'After The Gold Rush'. Neil Young
Critter count:
1 utterly ravishing blonde grizzly bear.
100's of gophers. It was a miracle we didn't squash any of the little chaps.
Dawson City. What a name to conjure with, for those interested in the 'gold rush' period, like me. I am so thrilled to be here and, gratifyingly, it does not disappoint. I love it.
At its peak in 1898, Dawson city was a home to around 40,000 people all after one thing - gold. To get this far they had already endured more hardship than a man should ever have to on the journey. Most of the 'stampeders' though arrived too late as most claims had already been staked. Just a very few years later dredging came in and the days of solitary panning were all but over.
Dawson city thrived, for a while, and huge fortunes were made by the few. It was a surprisingly orderly place. There were no thefts or murders which is quite a surprise. The Mounties ruled with an iron grip. Many businesses were created to serve the miners - there were no less than 3 newspapers, for instance. Many 'stampeders' never panned for gold at all but just found their niche in other ways. One enterprising, optimistic soul even started the 'Dawson Mining Company Railway'. Sadly, it only ran for seven years but some of the hardware is in excellent condition; the climate is semi- arid and so decay is slow.
There was also the profitable business of 'fallen doves' (wonderful euphemism), with many 'grades' of girls for hire.
Although the vast majority of the population were single men, woman and children also made the arduous trek across the Chilcot or White Pass and managed to make it up to Dawson City. I cannot imagine what life must have been like then. But, many people stayed and lived happy lives.
By 1899 the population had crashed to 8,000 and, at the end of WWII the population was down to around 800. It has had a minor resurgence since then with around 1,200 residents making a living, mostly, through tourism. The season is short though. It is a difficult place to get to with only the Klondike Highway from Whitehorse open year round and that is frequently closed because of severe weather.
Dawson City: how much history and mythology is in a name? Many of the old properties have been restored now but it still feels very much a frontier town, as indeed it is. When we were in Prince George I thought it felt remote. Well, since then we have travelled a further 1,500 miles of mostly wilderness, not counting Whitehorse and that is not exactly a metropolis, far from it. I didn't know the meaning of the word back then.
There is an interesting museum here with lots of tableaux depicting gold rush life. I found them rather spooky as the figures faces have been cast from present day occupants of the town and, even more bizarrely, the hands are cast from different people.
The pioneer graveyard had an excellent booklet which gave much information about some of its occupants. What a wonderful idea. You don't just get a name and 'dearly loved' but a real insight into their lives.
Just standing in the spots where old photographs exist of the few short years when Dawson city felt like the capital of the world and the streets ran with gold was such a thrill, a real highlight of our trip.
1 utterly ravishing blonde grizzly bear.
100's of gophers. It was a miracle we didn't squash any of the little chaps.
Dawson City. What a name to conjure with, for those interested in the 'gold rush' period, like me. I am so thrilled to be here and, gratifyingly, it does not disappoint. I love it.
At its peak in 1898, Dawson city was a home to around 40,000 people all after one thing - gold. To get this far they had already endured more hardship than a man should ever have to on the journey. Most of the 'stampeders' though arrived too late as most claims had already been staked. Just a very few years later dredging came in and the days of solitary panning were all but over.
Dawson city thrived, for a while, and huge fortunes were made by the few. It was a surprisingly orderly place. There were no thefts or murders which is quite a surprise. The Mounties ruled with an iron grip. Many businesses were created to serve the miners - there were no less than 3 newspapers, for instance. Many 'stampeders' never panned for gold at all but just found their niche in other ways. One enterprising, optimistic soul even started the 'Dawson Mining Company Railway'. Sadly, it only ran for seven years but some of the hardware is in excellent condition; the climate is semi- arid and so decay is slow.
There was also the profitable business of 'fallen doves' (wonderful euphemism), with many 'grades' of girls for hire.
Although the vast majority of the population were single men, woman and children also made the arduous trek across the Chilcot or White Pass and managed to make it up to Dawson City. I cannot imagine what life must have been like then. But, many people stayed and lived happy lives.
By 1899 the population had crashed to 8,000 and, at the end of WWII the population was down to around 800. It has had a minor resurgence since then with around 1,200 residents making a living, mostly, through tourism. The season is short though. It is a difficult place to get to with only the Klondike Highway from Whitehorse open year round and that is frequently closed because of severe weather.
Dawson City: how much history and mythology is in a name? Many of the old properties have been restored now but it still feels very much a frontier town, as indeed it is. When we were in Prince George I thought it felt remote. Well, since then we have travelled a further 1,500 miles of mostly wilderness, not counting Whitehorse and that is not exactly a metropolis, far from it. I didn't know the meaning of the word back then.
There is an interesting museum here with lots of tableaux depicting gold rush life. I found them rather spooky as the figures faces have been cast from present day occupants of the town and, even more bizarrely, the hands are cast from different people.
The pioneer graveyard had an excellent booklet which gave much information about some of its occupants. What a wonderful idea. You don't just get a name and 'dearly loved' but a real insight into their lives.
Just standing in the spots where old photographs exist of the few short years when Dawson city felt like the capital of the world and the streets ran with gold was such a thrill, a real highlight of our trip.
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