{"id":4766,"date":"2016-09-07T00:55:13","date_gmt":"2016-09-07T00:55:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/?p=4766"},"modified":"2017-01-02T00:26:50","modified_gmt":"2017-01-02T00:26:50","slug":"on-the-chilkoot-trail-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/?p=4766","title":{"rendered":"On the Chilkoot &^%$# Trail! – Part 1"},"content":{"rendered":"

 <\/p>\n

As noted in my last post, I just got back – last August 29 – from a trip that began on\u00a0July 26.<\/p>\n

That’s when my brother and I started the drive from Utah to\u00a0Whitehorse, Yukon\u00a0Territory<\/a>.\u00a0 Four days later\u00a0<\/em>\u2013 on Friday, July 29 \u2013 we met up with my nephew, fresh out of the Army.<\/p>\n

In due course, my brother and I – alone and aged 70 and just-turned-65 \u2013 paddled our canoes “‘up’ the Yukon River<\/a>.” \u00a0(440 miles in 12 days.)<\/em><\/p>\n

But first, we two brothers – joined by our nephew-son – hiked the\u00a0Chilkoot Trail<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em>(See\u00a0Naked lady on the Yukon<\/a><\/em>.) \u00a0<\/em>And to hike the Trail you have to start in\u00a0Skagway, Alaska<\/a>. \u00a0(Above left, the day we arrived.) \u00a0<\/em>I also noted that people call the Chilkoot Trail<\/a>\u00a0the\u00a0\u201cmeanest\u00a033 miles in history<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"http:\/\/www.dralionkennels.com\/images\/newsflash.jpg\"Also in\u00a0Naked lady on the Yukon<\/a>, I posted this\u00a0news flash<\/a>:*<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a reason<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0[why] they call it the “meanest 33 miles in history.” \u00a0I\u2019ll be detailing that little jaunt in a later post. \u00a0(To be titled, “On the Chilkoot &$%# Trail!”) \u00a0<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And so, here it is –\u00a0drum roll please<\/a>\u00a0–\u00a0my blog-post on the\u00a0Chilkoot &$%# Trail!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

First of all, note the picture at the top of the page. \u00a0It includes an easy-to-miss orange pole. \u00a0(You see them marking the “trail.” \u00a0The one in the photo above is to the hiker’s right – the viewer’s left – and “up the trail” a bit.)<\/em> \u00a0Note also: \u00a0There doesn’t seem to be<\/em><\/strong> a “trail” anywhere around, either in the top photo or the ones below. \u00a0Just one big pile of\u00a0&$%#\u00a0rocks <\/strong><\/em>after another.<\/p>\n

So now you’re getting a feel for “hiking the Chilkoot.”<\/p>\n

More background: \u00a0Before doing the hike I learned that the trail actually\u00a0started in\u00a0Dyea, Alaska<\/a>. (It ends in Bennett, British Columbia<\/a>.)<\/em>\u00a0 I also learned that\u00a0Dyea<\/a>\u00a0is actually pronounced “DIe-eeee,” perhaps\u00a0prophetically<\/a>. \u00a0(As in, “that’s what you feel like doing once you get on the<\/em>\u00a0&$%# Trail!”)<\/em><\/p>\n

Further, the Chilkoot was a major access route – from “DIe-eeee” to the\u00a0Yukon<\/a> goldfields – in the\u00a0Klondike Gold Rush<\/a>\u00a0of\u00a01896\u201399. \u00a0That gold rush “transformed the Chilkoot Trail into a mainstream transportation route to Canada’s interior.”<\/p>\n

And<\/em> <\/strong>I learned that the only other\u00a0route to the gold fields was through\u00a0White Pass<\/a>. \u00a0(Up to 1899, when a railroad was built from Skagway to the Yukon.)<\/em> \u00a0 As to which route was better, a pioneer – Mont Hawthorne<\/a>\u00a0– said there really was no choice: \u00a0\u201cOne\u2019s hell. \u00a0The other\u2019s damnation<\/em><\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"13A side note: \u00a0White Pass was also called “Dead Horse Trail<\/a>,” apparently renamed by\u00a0Jack London<\/a>: \u00a0“Nearly 3,000 pack animals died. \u00a0Drivers rushing over the pass had little concern for beasts. \u00a0Exhausted horses starved, were hurt on rough ground, became mired in mud and fell over cliffs.”<\/p>\n

Which also<\/em><\/strong> gives you\u00a0a feel for “hiking the Chilkoot.\u201d<\/p>\n

And finally – after the fact and back at the\u00a0Westmark Hotel, <\/a>Whitehorse<\/a>\u00a0– I saw a plaque about the Trail. \u00a0It noted that every\u00a0Klondike<\/a>\u00a0“stampeder” had to haul a year’s supply of food –\u00a0<\/span>2,000 pounds – up and over the Chilkoot Pass. \u00a0“This often took 35 to 40 trips up and back down.” Further, the last 1,000 feet of the climb “took an average of 6 hours<\/em> <\/strong>with a loaded pack.”<\/p>\n

Which made me feel better about my performance – detailed below – but only\u00a0after the fact<\/a><\/em><\/strong>. (On Tuesday – August 2, the day we climbed over the pass itself –\u00a0we averaged a little over half a mile an hour. \u00a0Which turned out to be not too bad, historically speaking.)<\/em><\/p>\n

By then I’d already developed a host of blisters, one of which – a blister-on-a-blister on my right heel – got infected. \u00a0It was still throbbing – from time to time – and didn’t fully heal until well after two weeks of canoeing and then six days driving back home from\u00a0Dawson City<\/a>. \u00a0(I’m sure the 12 days of feet being wet and cold 11 or 12 hours a day canoeing on the Yukon didn’t help.)<\/em><\/p>\n

But we digress…\u00a0<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

I packed a notebook for the hike – which lasted four days – and duly made an entry at 8:32 p.m., August 1. \u00a0(Day 1 of the hike.)<\/em> \u00a0But then I didn’t make any more entries until August 4, when we finally got to the railroad station at Bennett. \u00a0There I noted: \u00a0“I wrote no more until we reached Bennett, on the 4th day. Too [&$%#] tired and late arriving on the 2d day. \u00a0And the 3d.”<\/p>\n

There’s more on those second and third days below.<\/p>\n

But on the first day we made\u00a0Sheep Camp<\/a>: “13 miles or so – nobody seems sure of the miles – by 7:30 p.m.” \u00a0That included crossing the swaying footbridge,\u00a0\u00e0 la<\/a>\u00a0Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom<\/a>. \u00a0(There’s a picture from the movie in the notes below.) \u00a0<\/em>There’s more on that in\u00a0Part 2<\/a>, but unfortunately, I’m now approaching the limit of the ideal length for a blog-post. \u00a0(No more than 1,200 words.*) \u00a0<\/em>So, I’ll wrap up “Part 1” with a story relating to the photo below.<\/p>\n

I took the photo on Day 4, when we finally reached the railroad station at\u00a0Bennett<\/a>. \u00a0But it relates back to an incident that occurred on\u00a0the second \u2013 the worst \u2013 day of the \u201cTrail.\u201d<\/p>\n

We were approaching the summit of the Chilkoot Pass. \u00a0(Slowly in general and especially <\/strong>slowly for me.)<\/em> \u00a0What with my lack of depth perception, going over “one big pile of *&$% rocks after another” was like negotiating a\u00a0minefield<\/a>. \u00a0I wore heavy hiking boots, but they felt<\/em> like ballet slippers. \u00a0Every step was sheer torture, and brought new pain to each aching foot.<\/p>\n

I had just taken one of many missteps – especially bad that day – and let loose a string of pungent epithets. Then I looked behind me and there – climbing \u201cpersonfully<\/a>\u201d behind me – was this sweet young thing. \u00a0Sheepishly I apologized, noting that I had \u201cno depth perception.\u201d<\/p>\n

She went ahead and passed me. \u00a0(And probably rolled her eyes in the process…)<\/em><\/p>\n

\n

A short while later I had another misstep \u2013 again, the \u201cTrail\u201d is sheer torture for someone with only one good eye \u2013 and let loose another<\/em> string of pungent epithets. \u00a0I looked behind me again, and there was a young couple, including another \u201csweet, innocent young thing.\u201d<\/p>\n

So I said to myself, \u201cHey, I may be on to something here!\u201d<\/p>\n

Unfortunately I tried it a few times later on the trail, but my\u00a0magic formula<\/a>\u00a0didn\u2019t work. \u00a0(On the other hand there I\u00a0did<\/strong>\u00a0see that\u00a0\u201cNaked lady on the Yukon<\/a>,” 10 days later, on August 12…)\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

The point being that on the forth day of the ordeal, most of the people who\u2019d been hiking the Trail met up on again at the railroad station in Bennett. \u00a0There was only one train, at 3:15, so all us hikers had a chance to sit on something besides rocks, and pitch our tents to dry out. \u00a0(It had rained the night before.) \u00a0<\/em>Including the young lady I’d insulted on Day 2…<\/p>\n

But before we got to the\u00a0end of the trail<\/a>, I had to experience the\u00a0phantom pack<\/a>\u00a0phenomenon – weaving and rolling like a\u00a0drunken sailor – and<\/em> <\/strong>slip and slide down a glacier or two. \u00a0Then I got to the point where\u00a0“if I could have cried I would.” \u00a0(Hey, I’m\u00a0secure in my masculinity<\/a>.) \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

And finally, we got to take part in a little parade. \u00a0(See\u00a0On the Chilkoot &^%$# Trail! \u2013 Part 2<\/a>.)<\/em><\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n

One of many happy hikers who finished the Chilkoot Trail at\u00a0Bennett, B.C<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

* \u00a0 * \u00a0 * \u00a0 *<\/p>\n

Unless otherwise noted, the images in this post – including the photos at the bottom and top of the page – are ones I took during the aforementioned “hike.” \u00a0(More like sheer torture…) \u00a0Also, an asterisk (“*”) in the main text indicates that a word or two of explanation will be made in these notes.<\/em><\/p>\n

For example, the \u201cnews flash\u201d image is courtesy of\u00a0www.dralionkennels.com\/newsflash<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Re: \u00a0\u201cOne\u2019s hell. \u00a0The other\u2019s damnation.\u201d \u00a0The quote is from\u00a0The horror of the White Pass Trail | Yukon News<\/a>. \u00a0Also, “Dead Horse Trail” was also known as Dead Horse Gulch<\/a><\/em>. \u00a0The photo accompanying the paragraph is courtesy of the<\/em>\u00a0Yukon News<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Re: \u00a0Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom<\/a>. \u00a0See also\u00a0happyotter666.blogspot.com<\/a>, which included the image at left, of a bridge like the one we crossed on the Chilkoot’s second day of hiking.<\/em><\/p>\n

Re: \u00a0Ideal length of a blog-post. \u00a0See\u00a0How Long Should My Blog Posts\u00a0Be<\/a>? \u00a0(Suggested length, 800-1,200 words.) \u00a0But see also\u00a0The Ideal Length for All Online Content – Buffer Blog<\/a>, indicating a\u00a0<\/em>preferred post-length of 1,600 words<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

Re: \u00a0“The\u00a0end of the trail<\/a>.” \u00a0The link-quotation notes that the\u00a0\u201ctrail is the thing, not the end of the trail. Travel too fast and you miss all you are traveling for<\/a>.” \u00a0I could have used that quote both on the Chilkoot Trail and again on the Yukon River, when I was always “slow ship in the convoy.” \u00a0See e.g.\u00a0The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia: Convoys<\/a><\/em>: \u00a0“The convoy can only advance at the speed of the slowest merchant ship in the convoy, which negates the speed advantage of the faster ships.”<\/em><\/p>\n

I could have used that little quote too, if only to ease my own own mind…<\/em><\/p>\n

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  As noted in my last post, I just got back – last August 29 – from a trip that began on\u00a0July 26. That’s when my brother and I started the drive from Utah to\u00a0Whitehorse, Yukon\u00a0Territory.\u00a0 Four days later\u00a0\u2013 on Friday, July 29 \u2013 we met up with my nephew, fresh out of the Army. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5,9],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4766"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4766"}],"version-history":[{"count":123,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4766\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5774,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4766\/revisions\/5774"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4766"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4766"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/georgiawasp.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4766"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}