Last post left us at the trailhead in Dyea. Let’s pause for a bit and talk about who ‘we’ are. ‘We’ are a group of seven, five guests and two guides, Mark and Victor, from Sea to Sky Expeditions, based in Delta, BC (near Vancouver). There are only a handful of outfitters with permits for the Chilkoot Pass and I picked Sea to Sky for two reasons:

1) They are the only outfitters who start in Whitehorse and return guests to Whitehorse. All others start in Skagway and return to Skagway;

2) Their itinerary provides an extra night on the trail so the trip is less rushed.

I was extremely pleased with my experience with Sea to Sky and look forward to taking another trip with them in the future!

Back to Dyea:

Our guides made sure we started off on the right foot by feeding us a fabulous breakfast of fresh blueberries topped with vanilla yoghurt as well as muffins. Hot drinks were up to us, with hot water provided first thing each morning. When filling out our pre-trip paperwork, we had to state what sorts of hot drinks we wanted and I had asked for coffee in the morning and herbal tea in the evening so I did not have to go into caffeine withdrawal on this trip. 🙂

We set off at about 8:30, with a quick stop at the Chilkoot trailhead sign for a group photo and then the adventure finally began!

The meanest miles in history show their true colours just a few feet from the trailhead with challenging ‘Saintly Hill’ (ha!) that tests hikers even before they are warmed up. Once up that slippery mass of earth, roots, and rocks, it’s fairly easy trekking through marshland to the first campground, Finnigan’s Point, where we had lunch.

the group, minus our guide Mark who has hiked this trail at least 19 times!

the summit of Saintly Hill

walking on water

obviously not a gold rush relic 🙂

typical shelter at a US Chilkoot campground (used only for eating or getting warm in bad weather, not for sleeping)

Irene Glacier seen from Finnigan’s Point