Day 3 - Exploring Whitehorse

Today we are off to see more of the Whitehorse area.  Our first stop is the Yukon Wildlife Preserve, where we can view some of the animals that live in this area up close and personal (sort of).

Yukon Wildlife Preserve

   

The preserve is large and just as Mother Nature intended
(except for some fencing to keep the animals in)

First we saw Wood Bison, which are nearly extinct.  They are bigger than the American Bison, and there are about 1000 of them living on the preserve.

Wood Bison -  far far away . . . 

Love my telephoto lens which brought them up close

More info about the Wood Bison

Next stop, Mule Deer . .

Mule Deer - also far away

A closer look

We saw lots of different animals . . .

Thinhorn Sheep - this is the dark variety

And these are the light ones

Muskox - really strange looking

Desperately in need of a new hair stylist

More about the Muskox

Caribou (also known as Reindeer)

Another Caribou 

Caribou lose their antlers each year - and they are HEAVY!

Mountain Goat.  All the animals seem to be molting.

Snowshoe Hare.  In the summer his fur turns brown, in the winter it's white and 27% warmer.

We also saw a Lynx and an Arctic Fox, but they ran by us too fast to get a photo.   And there was supposedly a moose way back in one of the areas, but no way could we see it.

Next on our excursion, we visited the Kwanlin-Dun Cultural Center . . .

Kwanlin-Dun Cultural Center

Kwanlin-Dun is one of the First Nations People who have lived in this area for centuries.  Kwanlin-Dun means . . .

People of the water running through canyon

They revere the Raven as the creator, and their people are divided into two groups - Wolf and Crow

Symbol depicting the two groups of the Kwanlin-Dun People

The First Nations have many legends, and one that we were told goes something like this . . .

Raven created the people, and divided them into two groups - Crow and Wolf - and sat each group on opposite sides of the fire.  There was one extra Crow, and the Wolf group was jealous.  So Raven ordered the extra Crow to marry a Wolf.  From that time on, everyone had to marry a person from the opposite group, and this tradition is still carried out today.  Your group is determined by your mother.  If Mom is a Crow, then you are a Crow and you can only marry a Wolf.  And every First Nation person knows if he/she is a Crow or a Wolf.

The First Nations had no written language, and the legends have been verbally told and retold through  the centuries.  There is now a move to try to get these legends written down before the Elders die out and the stories are lost forever.  I find this stuff fascinating.

After leaving the Cultural Center, we visited the Whitehorse Dam where the longest wooden fish ladder in the world is located.  The city of Whitehorse was named after the White Horse Rapids for their resemblance to the mane of a white horse.  The fish ladder is located near the rapids. 

Whitehorse Rapids Fishway

As you probably know, Salmon will swim hundreds, maybe thousands, of miles to return to the place of their birth to spawn and then to die.  This is such an amazing phenomenon and one that we heard lots about.  It's very important if you are salmon fishing to catch the fish while they are still in the salt water.  Once they enter fresh water, their systems begin to shut down.  Their only purpose at that time is to lay or fertilize their eggs, and their meat is no longer edible for humans (bears on the other hand could care less and gobble them right down.)

Here's some information about the Dam

And here's what it looks like

A closer look

Yukon River

Longest wooden fish ladder in the world

This fish ladder is located along the Yukon River which flows over the dam.

Another view of the fish ladder

More of the fish ladder

Pretty incredible.  Unfortunately, no salmon were running at the time of our visit.  That would have been something really incredible to see!

Our last stop for the day was at the

McBride Museum of Yukon History

Inside were a lot of taxidermy animals, and also a lot of artifacts and implements from the Gold Rush era, which is a really big part of the history of this area.  You may have heard of "The Cremation of Sam McGee", which is a poem written by Robert W. Service, who wrote lots of poems and stories to document the gold rush.  We heard a lot of his poems recited during our trip, but this one is probably the most famous . . .

The Cremation of Sam McGee

Sam McGee's cabin

We also saw a really interesting movie about the Gold Rush.  The conditions were horrible to the point of being almost unimaginable.  It seems impossible that anyone survived the trail to get to the gold fields.  Read about it someday . . . it's totally fascinating.

Back in Whitehorse after our tour, we walked down to an Art Faire that was taking place in town, and spent a good long while watching this man throwing pots . . .

Pretty cool, right?

And just for the benefit of the Sew Blessed Quilters . . . . we happened upon a quilt store in town, and YES, Carol did go shopping  . . .

Northern Lights Fabric - how perfect is that??

Back at our hotel later that evening, we enjoyed a Frantic Follies Show - really fun, slapstick jokes, can-can girls, and a folk singer from the Yukon.  The perfect way to end a very full and fun day.

Frantic Follies

Tomorrow we drive to Dawson City .  . Stay tuned.