written and photographed by Mary L. Peachin
Jun 2002, Vol. 6 No. 8
Panning Rabbit Creek, a remote tributary of the Yukon’s Klondike River, in 1896, gold prospectors George Washington Carmack, Skookum Jim, and Dawson Charlie washed out a single pan worth $4.00. Ten cents was the norm; they renamed the creek Bonanza and staked its banks. That winter they stockpiled huge piles of dirt, which they would sluice when the creek thawed, separating out the gold.
A year later, disheveled and exhausted but successful, the three men arrived in San Francisco. Newspaper headlines screamed “Gold!” It was 1897, and the United States was in a deep economic depression. The thought of striking it rich inspired over 100,000 men, and a few women, to leave for the Yukon; in their hurry, they were called “Stampeders.”
The Klondike Gold Rush had begun.
Dreamers mortgaged their belongings and headed out. Now aspiring prospectors, they rushed to the Yukon, unaware of the harrowing trek they faced: a 40-mile trek over the Coast mountains followed by a 600-mile journey down the treacherous rapids and currents of the Yukon River. The terrain was a danger in itself, made more difficult (but for good reason) by the Canadian government requirement that each prospector travel with one ton of goods—the amount deemed necessary for one year of wilderness survival.
Two routes forced a choice from the seekers. Many chose the shorter, steeper Chilkoot Trail, an icy 45 -degree ascent called the “Golden Stairs.” It took an average of 35 return trips to transfer the required ton of supplies over the trail. More gentle, but longer, was the White Pass Trail route. Both paths led to Bennett Lake, where the prospectors wintered while they built boats for the 600-mile river journey.
“Never will I forget it, there on the mountain face. Antlike men with their burdens, clinging in icy space,” wrote poet Robert Service of the prospectors’ journey.
Many inexperienced packers overburdened their mules and horses. As Jack London elegized, “They died like mosquitoes in the first frost.” Three thousand animals died in what became known at Dead Horse Gulch; the stench was said to reach all the way to Skagway, Alaska.
It became obvious that a safer route to the Klondike was required. A 12-mile toll road built by construction engineer George Brackett failed when prospectors refused to pay the toll. Then, in 1898, Canadian Railway contractor “Big Mike” Heney convinced a group of financiers that he could, with enough dynamite, build a railroad to the summit.
The White Pass & Yukon Route was completed in a little over two years. The narrow-gauge tracks were three feet apart, which required only a 10 feet span of roadbed (instead the usual 15), plus a smaller turn radius. Upon completion, the railroad climbed from sea level in Skagway to 2,865 feet at the summit, with grades as steep as 3.9 percent.
The tale ended badly for most of the prospectors: Less than a third ever reached the gold fields, located near what is now called Dawson City. Most who did make it arrived too late to stake one of the remaining claims.
By 1901 most claims were owned by large corporations, which used the railroad to ship ore to Skagway. When ore prices plummeted in 1982, the YP&YR closed for a short time. It reopened in 1998, when Skagway became a stop on the Inside Passage route for Alaskan cruise lines. Suddenly more than 700,000 visitors were arriving each summer; nearly half of them rode the YP&YR. The train continues to wind its way over narrow bridges and through dynamited tunnels, its passengers reliving the history of the Klondike Gold Rush and enjoying tumultuous waterfalls, colorful trackside wildflowers, and glorious snowcapped mountain peaks.
White Pass & Yukon Route
Most of the narrated trips run 28 miles (each way) between Skagway and Fraser. Roundtrip fare is $82.00, or $66.50 for one way (transportation is provided by tour operators). Reservations can be made a year in advance. 1-800-343-7373 info@whitepass.net www.whitepassrailroad.com