After a cozy breakfast and updating our blog, we finally got on the road. Instead of taking the Alaska Highway all the way, we decided on a short detour to Carcross because we had been there 14 years ago on a Holland America cruise trip.

On our way to Carcross we passed Emerald Lake with its mesmerizing blue, turquoise and green water.

Carcross is a town on the White Pass and Yukon rail line which was built because of the gold rush and linked Skagway and Whitehorse.

The town has really changed. Some of the buildings were or are in the process of being renovated and new stores and boutiques in a small plaza were a nice addition. We had ice cream in one of the old ones and cappuccino and German Apple cake in a new one. We visited a gallery and saw very different pieces and styles of art by various artists.

One of the shops sold Maple Syrup. Since we hadn’t seen any Maple trees on our journeys, we enquired as to whether Maple trees grew in the Yukon, at which point the owner showed us a potted Maple tree at his front door. Once he realized that we were from Ontario he quickly confessed that his syrup actually originates in Quebec and he makes artisan maple butter and crunches from the syrup.

We were determined to make it to British Columbia via Highway 37 today. We passed through beautiful landscape and just before dark we found a fabulous free campground right by a river on Kaska Nation land.