Enjoying the sunshine and seashore – and steam – in Skagway
My plan on Monday was to meet the tour group that I worked with in Whitehorse when they got off their ship in Skagway. Well, somehow we missed each other, but the fur-kids and I had a great day in the sunshine anyway.
We were away from the house just after 06:00 to give a bit of free time (ie photo stops 🙂 ) and still be in Skagway by 08:30. The sky was incredibly clear, and Summit Lake was lit up beautifully.
![Summit Lake, on the BC-Alaska border](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/summit_lake-5063.jpg)
The peaks of the Sawtooth Range beyond Summit Lake don’t often stand out like this.
![Glacier-studded peaks along the BC-Alaska border](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/sawtooth_range-5068.jpg)
I’m getting really hungry to get back into the high country, but temperatures are staying quite low and the snow is melting very slowly.
![William Moore Creek, Alaska](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/wm_moore_creek-5075.jpg)
The dogs and I spent about 40 minutes at the Railroad Dock, met a lot of people, but missed my group. Back at the WP&YR station, though, I was thrilled to see steam engine #73 just heading out of town, particularly when I saw that my long-time friend (and former Carcross neighbour) Brian was the engineer. Poor little Bella was much less pleased to see/hear it!
![WP&YR steam locomotive at Skagway](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/wpyr-loco73-skagway-5085.jpg)
I couldn’t resist driving back up the pass a ways to see more of steam – just far enough so I wouldn’t have to go through Customs again getting back to Skagway. The train has just passed Rocky Point in this photo.
![WP&YR steam locomotive at Rocky Point](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/wpyr-loco73-white_pass-5097.jpg)
It’s even more impressive when the engineer pours the coal to it (oil, actually) to climb a steeper grade.
![WP&YR steam locomotive climbing the White Pass](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/wpyr-loco73-white_pass-5105.jpg)
It was low tide, and I decided that the beach at Yakutania Point would be a great place to place with the dogs. I got distracted a bit by the airport, and chatting to some visitors who were on the Rhapsody of the Seas.
![Skagway Airport](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/skagway_airport-5117.jpg)
The view down Taiya Inlet at the mouth of the Skagway River.
![Taiya Inlet from the mouth of the Skagway River](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/skagway_river-5151.jpg)
The kids had a ball playing in the soft sand!
![Huskies playing on the beach at Skagway, Alaska](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/monty-bella-skagway_river-5141.jpg)
And Bella loves water!
![Husky puppy playing on the beach at Skagway, Alaska](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/bella-skagway_river-5161.jpg)
Monty enjoying a calm moment 🙂
![My husky, Monty, on the beach at Skagway, Alaska](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/monty-bella-skagway_river-5134.jpg)
Another new experience for Bella – the wonderful sights and smells of the intertidal zone.
![Huskies exploring the intertidal zone at Skagway, Alaska](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/monty-bella-skagway_river-5179.jpg)
Although we had the beach to ourselves, the rounded granite of Yakutania Point above the beach was a popular spot. I could hear by their voices that some of the folks were enjoying watching the dogs playing.
![Yakutania Point, Skagway, Alaska](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/yakutania_point-5199.jpg)
What an amazing day to be flying – this plane was just doing the scheduled Wings of Alaska flight to Juneau.
![Airplane leaving Skagway, Alaska](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/airplane-skagway-5229.jpg)
With the dogs well played out, I went back to the Railroad Dock to meet an old friend, and to get a shot of the beautiful little, ultra-luxury, Silver Shadow.
![The small, ultra-luxury cruise ship, Silver Shadow.](https://explorenorthblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/silver_shadow-skagway-5234.jpg)
It was a very short day, as I have a lot of work to do at home. By 11:15 Yukon time, we were on our way – both dogs slept all the way home. Despite missing my meeting, this day, short as it was, was a 10.