Monday, 22 July
The Journey from Whitehorse to Destruction Bay Lodge
At 7:30 a.m., we headed toward Destruction Bay, 168 miles away. It was another beautiful but cool day, with the high temperatures in Destruction Bay in the mid-60s.
The road leading from Whitehorse started relatively gently, with rolling hills covered in boreal forest consisting of spruce, pine, and aspen. As we approached Haines Junction, we entered the Shakwak Valley, with the terrain becoming more dramatic. The Kluane Range, part of the larger Saint Elias Mountains, came into view, with towering peaks visible in the distance. This section features more open terrain with meadows and wetlands interspersed among the forested areas.
After passing Haines Junction, the terrain becomes even more rugged and mountainous as the highway runs parallel to the Aishihik and Kluane Ranges. The landscape is open and expansive, with fewer trees and more tundra-like vegetation as you continue north. The valley is vast, with the Kluane River flowing through parts of it. As we approached Destruction Bay, the route followed the eastern shore of Kluane Lake, one of the Yukon’s largest lakes. The terrain around Kluane Lake is relatively flat compared to the nearby mountains, but it is framed by impressive peaks to the west, creating a striking contrast between the flat lakeshore and the steep, snow-capped mountains. Destruction Bay is nestled along the shore of Kluane Lake, surrounded by the rugged terrain of the Kluane and Ruby ranges to the east and west.
Destruction Bay Lodge
We arrived at the new location around 11 am. The “campground” was a large parking lot next to a motel that was no longer operating. The lodge’s owner was not even there. Because there was a limited number of electrical hookups in this parking lot and we knew another caravan would be stopping at the same place, we were told that if we wanted electrical hookups, we needed to arrive early. The campground had water hookups, but they were not working, and there were no sewer hookups or dump stations. The parking lot was significantly sloped, and we had to use blocks to level it on one side. We did not bother to unhook the trailer from the truck.
The other Caravan arrived later and filled up the remaining camping spaces and any other open space in the parking lot they could find, even if it did not have electricity. I was shocked that this was the best the caravan organizers could do. Thank goodness we were only here one day.