Day 67 - Carcross, YT

It was a late morning for all of us knowing that the driving distance was short, 48 miles to Carcross. We discussed staying another day in Whitehorse but decided against it. So down the road we go arriving at our next destination. Like always we got set up then started exploring.

Our first stop was  Emerald Lake. It was absolute beautiful with the sun shining on it. The limestone hills in this area were created 150 – 200 million years ago by reef-building corals that grew in a warm sea. Corals and lime-secreting algae cemented themselves together in 100 meters of water where there was sunshine and clear water. As the water rose the coral reef built upon itself, growing toward the light. The valley was covered by a glacier during the last ice age and shallow lakes were formed when the glaciers retreated 14,000 years ago. Retreating ice deposited limestone gravel which was eroded from the surrounding hills, onto the valley floor. The carbonate rich gravel affected the ground water and led eventually to the formation of marl in the lake. The beautiful blue-green colour of Emerald Lake is created by sunlight reflecting off a white layer of “marl” on the lake bed. Marl is a white calcium carbonate clay that forms in the water and then settles, often unevenly, on the lake bottom. The Marl forms when enough carbonate, from dissolving limestone, reacts with calcium in the water.

It looks like a desert but is it a desert…

If this were a real desert, it would have a hot, dry climate. The Carcross Dunes are a result of a glacial process. About 10,000 years ago, the great ice sheets that covered much of North America were melting. Ice dams created a series of glacial lakes that submerged some valleys under 300 meters of melt water. A layer of sand and silt, which had been trapped in the glaciers, settled to the bottom of these lakes in a thick layer. Glacial Watson Lake is long gone but rivers cut through the old lake bottom sediments bringing sand and silt into Bennett Lake. Today, the sand comes mainly from nearby Bennett Lake carried by wind.

The Cariboo Crossing Trading Post is located about 2 km north of Carcross. It’s basically a one stop shop which has everything you need for an afternoon of fun…or so we thought. The admission cost is $8.75 and that gets you into the Wildlife Museum (taxidermy animals), the Mountie Museum, the animal petting zoo, and the husky puppies. Now that is what I really wanted to see. Everything else, such as gold panning, dog cart rides, and lunch of course are all extras. I guess I was expecting something a little more exciting. It’s a been there, done it, won’t be doing it again place. If you know what I mean.

After a late lunch early supper I took a stroll across the street to the Carcross First Nations Community Center. It's brand new and beautiful.

Local Artist Suzanne Paleczny