To Skagway in the calm before the storm

Posted On November 20, 2023

I’ve been watching the weather forecasts for Whitehorse and Skagway recently, waiting for a good day to make the drive to Skagway. The last time I was down was in July when I took the motorcycle, and it’s hard to say when Cathy’s last visit to our coastal neighbour was. Yesterday the forecasts looked like we would have mostly sun all the way. Then a particularly nasty storm was forecast to hit all of us.

By about 10:00 we had decided that we would all go (Cathy and me, and Bella and Tucker). At 10:11 our weather station read -25°C/-13°F, 8 degrees C colder than in Whitehorse. Sunrise would be at 10:16 and sunset at 5:15, so we would have 7 hours of good light to enjoy.

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When I shot the first photo at 11:25, we were south of Carcross. We didn’t have sun, but the light was soft and lovely. If I had been by myself, I probably would have made a few photo stops to take advantage of that light. The temperature had warmed up substantially during the drive down, to -16°C/+3°F.

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Another photo stop at 11:39. This view is to the south of the highway, on the climb from the south end of Windy Arm. I don’t remember exactly where, but somewhere among the high peaks I got a wonderful feeling of peace, and said to Cathy “This feels like home.”

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We finally reached the sun just south of Fraser, and it was gorgeous as we neared the summit of the White Pass at 12:15. I was very surprised by how little show there was, and a couple of minutes later, I noted there was still water flowing in the bottom waterfall on the International Falls hiking trail.

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When I stepped out of the Jeep to get the photo above, it occurred to me that I should also get a photo of the icy road surface.

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Seconds later, the sparkle of a couple of ice-encrusted willow bushes prompted another stop. Cathy has had 23 years to get used to photographer-Murray – she’s very patient now 🙂

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We went for breakfast burritos at Glacier Smoothies, took the pups for a long walk at Pullen Creek Park, then went for a bit of exploring. The temperature in Skagway was -6°C/+21°F but with a strong north wind, walking in open areas was not pleasant.

There are several cranes scattered around the harbour, including one massive one. Going over to the Railroad Dock, I thought they were involved with work being done to make that dock safer from rockfalls – there have certainly been many changes done.

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Next are two more photos of the Railroad Dock work.

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Next is a look at the current state of the rockfall area. It’s actually quite amazing that the huge overhanging rock at the top hasn’t broken off in the 127 years since Skagway started developing in a big way, during the Klondike Gold Rush. I can’t imagine that those wire fences will do any more than hold small rockfalls.

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Once I got home, I learned from The Skagway News site and the Port of Skagway page that much of the activity we saw is connected with a $45 million project to convert the Ore Dock into a dock for the largest cruise ships.

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From the Ore Dock area at 2:00, we could see that forecast storm moving up Taiya Inlet, and it was moving rapidly. Time to head for home.

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Heading north up the pass, I stopped for two final photos just south of Mile 10, the first looking east to Mine Mountain on the left and Tunnel Mountain in the centre…

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…and and the last one looking back towards Skagway.

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We got home at 4:20, too late for the meeting of the concussion support group I go to. But my gut said I needed to go, despite the fact that I really hate being late. My gut was right – it was a particularly good meeting.

As I wrote this at 11:00 am, winds in Skagway are out of the NNE at 21 mp/h, but it’s calm in Whitehorse. Skagway is forecast to get 8-13 inches of snow today and tonight, after being so beautiful yesterday. At home, they’re calling for 12 cm. So my job tomorrow, or the next 2 or 3 days, will be dealing with that.