Chilkoot Trail

Chilkoot Trail – 53 km multi day hike

Day 2 of the Chilkoot Trail is a cool day with good visibility and amazing views:
Mike: “If I lived in Whitehorse, I would hike this trail every year”.

Day 3 of the Chilkoot Trail is rainy and foggy.  We had to climb up “the golden stairs” in the thick fog that made the rocks we were climbing wet and slippery and then had to “hike” on snow in the downpouring rain.

Kim: “This is ridiculous. I can’t believe people hike this trail”.

Don’t worry though. Day 3 on the Chilkoot Trail was more like type 2 fun (not necessarily fun while you are doing it but fun to talk about afterward). The Chilkoot trail has definitely been one of the highlights of our trip so far.

Let me start at the beginning though. For those unfamiliar with the Chilkoot trail (as I was before hiking it), it is a historic trail that starts in Skagway, Alaska (or technically Dyea, Alaska) and ends in Bennett Lake, BC. It is managed by the National Park Service on the US side and Parks Canada on the Canadian side. The “summit” is the border crossing (and where toilet paper is no longer available in the outhouses – more on this later).

The trail is made famous as it roughly follows the route the “Stampeders” took back in 1897-98 in their quest for gold in the Yukon (or more specifically Dawson City). Who are these Stampeders? They were people from all of over North America who heard about gold, took a train west from wherever they were from, took a boat from Seattle (or Vancouver) to Skagway, had to buy a ton of goods (or the Canadian Police would not let them cross the border), haul it by horse or dog sled or tram or by their own strong back along the trail in the middle of winter, climb the golden stair case multiple times, build a boat (I don’t think any of them were boat builders) that could navigate the Yukon River to eventually bring them to Dawson City and gold. Unfortunately by the time they got there (if they survived the harsh conditions, avalanches and rapids that resembled “white horses”), there were no more land claims to be had so ultimately – no gold for them. I think one of the hikers from this year put it best in the guest book when she said “The Stampeders would be pissed to know that 3000 people/year now hike this trail for fun”).

The hike is truly historic though. There is still remnants of the trams, the “stuff” people left on the trail because it was too heavy to carry, the interpretive signage throughout as well as a historic talk at one of the campsites by a ranger. The scenery is also amazing – you start in coastal rainforest, climb up into the alpine and tundra and then end in the boreal forest. And the golden stairs? I guess it is the part of the trail you will always remember but it really is sketchy doing it in the rain. You are literally climbing up rocks using hands and feet. It is not rock climbing per se (that would have been type 3 fun) but it is also not a steep “hike” anymore. When the Stampeders did it, it was winter so they carved stairs into the ice (hence the name “golden staircase”).

What also made this trail unique to Mike and I was the social aspect. Our multi day backpacking hikes have previously been on trails that don’t get hiked nearly as much as the Chilkoot (ie Mantario Trail (on the border of Manitoba and Ontario), Cape Chignecto (in Nova Scotia) and Pukwasqua National Park (near Marathon Ontario). We would maybe see one other group out hiking these trails the entire time we were hiking (which was normally 3-5 days). On the Chilkoot though, there are approximiately 35-50 getting on the trail daily. And because you tended to stay at the same campsites sharing picnic tables or were hiking with them, you got to know those other hikers. After doing the summit in the pouring rain and sharing a warming hut that is the size of our van, you really got to know people quite well! And everyone was lovely. Each with their own story of where they were from, why they were hiking the trail and where they were going next. So thank you to our fellow hikers from North Bay, Barrie, Canmore, Logan Lake, Holland as well as the boy scout group from Fairbanks. What a great experience to have shared with all of you.

And finally the toilet paper issue. Don’t get me wrong, both the National Park Service and Parks Canada does great work keeping this trail clear of fallen trees and well marked. There are lovely campsites with pit toilets, picnic tables, tent platforms, covered shelters and warming huts along the way. It is just interesting hiking a trail that has half the trail and campsites on the US side and half on the Canadian side. There are a few differences in what to do with grey water but the other difference is the  National Park Service (US) supplies toilet paper in the outhouses and Parks Canada does not. Which is not a big deal unless you have just arrived at the summit in the pouring rain and you need to pee. When you get in the outhouse and sit down –

Kim: “shoot – I am in Canada now”.