Day 68 - Downtown Carcross, YT

We were still trying to decide whether to head into Skagway by truck or visit downtown Carcross next. Carcross won the toss.  In 1899, the community was originally named Cariboo Crossing by miners. The name referred to the spot where the woodland caribou herds, twice a year would cross the narrows between Bennett Lake and Nares Lake. In 1904 the town was officially changed to Carcross. Before the completion of the railway (White Pass & Yukon Route) in 1900 the town consisted of a North West Mounted Police post and a few First Nation communities. After the railway was established the town grew quickly from a tent town to a community with hotels, a general store, and restaurants. A major fire in 1909 destroyed most of the town which included the railroad station, a hotel, and a store. It was all rebuilt within a year. 

We parked at Carcross Commons which is a unique place to shop. Open from May to September,  there are several artisan boutiques, each offering something a little different. The Commons also has Skookum Jim's house which currently is home for Parks Canada.

Parks Canada

Visitor Information Centre

Local artisans 

Local Artisans

After we looked in several of the shops, we walked to the historic part of town which is a block away. The Caribou Hotel is the oldest building in the region.The original building was moved in 1900 from Bennett City, a ghost town once known for it's mining. The original burnt to the ground on Christmas Eve, 1909. It was rebuilt within a year. Over the years, the hotel has provided accommodations for local, miners, tourists, and dignitaries. Currently the new owners have undertaken a major renovation.

Caribou Hotel

The White Pass & Yukon Route railroad depot was built in 1910, following the fire that destroyed the original. The WP&YR ran a passenger and freight railway from 1900 until 1982. The wharf behind the depot was used for the sternwheelers. In 2006, the line between Skagway, AK and Carcross, YT reopened as a scenic railway attraction.

WP&YR Depot

The Wharf has seen better days

The 125 meter railway bridge was built in 1900 and designed so that the 46 meter midsection could pivot on a central axis allowing large boats to pass on either side. As commercial navigation dwindled, and after the railway began operating, the swing span only opened a few times a year. It was permanently closed and in 1969, pilings were set under the bridge to increase its load tolerance.  

The sternwheeler SS Tutshi was built 1917 to accommodate the increasing numbers of tourists visiting Yukon's Southern Lakes region. When the Tutshi was not carrying tourists she was kept busy carrying mail and freight. The completion of the all-weather road in the 1940's ended the era of the sternwheeler. The Tutshi was decommissioned in 1955. She burned in 1990 and all that remains is a skeleton and some interpretative panels.

People were having fun at the beach (Nares Lake), swimming, wind surfing, building sand castles, and everything else you do at the beach. However, the water is glacier run off so it's really, really cold. 

Arnulf "Arne" Ormen was a woodcutter, of Scandinavian descent, lived out of town from 1940's to the 1960's. As he grew older he thought he should live in Carcross, so he built a little cabin and outhouse. His claim is that he could light a fire without getting out of bed. Now that's a small cabin. 

Arne Ormen's cabin and outhouse

Some of the houses across the river were in pretty rough shape. Most of them were moved to this location after mining towns closed down. They were built between the 1910's and the 1920's.

The little engine known as the Duchess was once part of a matched set. Both h and her partner, the Duke were built in 1878. For a time the two would haul coal. The Duchess was taken out of service in 1919 and moved to Carcross in the 1950's as a tourist attraction. The pink building in behind the Duchess is the Matthew Watson General Store. It's one of Yukon's longest operating businesses.

We had a great day wandering around town seeing all the sights. As we sat having supper a wildfire started just beyond Carcross on the other side of the hill. I have to admit it looked scary. What made it worse the wind was blowing towards us.