening in their company - good food, good beer, good company. The simple pleasures in life.
That is about it for Skagway. To be honest, I'm sad to be leaving this lovely town quite so soon. It has been a revelation staying here. So warm & friendly, like slipping on an old sweater. I wasn't quite sure what I had expected of this town, but it has turned out to be so so much more than what ever that was. This is one place I must come back to, and spend a little more time. It is a beautiful little town with a huge heart, and makes everyone welcome. Thank you Skagway, we'll be back. Now, it's time for bed, then in the morning repack, load the bikes & head off to Whitehorse. I wonder what awaits us there.
Bye for now folk, hope you are enjoying our adventure as much as we are.
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