Tuesday - Skagway
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TODAY'S FORECAST |
ARRIVAL 6.30 PM |
TONIGHT'S DRESS CODE |
WELCOME TO SKAGWAY, ALASKA
 Photo credit: Mike Colvin (This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.) |
It seems like only yesterday that "Soapy" Smith (notorious outlaw of the Klondike Stampede) and good-guy Frank Reid shot it out down at the dock. When you stroll through the 7-block historic district of Skagway, the town's colourful past comes to life.
You can still experience the Gold Rush Fever as you tour historic Skagway. With wooden boardwalks and false-fronted shops, Skagway is a living museum, packed with local lore.
It all began in August 1896, when George Washington Carmack and his two Indian companions, Skookum Jim and Tagish Charlie, discovered gold in a tributary of the Klondike River in Canada's Yukon Territory. The resulting rush saw up to 30,000 goldseekers pass through Skagway and nearby Dyea in the first year.
But it wasn't until the completion of the White Pass and Yukon Railway, in mid 1898, that Skagway claimed its place as the Gateway to the Klondike.
The hardest part about getting rich in the Klondike was getting there! The Royal Northwest Mounted Police (forerunners to the RCMP) decreed that each man tackling the Chilkoot Trail had to haul enough food to last a year. This weighed about 2,000 pounds and most had to carry it on their backs, 200 pounds at a time. Perhaps you remember the vivid photo of an endless line of men climbing up and over the mountain with their packs.
 Miners and prospectors climb the Chilkoot Trail during the Klondike Gold Rush. (September 1898) Image from Library and Archives Canada |
Coastal mountains rise all around Skagway, acting as a barrier to the goldfields in the Yukon. Yet this was the fastest way north to those riches. In 1898, wave after wave of fortune seekers arrived in Skagway, until its inhabitants grew to over 10,000. The town itself gained a reputation as a lawless frontier settlement run by gamblers and profiteers.
Indeed, Skagway was the busiest town in Alaska, largely populated by gold speculators and prostitutes, with stores, banks, restaurants, hotels, dance halls and saloons. After months panning gold on a remote creek, this would have seemed like booming civilisation. But to a newcomer freshly arrived from San Francisco or Seattle, this was a wilderness at the end of the world - controlled by one of the most notorious - and colourful - badmen in American history, Jefferson Randolph "Soapy" Smith. His remains are buried in the Gold Rush Cemetery (along with Frank Reid, the man who killed him in a legendary shoot-out).
During the first year of the
goldrush, an estimated 20,000 to 30,000
speculators crossed two perilous trails - the White Pass and the
Chilkoot - from the Skagway area, into Canada. Finally, Michael J.
Heney decided to build a railway over the White Pass into the Canadian
Klondike. The railroad was an engineering marvel of its time, with more
than 100 miles of track laid in 17 months. But when the boom ended,
Skagway died as quickly as it had grown. The population of the town
dwindled to about 800 - which is still very close to the permanent
number of inhabitants today.
IN AND AROUND SKAGWAY
You may be "accosted" by an
attractive lady wearing a lot of makeup
at the Red
Onion Saloon. It's
all good fun! No visit to Skagway is complete without a stop at the Red
Onion. Downstairs you'll find dance hall girls and a 19-foot goldrush
era mahogany bar. Upstairs...you may discover that, like many Gold Rush
bars, the Red Onion was a front for a popular bordello.
There are many historical buildings, museums and presentation centres
in Skagway - the townsite is small, and the buildings authetnically
restored. They can easily be visited in the time we are in
port.
A journey up the White Pass on the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad is well worth the several hours it takes to reach the summit, and come back. Bring your camera and binoculars for some spectacular views..
Photo
credit: Travel
Yukon. No copyright infringement
intended.
For more information about Skagway, please visit the following very informative websites:
White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad
Skagway, Alaska Convention & Visitors Bureau
Skagway
(Wikipedia)
OVERNIGHT AND TODAY
After leaving Juneau yesterday evening, we rounded Douglas Island by sailing through Stephens Passage. We continued our route northbound along Lynn Canal overnight. This morning at about 4.30am, we'll pass half a mile to the east of Eldred Rock Lighthouse, then enter Chilkoot Inlet and pass Battery Point and the village of Haines, on our port side. We'll then proceed through Taiya Inlet , and expect to dock in Skagway at 6.30am.
When we leave tonight at 9.00pm, we will again pass the lovely village of Haines, on our starboard side, around 10.00pm.We'll then proceed through Lynn Canal on our way towards Glacier Bay.
Click on the map to enlarge it |
Click on the map to enlarge it |
TODAY'S SCENIC CRUISING
9.00pm
- Skagway
sailaway through Taiya Inlet and
Lynn Canal.
GENERAL EMERGENCY STATIONS - CREW DRILL
10.00am
This morning, alarms will be sounded and broadcasts made as the crew
are exercised in their Emergency Duties. During this exercise, all
passenger services will cease. On hearing the General Emergency
Stations signal, which consists of seven short blasts followed by one
long blast on the ship's whistle and alarms, any passengers remaining
on board are strongly encouraged, on this occasion only, to go to the
Showcase Lounge, on Deck 5 (Baja). Here you will be shown a
safety-related video. It is not necessary for you to take your
lifejacket to the drill. Please keep clear of the outside area of the
Promenade Deck during this exercise.
BAR HOP WITH DJ PEDRO
9.00pm
Meet in the Disco, Deck 7 (Promenade)
Three
bars, six drinks. Join DJ
Pedro tonight for a fun evening of thirst-quenchers and merriment.
Disco Bar, Castaways Lounge and TopDeck Lounge.
GOLD RUSH PARTY
9.30pm
Casino, Deck 8 (Lido)
Celebrate
the Gold Rush with our
"Panning for Gold" dealers. Alaskan drink specials, exciting games and
raffle draws. Try your hand at panning for gold in our Mining Camp
Corner.
WHITE
PASS & YUKON
ROUTE RAILROAD Photo credit: Klanda. Image released under GNU FDL. Klanda 22:09, 19 Aug 2004 (UTC) |
