Sunshine on the Silver Trail

We reached our fourteenth day of consecutive rain.  Our first evening on the Silver Trail, however, the sun finally broke through the heavy clouds.  We relished the blue skies and thought of our dear friends in Texas who have prayed for fourteen consecutive days of rain.  Oh, how we (and everyone that we speak with up here) would like to send this rain and cold to you all!

Concerned that we may be a bit early for full fall color on the Dempster, we decided to take a detour up the Silver Trail.  The road begins at Stewart’s Crossing, and runs from Mayo up to the town of Keno.  Over half of the 64-mile road is unpaved.

We camped at the Five Mile Lake Yukon government campground, away from the lake to keep the Golden dry.  With so much rain, Rox’s coat takes nearly the entire day to completely dry.

Early the next morning, we were up early to hunt for moose.  On a 12-mile four-wheel trail up to Minto Lake, we saw tracks, but no moose.  The only creature we could find was a ruffled grouse, ruffling.  I stalked him with the camera for about 50 feet before he finally ducked into the brush.

We decided to take the loop to Keno, not recognizing that the seldom-used back half was for 4x4s only.  The road had several water crossings, but otherwise was in fairly good shape.

Keno is an old mining town with lots of history, dating from 1906 when silver lead veins were discovered.  Today, Keno is a mere shadow of its former self.  However, with the price of gold rising, several mines have recently been reopened.  We checked out their town museum before chatting with the lady at the Keno Visitor’s Center.

We have not seen a hoofed animal in nearly a month… no moose, elk, caribou, or even deer.  It has been a huge disappointment after last year’s abundant sightings.  We learned from her that hunting season in Canada begins the first of August.  With hunting being huge in these parts, obviously, all the hoofed animals have hunkered down somewhere, trying to stay as far from humans as possible.  In order to see them, we now know that we must head towards wildlife preserves and national parks.

We drove up to Keno Hill to the signpost, meeting a miner and his family out for a drive.  He told us that a friend of his witnessed a herd of caribou migrating on the Dempster.  He said that some times the herd will move in two sections, with the weak and old leading the migration several weeks prior to the main herd.  Our hopes are high that we will catch the second migration.

Keno Hill reaches an elevation of 6,065 feet, offering panoramic views.  We hiked up to the ridge, then back down to the signpost.  A group of lady geologists arrived shortly after we did.  One was raised in Houston, so we immediately struck up a conversation.

That evening, our camp was invaded by moochers, looking for handouts.  These brazen jays swooped down, inching surprisingly close, much to the chagrin of Roxanne.

David discussing the detriments of poor diet habits with one of our  camp hosts.

Tomorrow we break camp and head for Dawson City to stage for our trip up the Dempster.  With rainbows leading the way once again this year, we know for certain that life is good!  :)

Yukon on Dwellable