If you look at a map of British Columbia, Canada, under close inspection you may notice at the very top left corner is a small section of land pinned between Alaska and Yukon. Look closer. You’ll see that the major roads that pass through this section of BC total two main thoroughfares, the Yukon 2 and Haines Road. This swath of wild is virtually uninhabited and comprises mostly of the Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park. We refer to it as No Man’s Land, and we drove through it just the other day.
Tatshenshini-Alsek Provincial Park: Remote and Wild
This description, No Man’s Land, is I think quite apt, because, truly the area doesn’t really belong to any one man, it belongs to the wild, to the trees, and to the animals. Man hasn’t been able to conquer this place because it’s just, so, BIG. Luckily, it’s not totally inaccessible and a road traveler can enjoy an appreciable amount of the wild from the driver seat. To get to No Man’s Land you’ll want to leave Whitehorse, Yukon and head southwest on Yukon 2 through Carcross. Make sure to stop off at Carcross and grab some ice cream, handcrafted items made by the local indigenous people or a bite to eat at the variety of food establishments in the town square. If you’re not keen to drive the White Pass, you can also hop on a train that will take you all the way to Skagway, which as I hear, is pretty amazing as well. Oh yeah, and if you somehow missed it, Carcross has a “desert”, the smallest in North America.
Travel Landscape: What to Expect
After Carcross you’re going to be getting into it pretty quick. The landscape gets rockier, taller and the dry, sandy, rain-shadow Southern Yukon begins to transform into the coastal range. You’ll travel alongside Nares Lake for quite some time before turning straight South towards Conrad. As you approach the southern extent of Nares Lake you’re going to pass Venus Silver Mine, a large structure just off the side of the road on the side of the lake. Make sure that you don’t drive past this piece of history without doing the short hike up to Windy Arm, the abandoned mine shaft a couple hundred meters up the mountain side. This area is rich with mining history and you pass a number of different abandoned sites as you climb to the main attraction.
As we began our descent back to our van a large storm rolled in and we were soon being chased by the rain although we started the hike in the scorching sun. Be sure to hike well prepared for ever-changing mountain weather. A short drive from the Windy Arm trail head you’ll pass into British Columbia and get your first views of Tutshi Lake. You’ll notice at this point that the mountains are really starting to tour overhead, but, prepare yourself…they’re only going to get better. You’ll pass the Yukon Suspension Bridge which we didn’t visit but it looks super cool. Once you’re past there is when the landscape takes a turn for the epic and ancient. Imagine vast glaciers moving through here, bulldozing rock monoliths over with ease and leaving behind claw marks that would put Godzilla’s mits to shame. This is where my adult brain left the chat and I started breaking my neck looking out the window and squealing like a kid in a candy shop.
Crossing the Border
In Fraser you’ll pass the Canadian customs booth, don’t worry, if you’re southbound you won’t need to stop for a while longer. But, take your time here, there’s lots to see and let’s be real here, you and me, we’re not particularly safe drivers when we’re rubbernecking like Gumby. Just before you cross the border there is one last Canadian marvel that you should most definitely take the time to check out, International Falls. This cascading river stems from a snow fed mountain lake up in the saddle between two huge mountain peaks. The hike to the top is 10 km’s (6.2 miles) round trip and ascends around 800m (2624ft) which makes for an acceptable grade to climb. If you’re not a hiker, don’t worry, you can get to the bigger falls fairly easy. You will have to remove boots to cross the alpine lake at the parking lot before you can really get onto the trail.
Once you’ve done the hike at International Falls you’re going to be crossing the border pretty quick and the US customs booth will be a few miles and a few thousand feet below, almost at sea level. Please be careful, if you are driving a larger RV, this is a long hill with medium to steep grades, drive accordingly and don’t let those brakes heat up! The descent to the customs booth is absolutely breathtaking. It will leave you ready to turn right around to drive back up so you can see it all over again.
At the bottom of the hill there is Skagway, a bustling tourist town with lots of amenities for RV road warriors. Park up, sit back, reminisce on the drive in and enjoy the beautiful views, great restaurants and klondike vibes.
If you’re keen to watch our experience of White Pass check out the video on our YouTube channel, titled “No Man’s Land”!
Thanks for reading, until the next one, keep on roamin’!
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