| Journeys Into History: Canada's Country Inns, Lodges and Roadhouses
by Jerry W. Bird
"There are snows that are older than history
There are woods where the weird shadows slant
The stillness, the moonlight, the mystery
I've bade 'em good-bye - but I can't."
Robert w. Service
 Dawson City's Yukon Hotel (above), was one of several former gold rush hotels that were still standing (or leaning slightly) when I was a youngster roaming the town. Those still in operation included the Occidental, Westminster, Royal Alexandra, Pearl Harbour, and a variety of lesser known establishments, most with the familiar false fronts and tin roofs. My friends and I loved to explore the boarded up, abandoned relics, but most especially to visit the string of road houses that stretched along the old stage route between Dawson City and Whitehorse. My granddad, Ernie J. Somerton, a many of many talents, was one of the first to operate the Caterpillar train that plied that route along the frozen Yukon river in the 30s and 40s. In time, our editors will add more details , photos and descriptions of these historic inns, but for now I offer, the following. It's an excerpt on travel to and from Canada's Yukon Territory prior to World War II and the vast Alaska Highway project, which brought rapid change, and an end to our laid back lifestyle. While most passengers approach the 'Inside Passage' from points due south, my first experience of this 1,200 mile Marine Highway, was coming from Canada's Klondike, having plied the Yukon River for four eventful days aboard the SS Casca, a classic paddle-wheeler ; chugging and puffing our way upstream from Dawson City to Whitehorse. There we boarded the narrow-gauge White Pass & Yukon Railway for a day trip, detraining on a wooden platform at historic Skagway. Fortunately, for tourists who sail north from Vancouver and points south during the Alaska cruise season, the railway is still operating. While it doesn't go all the way to Whitehorse, the tracks have been restored along lake Bennett to Carcross, Yukon, a short drive from Whitehorse.
They call it "The Railway built of Gold" and it is now the longest-operating narrow-gauge railroad in North America. It is really a journey into history, as the train follows the same Klondike Trail that broke the hearts of many, and lifted the spirits of others, who made that famous climb through the White Pass in 1898. For more on riverboats, including the Steamer Keno (above) which I worked on for two glorious summers, see Klondike Memories. By the way, those sacks on the barge in the foreground are coal from the mines at Carmacks, Yukon, near the Five Finger Rapids.
More Canadiana: Divers hunt for
Captain Vancouver's anchor
 In 1792, the explorer lost three anchors while exploring the Pacific Coast. When divers recover a huge ancient anchor Friday from the waters off Tacoma, Wa, they hope to answer a question that has plagued maritime historians for years: Is this one of the anchors Captain George Vancouver lost more than 200 years ago during his exploration of the Pacific Northwest? Story to come.  Edmonton's Grant MacConachie, founder of Canadian Pacific Airlines, who dreamed of an air bridge to the Orient and across the pole. Plus others, in our Icons of Aviation series. (item appeared in our Apec edition - to come). Mr. Alaska: Book Reviews include a biography of the most dedicated tourism pioneer in America's North Country, Mr. Alaska, Charlie West.
More Icons of Aviation: "There she stands, the sleek, silver Avro CF-100, pride of the Royal Canadian Air Force in my day ... sassy as ever, her metallic body gleaming in the sunshine of another spring. When we first met at Trenton Air Force Base in Southern Ontario, she was Canada's debutante, a grand new star in the theater of the sky. (Canadian Museum of Flight ) Mining's Early Days: "On the Sea-to-Sky Highway from Vancouver to Whistler-Blackcomb, North America's top ski destination resort, there are many unique tourist attractions. One that stands out in my mind, is the museum at Britannia Beach- a salute to British Columbia's Mining industry and those who made their living underground." See BC Museum of Mining story.  Famous Doors of Hospitality: "British Columbia and the Yukon are dotted with famous hotels, inns, lodges and resorts - a few having existed since Gold Rush Days, others but faded memories. Some remain as attractive and popular as ever, keeping up with the times, such as the palatial Banff Springs, and the elegant Empress Hotel in Victoria. Harrison Hot Springs Resort also 'springs to mind'- a legend of CPR's glory days, when movie stars to royalty rode the train, staying at hotels and resorts at or near the main line.
See Canada's Hotels
Doing a round of business meetings in Vancouver,
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