tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33193113362887807742024-03-05T12:09:30.043-08:00Yukon FrolicsChronicling Adventure In The Land Of The Midnight SunPaul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comBlogger82125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-9173111944172727722021-08-11T12:19:00.002-07:002021-08-12T12:33:18.278-07:00Haines Road to the Wheaton River Valley Complete<div style="padding: 56.25% 0px 0px; position: relative;"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/584048493?badge=0&autopause=0&player_id=0&app_id=58479&h=2e7041ce14" style="height: 100%; left: 0; position: absolute; top: 0; width: 100%;" title="Haines Road to Wheaton River 2021"></iframe></div><script src="https://player.vimeo.com/api/player.js"></script><p>Back in 2003, inspired by the reports of ski traverses in this area, I became enamoured with the idea of a hiking route from the Haines road in BC to the Yukons Wheaton River valley. <span></span></p><a name='more'></a>At the time, Google Earth or other such satellite image based route planning aids weren't readily available, so my research was confined to anecdotes, 1:50,000s and ground-truthing various portions of this route. I had heard of others starting and/or finishing their ski trips at Kelsall lake on the Haines road, but summer experiences in the area had convinced me that the bushwhacking in the vicinity would more miserable than not. In the end, a route was pieced together from the very headwaters of the Tatshenshini river where it crosses the highway, along the BC side of the Coast range to the headwaters of the Kusawa and Chilkat rivers, to the headwaters of the Takhini river, then to the upper Primrose river (on the maps labelled Silt Lake) finally ending at the Wheaton river in The Yukon. Its an in-obvious route, deviating from the winter route to avoid glacier travel, yet still staying as high as possible to enjoy the alpine travel and avoid as much bush travel as possible.<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0565DF-JLGuZ-4FFQgXCdir9XkbL4CvA1zpoC6EEjyV6sDITi-RbXw17qqWDG6Dc_8hglis66ColbiFVyS98K8LHB6TTFWrmyPWzUSvqAAzDDR_Odd1qyvF5jgUw8xVVXDr3UHsiBpVOp/s4320/P1060968.JPG" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0565DF-JLGuZ-4FFQgXCdir9XkbL4CvA1zpoC6EEjyV6sDITi-RbXw17qqWDG6Dc_8hglis66ColbiFVyS98K8LHB6TTFWrmyPWzUSvqAAzDDR_Odd1qyvF5jgUw8xVVXDr3UHsiBpVOp/w400-h300/P1060968.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><p>In 2003, 4 of us and 3 dogs started up the Wheaton river horse trail in early August to attempt this crossing from the West end. The upper Wheaton river had a wildfire though it back in the late '90s, and at the time of our trip, the burn was relatively fresh with not much fallen debris. In 4 days, we made it into the upper reaches of the West fork of the upper Takhini river. The final day bashing up the Takhini as well as route uncertainty and dwindling food convinced us to retrace our route back to the Wheaton, tails between our legs. It wasn't a wasted trip however, as much was learned with respect to old animal and horse trails and where best to access them.</p><p><br /></p><p>The following summer of 2004, Michelle, Malcom Campbell and I were dropped off on the Haines road near where it crosses the Tatshenshini river (more of a creek at this point). We had incredible weather save for one short storm in the pass from the upper Chilkat river to the upper Takhini. We made it to the upper Takhini valley in 6 days of glorious, sunny alpine wandering. Unfortunately, our dog Tua decided to cut her leg open on a sharp Granite sliver while descending down to the upper Takhini, where Michelle (a paramedic) put in 20 stitches. It was a bad enough injury that we had to carry the dog down the Alder and Willow choked West arm of the Takhini, up the East arm, over the high pass to Silt Lake, and down to Primrose lake in two and one half days to try and get there to meet a floatplane that we knew was bringing in acquaintances to hike in the area. We literally ran the last kilometre as the plane was landing on the lake. We managed to catch the back haul to Whitehorse to get the dog to the vet for antibiotics but it cut short the full trip out by two days.</p><p>The idea that we didn't actually complete the whole thing rankled, even though we had physically traversed the whole route in different trips, so in July 2013 we drove over to the Haines road to hike it. Again. Well, it rained all the way to the Haines pass with the rainfall in the area so heavy, and forecast to remain so, that we turned around and headed home. The weather did relent after a few days, and to salvage some sort of trip, we flew to Little Duff lake and hiked out to Primrose lake. Shortly after this trip I had heard about another groups successful traverses of the route earlier that summer. See Colin Abbotts great write up <a href="https://bushed.exposure.co/the-deep-coast" target="_blank">here </a>. In subsequent conversations with him, he also hadn't heard of anyone else hiking the route (social media not being as active then as now). Of note, while they ended up on the same route that we had used previously (its pretty much the only choice), they elected to start at Kelsall lake. Their images of the vegetation made me glad we had opted for the upper Tat start. They experienced awful weather, but carried on regardless. But they're tough as nails so that helps.</p><p>In the intervening years, I've explored many of the sections of the route on various trips, but I'd yet to have completed it in one push, and while its no Ultima Thule, it still was on the must-do list.</p><p>Enter 2021, and a group of us: Mandy McClung, Karen McColl, Michelle and myself, were looking for a good summer trip. I suggested we do this one. Or at least try the bastard. Again. So once again we sallied forth to the Haines road for a drop off. This time, with no monsoon-like conditions. </p><p><b></b></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b></b><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie8IKwODsLyQXYWQa01Q7wG6Qd_xw3CezBahTI-9pO1Ch-Yv9sT_tBd1T1Cgr3-M8PIWfDVYrRpNSTCZbuBellgDfeJ8fW-K_JwIWa1Q4ReP7EOUeUYGzvQEHfPch_U7MeTjAjJyJ0bZ_0/s1416/Screen+Shot+2021-08-10+at+6.44.30+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1416" data-original-width="1410" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie8IKwODsLyQXYWQa01Q7wG6Qd_xw3CezBahTI-9pO1Ch-Yv9sT_tBd1T1Cgr3-M8PIWfDVYrRpNSTCZbuBellgDfeJ8fW-K_JwIWa1Q4ReP7EOUeUYGzvQEHfPch_U7MeTjAjJyJ0bZ_0/w638-h640/Screen+Shot+2021-08-10+at+6.44.30+PM.png" width="638" /></a></div><b><br />Day 1:</b> Haines road to upper Tatshenshini. Under lowering skies, we left the road and headed up the Tatshenshini river, which is more of a large creek at the point. Some Alder/Willow patches near the highway, but mostly nice alpine strolling. There is a pleasant tarn near the pass at the head of the valley that makes for an idyllic camp.<div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJIk_tnMublNLEvjR9rhSK5KI68UOcYnYmBA-EwiajdD30wbbMhyphenhyphenDomVy8y73zA26DtWJObPbKWuIrJ5enHmNwlGErot15Vc-xkk9M_5GNjeuPf1dZTd-GxbdZbsuW1aNhyphenhyphenJfsg9TCL1dQ/s4320/P1060954.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJIk_tnMublNLEvjR9rhSK5KI68UOcYnYmBA-EwiajdD30wbbMhyphenhyphenDomVy8y73zA26DtWJObPbKWuIrJ5enHmNwlGErot15Vc-xkk9M_5GNjeuPf1dZTd-GxbdZbsuW1aNhyphenhyphenJfsg9TCL1dQ/w640-h480/P1060954.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alpine lake at head of Tatshenshini</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ypxMHJl579o8NastEtNqTp-yyH_9v6Wrgzm1XG0lYsNLYse7BSPnQ_j37HmrrQn7ZOcAysIw1SMsC5E5-ipoqkppY_rt3l7kKW_IhnymTNCVlBSmBX6aY2bFZ30_NvU9dh0_jdOSqk7U/s4320/P1060971.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3ypxMHJl579o8NastEtNqTp-yyH_9v6Wrgzm1XG0lYsNLYse7BSPnQ_j37HmrrQn7ZOcAysIw1SMsC5E5-ipoqkppY_rt3l7kKW_IhnymTNCVlBSmBX6aY2bFZ30_NvU9dh0_jdOSqk7U/w640-h480/P1060971.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upper Blanchard river 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /><div><br /></div><div><b>Day 2: </b>It rained lightly overnight, but the sky promised better things. We were soon over the pass and into the upper Blanchard river drainage. Staying high and right lets you cut the corner and keep your elevation. Its a stark, recently glaciated landscape with amazing views. When the weather is good. You follow a string of lakes heading to the stream that feeds Kelsall lake. The skies eventually cleared and we made camp in the same spot as we did on our 2004 trip. It was just as amazing now as it was then, with stunning views of the peaks and glaciers to the West.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8qQWT6FtukdOx0ZbycWPvUrmEgrNDY4SdYzDrmgpDiYp9xzI296_F9X_P6gGiEblNyN3-vgDz0BCHu7kpZ_ihBb_CMDWO5D_HmJtIg_j4xU06DxV7kpgw-GTuuj3r8P94-urVj3kRHsEf/s4320/P1060974.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8qQWT6FtukdOx0ZbycWPvUrmEgrNDY4SdYzDrmgpDiYp9xzI296_F9X_P6gGiEblNyN3-vgDz0BCHu7kpZ_ihBb_CMDWO5D_HmJtIg_j4xU06DxV7kpgw-GTuuj3r8P94-urVj3kRHsEf/w640-h480/P1060974.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Faerie meadow camp 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIJuLEVwNaej2qglgK4DpixtgHcINEEwxHHw_8qL2YtJy06dzH2JJXW91G0YCOjRPcnIuaHrxx-Wur30c0yXltwEBhUd4d0cSrZP_r9DYHwl0fx0wnLRT62vVUAaCpuBWlpPaHZ4Ss9SOI/s4320/P1060984.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIJuLEVwNaej2qglgK4DpixtgHcINEEwxHHw_8qL2YtJy06dzH2JJXW91G0YCOjRPcnIuaHrxx-Wur30c0yXltwEBhUd4d0cSrZP_r9DYHwl0fx0wnLRT62vVUAaCpuBWlpPaHZ4Ss9SOI/w640-h480/P1060984.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2021</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><b>Day 3: </b>An amazing sleep on a flat bed of moss will make even the foggiest morning look better. Theoretically. It was socked in with rain in the offing, so we packed up quick and moved off to Little Duff lake. More walking amongst clear alpine tarns with massive Granite builders littering the landscape. Lovely campsites abound in this section, but you'd want good weather to truly enjoy it. It began raining about 10am and stayed that way for the rest of the day. Fortunately, the clouds and fog stayed high enough that we were able to navigate this section without resorting to the electronics. We finally rolled into Little Duff lake about 6 pm, tired, wet and ready for camp. Its a rugged landscape that doesn't lend itself to fast travel. The final hurdle is having to strip down to wade the creek draining Little Duff. A 5 star shore side campsite is fine compensation however, and in no time we had the shelters up, dry clothes on and water boiling.</div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2ZThp1Ado29Q90N8G65DXtQfth4IQcRZ73XQgrJa83LWIO1jgat7GrSmAXOfGW4KNN7d-OohZaRgcP8wGs85xrYNV-VwpEsNXJYidK27jUQOhG1mWQqH-kWRyt3RjNnrXfc5qlDavriLb/s4320/P1060988.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2ZThp1Ado29Q90N8G65DXtQfth4IQcRZ73XQgrJa83LWIO1jgat7GrSmAXOfGW4KNN7d-OohZaRgcP8wGs85xrYNV-VwpEsNXJYidK27jUQOhG1mWQqH-kWRyt3RjNnrXfc5qlDavriLb/w640-h482/P1060988.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Duff Lake</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><b>Day 4: </b>It poured rain and blew hard all night and well into the morning, so we decided to spend our one discretionary day here, and hopefully get some better/drier weather. The rain ceased in the late morning although the wind kept at it. Fortunately, it allowed us to dry almost everything.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJk4h6QGwoqJ5jnJBeJss-GiQG7fRlM-XjPClInN-EX-3hMQq_tfmzhUii4_b52UX7Qpq5umwgCZE4ZybTt5-8qv7iMjKTZ3XXY6k0BQsNLUx0FrvRBInEBOz4YFocCpQ7e-8bpja7tFmS/s2048/Screen+Shot+2021-08-10+at+6.44.50+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1548" data-original-width="2048" height="485" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJk4h6QGwoqJ5jnJBeJss-GiQG7fRlM-XjPClInN-EX-3hMQq_tfmzhUii4_b52UX7Qpq5umwgCZE4ZybTt5-8qv7iMjKTZ3XXY6k0BQsNLUx0FrvRBInEBOz4YFocCpQ7e-8bpja7tFmS/w640-h485/Screen+Shot+2021-08-10+at+6.44.50+PM.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><b>Day 5: </b>The clouds and fog were down on the deck in the morning, but it wasn't raining so off we went. I was familiar enough with the rest of the route that even with the low cloud, we were able to roll right along, with only a few looks at the GPS to confirm some micro-navigation choices. We weren't sure what the forecast was to bring, and with the exposed nature of the terrain, we elected to put in a long day and try and cross into the headwaters of the upper Takhini river, West branch. On the past trips, we had had good weather, and always camped on the Chilkat drainage side of the pass, as the country is stunning.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_hljjRWfZJvdK-gvV5fo5QrsJ4dYy1nNdU1CNzZS6BPyiopaSIvSmdbd4R6FB2HezLKqtLTYZhHFCqwieI4aMIRkZ2JB4LlSZJbwu7TlmT-9OnWHX103Q2urGgp59s3302B-UZ1R_UaVD/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+044.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_hljjRWfZJvdK-gvV5fo5QrsJ4dYy1nNdU1CNzZS6BPyiopaSIvSmdbd4R6FB2HezLKqtLTYZhHFCqwieI4aMIRkZ2JB4LlSZJbwu7TlmT-9OnWHX103Q2urGgp59s3302B-UZ1R_UaVD/w640-h480/Duff+to+Primrose+044.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Headwaters of the Chilkat 2013</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVbP79RFA_Yyi7Q9JJbP7F688RbbDJSULVDX8uQ0eBGUx9xQUL5GsAxOtu_ki_hlrgXlCpgBL3pQdz3DM_iXh6sv6GtRwu2n5-TxE1fot9K9uvPod3-dm0DkGzijyFExtYEiAlp5j9nUVj/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+053.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVbP79RFA_Yyi7Q9JJbP7F688RbbDJSULVDX8uQ0eBGUx9xQUL5GsAxOtu_ki_hlrgXlCpgBL3pQdz3DM_iXh6sv6GtRwu2n5-TxE1fot9K9uvPod3-dm0DkGzijyFExtYEiAlp5j9nUVj/w640-h360/Duff+to+Primrose+053.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From the pass over to the Takhini 2013</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7j4oIRIPp60of16rC6ouFpflO_GyyL1wXbJTqh5vyhx5D6aF3irEg7oqT3R0d-QSVyeYTfn-eVessxf6TxHLWw0oR_0LEBLyDFUkoXKf8zq0j_zXqlkWfyEaff6tfol10TKb138FO9Eew/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+066.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7j4oIRIPp60of16rC6ouFpflO_GyyL1wXbJTqh5vyhx5D6aF3irEg7oqT3R0d-QSVyeYTfn-eVessxf6TxHLWw0oR_0LEBLyDFUkoXKf8zq0j_zXqlkWfyEaff6tfol10TKb138FO9Eew/w640-h360/Duff+to+Primrose+066.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crossing into the Takhini 2013</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>However, the clouds were down and we just kept rolling along, making really good progress in the rugged terrain. By late afternoon we had crossed the pass and dropped down to the upper Takhini, making camp around 6pm just before the bush gets really thick, at a lovely gravel knoll we found on a previous trip.</div><div><br /></div><div> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaxdPM1lQGN1whQNcpnm0aFjCI_ZaS_cKigVp2sXJRQcmhVfMJ6NqZQUlOtTMvnvV7zi10204yVZs0Ksop9MZIXMsR7nqqjzdicX5lbPuL1PatjGLwh4cd6NomZ20tl35Uagw_hd755Gil/s4320/P1070005.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaxdPM1lQGN1whQNcpnm0aFjCI_ZaS_cKigVp2sXJRQcmhVfMJ6NqZQUlOtTMvnvV7zi10204yVZs0Ksop9MZIXMsR7nqqjzdicX5lbPuL1PatjGLwh4cd6NomZ20tl35Uagw_hd755Gil/w640-h480/P1070005.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking into the West fork of the upper Takhini 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8i9xqUHZZFXIEyfe5bR_3MPN1-AVc2AEyry2BrWA6Qz8KWTM5knnp9Gtpn6NeXaKRxg1y4LTiuQvBUHh2JgXl3DI0gp1wcUQupyKXvaJhspgo6gP5_dXdvQucwQe3FVIIRUAeK8j7_URt/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+088.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8i9xqUHZZFXIEyfe5bR_3MPN1-AVc2AEyry2BrWA6Qz8KWTM5knnp9Gtpn6NeXaKRxg1y4LTiuQvBUHh2JgXl3DI0gp1wcUQupyKXvaJhspgo6gP5_dXdvQucwQe3FVIIRUAeK8j7_URt/w640-h480/Duff+to+Primrose+088.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gravel knoll camp 2013</td></tr></tbody></table><div> </div><div>If there is any downside to this trip, the upper Takhini valley, West branch, is it. Its a great example of the interior side of the Coast range vegetation in action. Fortunately, its not a long section, and with some good route selection (and luck) you can pick up an animal trail that will take you down paddlers left of the river to where the coniferous forest of Alpine Fir begins, and you can cross with ease to paddlers right and again pick up the old horse trail/animal trail that will take you down to the forks of the upper Takhini.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiENKfkXRXhY3qPGGW03hUNZXsb8na64TKKXIzX9wMf1g68BoqRvvQHqBAfTplZVTiy-CKpWMBemxgD8LBRxyUVbuHW36haDkmnpujfKAr4kRLbWSiRy1IjulvmoA77Dn_wktStO7_FKfq1/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+097.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiENKfkXRXhY3qPGGW03hUNZXsb8na64TKKXIzX9wMf1g68BoqRvvQHqBAfTplZVTiy-CKpWMBemxgD8LBRxyUVbuHW36haDkmnpujfKAr4kRLbWSiRy1IjulvmoA77Dn_wktStO7_FKfq1/w640-h360/Duff+to+Primrose+097.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Embracing the upper Takhini 2013</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Oj3Dk442_7Wz41BwH4yjWS_FIIVOPVc2proYlYnR4Df_lCZ8TYwXisuNGHjCiomK_a8LTGcIICrjJDYMPTKD54Y1ZyOpougFxndIPerGcwyR9Q53LyEfCeJON1Qgj6gmhbHRGZyoaFMs/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+098.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4320" data-original-width="3240" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0Oj3Dk442_7Wz41BwH4yjWS_FIIVOPVc2proYlYnR4Df_lCZ8TYwXisuNGHjCiomK_a8LTGcIICrjJDYMPTKD54Y1ZyOpougFxndIPerGcwyR9Q53LyEfCeJON1Qgj6gmhbHRGZyoaFMs/w480-h640/Duff+to+Primrose+098.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old hunting trail upper Takhini 2013</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKCZa-_q8w8UIK-edeQTYMr3ri1pgFymVVDNo1-XLCANXKw6N4SuHCKZ6aPUXHZvzI9Dp-_mzT_A2J-Lj0dW0oS3_7y6oqc4w1MLEyfrIbTDzhIJR0AbHfdDi-J234gfYzQBax3gvdAh7G/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+103.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKCZa-_q8w8UIK-edeQTYMr3ri1pgFymVVDNo1-XLCANXKw6N4SuHCKZ6aPUXHZvzI9Dp-_mzT_A2J-Lj0dW0oS3_7y6oqc4w1MLEyfrIbTDzhIJR0AbHfdDi-J234gfYzQBax3gvdAh7G/w640-h360/Duff+to+Primrose+103.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wading the upper Takhini 2013</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikyx0bmh49t2otp2ry_s9dfSYDu0sNhQWDotX72hFGZXZt-yuPr0moe3Z4c32tohCr2PzPJyH4bK8KvT9Z5p9mU6GQpKc23lME5UiVwbZk1aDiGXo80_QPBjyMiWlTPtSBnn7IdPlsQy7a/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+106.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4320" data-original-width="3240" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikyx0bmh49t2otp2ry_s9dfSYDu0sNhQWDotX72hFGZXZt-yuPr0moe3Z4c32tohCr2PzPJyH4bK8KvT9Z5p9mU6GQpKc23lME5UiVwbZk1aDiGXo80_QPBjyMiWlTPtSBnn7IdPlsQy7a/w480-h640/Duff+to+Primrose+106.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upper Takhini 2013</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>Its worth noting that while the brush in the upper Takhini is bad, its not a deal-breaker, and is really no worse than a lot of other sub-alpine river valleys in The Yukon. That being said, avoiding it would make for a much nicer experience overall, and part of this trip was to check out a high alpine pass to the South of the valley that looked like it might offer an alternative to this schwack-fest. Unfortunately, the weather didn't cooperate and the mountains were socked in so we elected to once again embrace the bush. Now, I just have to go back to tie this pass in with the route.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Day 6: </b>The weather improved overnight, and by breakfast, Blue patches were appearing and soon the cloud cleared out giving us brilliant, sunny warm weather which would continue for the rest of the trip. We schwacked our way down the valley, and by noon were at the nice camp site situated on granite slabs and Caribou moss covered flats right but the river. We've stayed at this spot on other trips as its an old hunters camp, and its a delight after the upper valley.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1soAZG5Zn9-CgZG53SFIaef6JHL3RTD2ZXXp3C36utkUSlzE5REHIc7I9m8_ZAzM33N6cbBaIzYy9YCJADbQKn_G1xWi_pXX4z5fq-1E1ZbHKExgn4vgN6p58dnxQTgXK0Di7H43QSavf/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+111.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1soAZG5Zn9-CgZG53SFIaef6JHL3RTD2ZXXp3C36utkUSlzE5REHIc7I9m8_ZAzM33N6cbBaIzYy9YCJADbQKn_G1xWi_pXX4z5fq-1E1ZbHKExgn4vgN6p58dnxQTgXK0Di7H43QSavf/w640-h480/Duff+to+Primrose+111.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Granite ledge camp, upper Takhini 2013</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div>You soon reach the East fork of the Takhini, and its a boots-off crossing of its 3 channels. Now this location is where previous knowledge comes in handy. On our first foray into this valley in 2003, we came in from the East and located the old horse trail from the high side of the East forks valley. And what a trail it is. Although its getting overgrown, its in good shape overall, and allows you to switch back your way down (or up). In places, its like walking on the Chilkoot trail.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPvlp3NdyDRm0a48GelE7wFwj2twCupBYAZ_1dRQEFyzu0szUapymRPKcUm2-Hj6BCW6jdRV9iovYV8RGWPqeIjUXhyphenhyphenNVvEjm0ncBrVl2aXwtg6vB8Hu06_uCK-3PNk5ghW-Dyr3_-uyae/s4320/P1070028.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4320" data-original-width="3240" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPvlp3NdyDRm0a48GelE7wFwj2twCupBYAZ_1dRQEFyzu0szUapymRPKcUm2-Hj6BCW6jdRV9iovYV8RGWPqeIjUXhyphenhyphenNVvEjm0ncBrVl2aXwtg6vB8Hu06_uCK-3PNk5ghW-Dyr3_-uyae/w480-h640/P1070028.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">East fork horse trail 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div>If you didn't know of its existence, you could have a pretty miserable time bashing your way up the valley. Colin and co. elected to head up paddlers left/lookers right of the East fork (not knowing of the trails existence) and did find a decent animal trail that got them up high. They then had to cross the East Takhini in one larger channel. Again, they're tough.<div>As you walk up the old horse trail on paddlers right (lookers left), you see all sorts of old axe cuts indicting the origins of this trail. The trail is an extension of the horse trail that comes up the Watson river to Rose lake, then over to Johns lake and Takhini lake, where it heads either up the Takhini river valley to the forks, or over to Kusawa lake. Sadly, the old trails are growing over and are soon going to be lost.</div><div>There are some great views of waterfalls from clear Granite slabs on the way up.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4fnnRwEEqwEMBvUed767_45JQJId_Uajnofi9GUyMIE0dhHqUSYdmlV6Js8B0q-aZHWwgrY2EQYlC3TFGoummnWvTp3qANsQJGVqen1JsSxSjUC3R9sLldI1xegaAh9U4DQY8JyG7z0kP/s4320/P1070034.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4320" data-original-width="3240" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4fnnRwEEqwEMBvUed767_45JQJId_Uajnofi9GUyMIE0dhHqUSYdmlV6Js8B0q-aZHWwgrY2EQYlC3TFGoummnWvTp3qANsQJGVqen1JsSxSjUC3R9sLldI1xegaAh9U4DQY8JyG7z0kP/w480-h640/P1070034.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">East fork upper Takhini 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzUtySy3qKK53-RRpsD9jb_5J4u2hyLwJtbl6fjQjaMSWZNrLNI-xL245n8QXpxd-yjX0zpsCTRCFQQZu4mbYPlz7_XRpLLUwYvkD7RsycJN7rv6DxxD_vaSFd5QvrhyB1-xroJF0GsFDG/s4320/P1070030.JPG"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzUtySy3qKK53-RRpsD9jb_5J4u2hyLwJtbl6fjQjaMSWZNrLNI-xL245n8QXpxd-yjX0zpsCTRCFQQZu4mbYPlz7_XRpLLUwYvkD7RsycJN7rv6DxxD_vaSFd5QvrhyB1-xroJF0GsFDG/w640-h360/P1070030.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Soon, you reach the tree line, and an old hunters spike camp. Its a nice spot, but a better spot to camp is just above it on a terrace with flat sites and clear water just a short walk into the trees. The views are kinda good too.<div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtXyTdSz-J11zhi4BQUC34MTYkGdiDWHNejrfg-F-R-leO7E-KAFP_BnWlUstbEv_LZzY4FgLK7hhoWRIM09sVqhFLog-_AN9c7TMKEX4UmeIpRVxjp169tV6p28osy5Y87oMDwlp0CVvf/s4320/P1070038.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtXyTdSz-J11zhi4BQUC34MTYkGdiDWHNejrfg-F-R-leO7E-KAFP_BnWlUstbEv_LZzY4FgLK7hhoWRIM09sVqhFLog-_AN9c7TMKEX4UmeIpRVxjp169tV6p28osy5Y87oMDwlp0CVvf/w640-h360/P1070038.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hunters camp 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><br /><div><b>Day 7: </b>Another sunny day in the offing so off we went up and over the pass to Silt Lake and the upper Primrose river. This is yet another stunning part of the coast range with clear tarns, mossy flats and 5 star views. With good weather, the mountaineering potential here would be fantastic.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_y94ibZwE2a3TPz0IqXl_M3ONnxvIj4bbORFMQmAlmyEz4iRpuJmoz6_Cg3iKbduBBJlIe0hth4Lt4Ck9TqlIkLLApdaIZDEubAAgN7Fkh1xId9y3WoxMXxhLPDCz6Y13WjluUFEcTOEa/s4320/P1070044.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_y94ibZwE2a3TPz0IqXl_M3ONnxvIj4bbORFMQmAlmyEz4iRpuJmoz6_Cg3iKbduBBJlIe0hth4Lt4Ck9TqlIkLLApdaIZDEubAAgN7Fkh1xId9y3WoxMXxhLPDCz6Y13WjluUFEcTOEa/w640-h480/P1070044.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicD0JMnEV-qpRbGfIcayoCl1wETDIzfB4nM67FZIN5K5SLeoNymoVOOBxIl-CsWgVFjcBC09TXZxUkOlEQuXwx17H4Ln2-SHnFz9D0765AJy9KyrtL1922IGWQewiot2yYxWf7G5kDCads/s4320/P1070047.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicD0JMnEV-qpRbGfIcayoCl1wETDIzfB4nM67FZIN5K5SLeoNymoVOOBxIl-CsWgVFjcBC09TXZxUkOlEQuXwx17H4Ln2-SHnFz9D0765AJy9KyrtL1922IGWQewiot2yYxWf7G5kDCads/w640-h360/P1070047.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ojFH0AaF486zZF4HEoAAAzU_vTg_QSfI4AQa3kXLmPVoog7GRSGiySNE233WSp0eMhyadGEgiM5A5oeVsUE27HOD0kuJVCyiNifJIoZy04IRozjrhUWOiHyrN4geOMsuW6dbZ8zgGgyU/s4320/P1070052.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2ojFH0AaF486zZF4HEoAAAzU_vTg_QSfI4AQa3kXLmPVoog7GRSGiySNE233WSp0eMhyadGEgiM5A5oeVsUE27HOD0kuJVCyiNifJIoZy04IRozjrhUWOiHyrN4geOMsuW6dbZ8zgGgyU/w640-h360/P1070052.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div><br /><div><div><br /></div></div></div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL1POH7m7tmZe8uIu9s0UFH0S_Plbol9NU04yJuBrgTxZucKy8DnlVHt3NSPA22iM6Ih6WQxBMke72bm2FZJ6vFFpUppL2DpggQk1Y2OjdkUpdin6-8cOALvYR6YWsiOYlIPJ3mH-84CSK/s4320/Duff+to+Primrose+124.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL1POH7m7tmZe8uIu9s0UFH0S_Plbol9NU04yJuBrgTxZucKy8DnlVHt3NSPA22iM6Ih6WQxBMke72bm2FZJ6vFFpUppL2DpggQk1Y2OjdkUpdin6-8cOALvYR6YWsiOYlIPJ3mH-84CSK/w640-h480/Duff+to+Primrose+124.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">North end of Silt Lake 2013 with Primrose beyond</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKYrTcJ1StdU3QHsse3ti2vZReVXSznYHo0Cg8A1bHDV_eklPDRmWwxJa816WPuCmnXyx3L2xBE7e2gAardTRYSJpIzOgf54i7TEdNNbUZzN3dWQFPLf3tHab-WT0wkWrvCfKHzWzg_NDq/s1974/Screen+Shot+2021-08-10+at+6.45.07+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1554" data-original-width="1974" height="504" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKYrTcJ1StdU3QHsse3ti2vZReVXSznYHo0Cg8A1bHDV_eklPDRmWwxJa816WPuCmnXyx3L2xBE7e2gAardTRYSJpIzOgf54i7TEdNNbUZzN3dWQFPLf3tHab-WT0wkWrvCfKHzWzg_NDq/w640-h504/Screen+Shot+2021-08-10+at+6.45.07+PM.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Soon you're dropping off the East side towards the Primrose valley. You don't want to drop down straight East into the deep, glacially fed creek. Rather, trend left/North to drop down into the sub-alpine bowl that has clear water and great camp sites. From here, you follow your nose and pick a line down through the Alpine Fir forest and hit the wide, flat valley of Silt Lake. Once you get there, the name makes sense, as its a wide, shallow part of the Primrose that is easily wadeable by even the least tall member of any party. Its tempting to just stay river left and follow it down to where the channels come together, but its much better to just take off your boots and start walking/sloshing out and right to the far end of the cliffs on the other side. Its pleasant walking on the sand/silt, and never more than knee deep. From the far, right end you can then put on your boots and start walking through clearings and small meadows on your way to Primrose lake. Lots of great camping options in this area with more and more human signs reminding you your trip is nearing its completion. We kept walking and put in a big day to end at the furthest South sand point on Primrose lakes East side. Its a good spot to camp and you can get a floatplane ride out from here if you so desire. Sadly, some idiots have decided that cutting down most of the live Alpine Fir here was a good idea, and leaving them to dry out on the ground for firewood. The busier the backcountry gets, the more fools show up.</div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdb_LSvcWwLjT2LsRm829jQ3lxIjtTrdFtZgSEad14yjxOQ3trnYSzuP8l9DRAn5kRGpTiHe9CRzvE5g4p18bgDKPE5TtCzr-b6a5wOjIM0n2lR7XAlrbtju-MB5zdqHw-325L9A2hs_Vh/s4320/P1070061.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdb_LSvcWwLjT2LsRm829jQ3lxIjtTrdFtZgSEad14yjxOQ3trnYSzuP8l9DRAn5kRGpTiHe9CRzvE5g4p18bgDKPE5TtCzr-b6a5wOjIM0n2lR7XAlrbtju-MB5zdqHw-325L9A2hs_Vh/w640-h480/P1070061.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Silt lake with Mt Foster to South</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCP6ypsuZ39yBT89L9cisD774Ip7Ng3glfwJcQkFD-_vd0Jrf1-hS-1ioAgJRsd4wzY_qGV_1WtEhuMVb7QjlzsQQsrvCTKEojwnQPcPxVgN71pwQVR6R8LdVrf-t3lh8B8HEogXyshrkb/s4320/P1070067.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCP6ypsuZ39yBT89L9cisD774Ip7Ng3glfwJcQkFD-_vd0Jrf1-hS-1ioAgJRsd4wzY_qGV_1WtEhuMVb7QjlzsQQsrvCTKEojwnQPcPxVgN71pwQVR6R8LdVrf-t3lh8B8HEogXyshrkb/w640-h360/P1070067.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Silt lake 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><b>Day 8: </b>Another cracker day. From here, you have a few choices to make on your route out. Colin and co. continued down the lake on the old/good horse trail to the cabins (privately owned!), and then climbed up into the pass and headed out to the Bernie creek exploration road. This is a good option, but I wanted to have another night in the upper Wheaton valley, as its an incredibly beautiful spot. From our camp, we sidled up though at times heavy Alder and Willow, and gained the alpine. You could also follow the horse trail down the lake and climb up from down there. Pick your poison. Once in the pass, careful sleuthing will reveal the old horse trail that heads off down the Wheaton river. Again, knowing where it is helps a lot. It took a bit of finding, what with 17 years having passed since I was last on it, but find it we did and then we flew down into the trees on a great old trail thats is also slowing getting overgrown and unused by everything but the local populace. You soon cross the upper Wheaton in a lovey, grassy forest grove covered in fragrant Wormwood. You then enter part of the old burn where the trail is less obvious, but following your by now well-honed sense of trail sleuthing, you soon find it again and cruise down through open forest on a trail you could mountain bike on. Pick your 5 star camp site in this area, theres heaps of 'em.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9p9wYlJLG8hIkpvz5NXNu3FJNqVXUQtcuO_RYW4PD9F7lZ66BoLC9isLPFmshBcryVpkvZN4bGNd6WOXFeKUV5gsDpty6_xVdzGi61N-O8XfuiWfPVq6Yfge8LQJaUIPe7HCY74mIA6XR/s4320/P1070075.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9p9wYlJLG8hIkpvz5NXNu3FJNqVXUQtcuO_RYW4PD9F7lZ66BoLC9isLPFmshBcryVpkvZN4bGNd6WOXFeKUV5gsDpty6_xVdzGi61N-O8XfuiWfPVq6Yfge8LQJaUIPe7HCY74mIA6XR/w640-h480/P1070075.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Primrose lake 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4E5Tc9ATiE7NVCohtmDxfR_6mXay0tqt08aKruMiwG6TtV4p1qKNDknbmigsm8z89TbtgXFxUT9ZGdBkxTsKsBumNUR5rRtdT2gAU5YaUSGbVkyq9gT38NxkA7gsu8JXj6pVc6-xwZG5G/s4320/P1070077.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4E5Tc9ATiE7NVCohtmDxfR_6mXay0tqt08aKruMiwG6TtV4p1qKNDknbmigsm8z89TbtgXFxUT9ZGdBkxTsKsBumNUR5rRtdT2gAU5YaUSGbVkyq9gT38NxkA7gsu8JXj6pVc6-xwZG5G/w640-h480/P1070077.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upper Wheaton horse trail 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSznfKOE2GahXhO_sH2YjkFDFHYs1kXcQkLdXCrXzpJDMEPJyFYAswmClyAzV7HZKC-Q7mNXJcoFgNK_Xn3YWQmCGVsCh6MXhR7BXfbwLT6kbtxyRHIoBciJMH0s1r-2RKjRqFQmn17CWp/s4320/P1070081.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSznfKOE2GahXhO_sH2YjkFDFHYs1kXcQkLdXCrXzpJDMEPJyFYAswmClyAzV7HZKC-Q7mNXJcoFgNK_Xn3YWQmCGVsCh6MXhR7BXfbwLT6kbtxyRHIoBciJMH0s1r-2RKjRqFQmn17CWp/w640-h480/P1070081.JPG" width="640" /></a></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2WZmNqlcmDAgJykNt9N_J1PZ312uTlhX_azEIUgpniPUpR4JfSS0TnHvZshsm50mKHG6tHJhi3bjfoCpMkporuT6xWJFdndOcOWnOdQycRc8gGD1znF4znQj4lraidHoOh1kGL4Okff-5/s4320/P1070082.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3240" data-original-width="4320" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2WZmNqlcmDAgJykNt9N_J1PZ312uTlhX_azEIUgpniPUpR4JfSS0TnHvZshsm50mKHG6tHJhi3bjfoCpMkporuT6xWJFdndOcOWnOdQycRc8gGD1znF4znQj4lraidHoOh1kGL4Okff-5/w640-h480/P1070082.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Upper Wheaton horse trail 2021</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC6VU_5CVxwf_5knnie412n6MoqzxggXRUCUY0XwoYKFHJfchPjG2nhEw9Xu0QLY0YtNOuLcPJvr8PWIsSQ1r56WNNXIHAtCUONHroeOsDL79Se0Vgh-7_Do25_eW6Lj-Uu1Aha3IkyoGM/s4320/P1070084.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2432" data-original-width="4320" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjC6VU_5CVxwf_5knnie412n6MoqzxggXRUCUY0XwoYKFHJfchPjG2nhEw9Xu0QLY0YtNOuLcPJvr8PWIsSQ1r56WNNXIHAtCUONHroeOsDL79Se0Vgh-7_Do25_eW6Lj-Uu1Aha3IkyoGM/w640-h360/P1070084.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Esker camp at the head of the Wheaton</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2e5cC4bFmOmV_yOPdcIy8edmS5QpCuhpKn22myYnaqntv6OQqG9LdkPet6l3lT4XgON1A0RKY2oF-C-iXf9hJlbAf51SElT1-ZTWYjrU4llorGGSmZXtl3C1QNd_PejMHn6rYwX0evDg_/s1728/Screen+Shot+2021-08-10+at+6.45.17+PM.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1516" data-original-width="1728" height="562" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2e5cC4bFmOmV_yOPdcIy8edmS5QpCuhpKn22myYnaqntv6OQqG9LdkPet6l3lT4XgON1A0RKY2oF-C-iXf9hJlbAf51SElT1-ZTWYjrU4llorGGSmZXtl3C1QNd_PejMHn6rYwX0evDg_/w640-h562/Screen+Shot+2021-08-10+at+6.45.17+PM.png" width="640" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div><b>Day 9: </b>Sunny? Again? Well damn, I guess we'll just have to make the best of it. It was our home day, and we knew Tony would be waiting for us at the upper Wheaton river crossing, so we hit the trail early. All too soon you lose the old horse trail super highway and then emerge from the forest into the old burn. In the intervening 17 years since my last foray down the valley on foot (I've packrafted it a few times but that doesn't count) the burn has gotten more blow down and secondary growth, and its nowhere as cruisy going as I remembered it. The only thing to do is put your head down and go. The alternative would be heading up and over the usual route in to packraft the upper Wheaton from Bernie creek. This would allow you to enjoy the lovely upper valley and still avoid the old burn. I'd recommend this route. We, however, thrashed our way down to eventually emerge from the burn and onto better trail in old growth forest with some swampy bits. Soon enough you find yourself cruising through open Pine forest on a fine old trail where you run into a faint ATV trail following down Bernie creek on creek right. Follow this up to the Bernie creek road even though its going away from where you want to be going. Trust me. It was a hot slog down the road to the Wheaton where Tony met us with a cooler of frosty beverages. AWESOME!! The journey was over, but it left some great memories.</div><div><br /></div><div>I hesitate to recommend this route as one of the best backcountry trips in the Yukon simply because its most emphatically NOT a trip for everyone. Its really tough terrain and while the macro navigation (in good weather) is straightforward, the micro navigation and ones bush schwacking tolerance/ability plays a big part in ones enjoyment of it. There is lots of boulder hopping/scrambling with plenty of spots to break a limb, and the evacuation locations are few. Don't attempt this crossing lightly. We made the trip in 8 travelling days, but thats only because of our previous knowledge of the route. Obviously a savvy group could go even quicker if that was the goal. Colin Abbott and company took 9 with no previous knowledge of the route, but they're all tough-as-nails XC ski athletes, so I would think 10 days at least would be a reasonable goal. Your results may vary. </div><br /><br /><div><br /></div></div>Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-76163259425091682532019-07-06T19:01:00.002-07:002019-07-06T19:01:58.865-07:00Packrafting the DonjekFor years I have avoided "popular" Yukon hikes and rivers on general principles.<br />
However, sometimes trips are popular for a very good reason.<br />
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Such is the case with the Donjek loop in Kluane National Park.<br />
Its an ~8-ish day or less hiking route involving a hike into the Donek river via Hoge pass, then up the Donjek, and over a number of different pass options to the Duke river and out to the Alaska highway.<br />
Packrafting the Donjek has become quite popular recently, and our good friend Paul Burbidge convinced us to join him and his wife and others for a "family" trip on the Canada Day long weekend.<br />
It was great.<br />
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<iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/346203506" width="640"></iframe><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/346203506">The Classic Donjek Glacier Packraft Loop</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user4051868">Yukon Frolics</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-46670532285759323152019-06-17T13:39:00.002-07:002019-06-17T13:40:18.922-07:00Seagull Creek to the NisutlinA couple of years ago, we had walked into Seagull creek and determined there wasn't enough water.<br />
Then we walked out again.<br />
However, the area intrigued us as a cheaper, less time intensive route to the Nisutlin and its fun whitewater.<br />
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We decided to walk in to the McConnell river, which is one mountain range over from Seagull creek, and flows into the Nisutlin just upstream from the rapids..<br />
Well, we arrived in the Seagull creek valley, it was late, it was starting to pour rain, and damned if there wasn't enough water in Seagull creek. Especially so after the first large tributary flows in from the West, just 3km down stream.<br />
Access is super easy. Drive up to the Ground Hit creek exploration road on the South Canol. Drive up to the high pass just before the road/trail starts dropping down into Seagull creek. Park here (unless you are very, very confident on your rigs ability to get you back up and out of the valley) and walk 4 km down to Seagull lakes, then follow the old trail down stream until you want to paddle. <br />
Paddling the rapids of the Nisutlin require you to either:<br />
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<li>Fly into McNeil lake/Moss lake</li>
<li>Walk in from the Ketza mine access road and then to TeBob creek (normal PR access)</li>
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The flight in is speedy for what you get, and walking into TeBob creek involves a long car shuttle.</div>
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This route, if you walk bushwhack back to the Canol up Rose river (4-5km, 1.5-2 hours), allows you to paddle into the Nisutlin on a super fun little river, hit the Nisutlins upper rapids (fun!) in a 4 day weekend. It looks us 1 day down Seagull creek into the McConnell, then another day into the Nisutlin, through the rapids and down to Rose river, where we then bushwhacked back to our truck at Rose river bridge #1. You could probably fit it all in to a 3 day weekend if you drove a lot of the shuttle at night.</div>
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Seagull creek is similar in nature to the Rose river with lots of boulder gardens. Seagull creek is harder than the Rose though. Water levels would be good until late June. If the water looks good to go in the Rose, its probably fine on Seagull creek.</div>
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The McConnell still awaits, but given its volume where it meetss Seagull creek, the upper reaches seemed like they could be really bony.</div>
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<iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/342627944" width="640"></iframe></div>
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<a href="https://vimeo.com/342627944">Packrafting Seagull Creek to the Nisutlin River</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user4051868">Yukon Frolics</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</div>
Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-89791746062392817332019-06-02T10:26:00.002-07:002019-06-02T10:28:37.077-07:00Little Rancheria RiverA recent trip into the Little Rancheria.<br />
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Access via the Silvertip mine road and old trails. 2 days in.<br />
River was high. We paddled it at about 13 cumecs on the nearby Big Creek flow station. The Little Rancheria felt about 30 cumecs. Lots of III, some IV- (we carried past 2) and the two tiered waterfall at 60 4' 34.87"N, 129 44' 44.87"W.<br />
No idea if its been paddled before. We didn't see a sign of anything.<br />
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<iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/339854776" width="640"></iframe><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/339854776">Packrafting the Little Rancheria River</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user4051868">Yukon Frolics</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-55124856883204122682018-01-01T19:57:00.001-08:002018-01-01T19:57:36.224-08:00Tungsten to Tulita VideoThe cold weather has been good for something.....<br />
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Grab a coffee or beer and settle back.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/249341464" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="640"></iframe>Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-38082211520710414532017-08-12T13:56:00.001-07:002017-08-12T13:57:13.709-07:00T3 Part V: Thundercloud Creek to Tulita.While we had had glorious, hot sunny weather coming up the creeks, the day after the Flood creek thunder storm, the weather turned on us.<br />
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The clouds gathered, and the rain started up as we made our way down Thundercloud that evening, and by that night, it was socked in and raining hard.<br />
We had blown up after the creek exited from the canyon, and we alternately dragged and floated down to where another tributary of Thundercloud creek joined its mineral stained waters with our clear tributaries. <br />
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It had been interesting paddling that evening, as the tributaries channel was all over the place, including draining into two clear lakes that were seemingly without exit.<br />
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We finally found some clear-ish water and decent camp site around 8 PM where a side creek joined up. There something about getting a raging fire going that can turn even a wet, muddy camp into something relatively comfortable. We did just that.<br />
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It poured all night, and the morning showed a river on the rise and the overflow channel from the creek that we were camped by starting to nudge at our campsite. <br />
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It rained all day, but a big fire and brew up in the afternoon raised our spirits.<br />
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Interesting paddling through small canyons that looked threatening enough to require scouting made sure we never got bored.<br />
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We joined the Silver Berry river, and the already high water levels grew yet again.<br />
Later that day we finally made camp, tucked away in the trees along side a nice, clear creek. It was a cold North wind, and we were grateful to be snugged away with a good fire.<br />
The river continued to rise all night, and in the morning, it looked like the Mississippi.<br />
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The common theme with the high water was that even benign river features ended up creating some pretty squirrelly features. Later that morning we scouted a small canyon that ordinarily wouldn't have even slowed us down. Large standing waves and weird eddy lines were the rule rather than the exception.<br />
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Yet another big river joined the fun, the Ravens Throat. <br />
I can only imagine what the river would look like at normal levels, as the all the gravel bars were covered and side channels full. We camped earlier than normal at the last likely looking spot just above a looming canyon. The flood level conditions had us all on edge.<br />
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We went to bed in the drizzle, but it cleared overnight and an amazing blue bird day greeted us.<br />
Its amazing how nice weather improves ones river outlook. <br />
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The looming canyon turned out to be straight forward, but another canyon just down stream turned out to have some nasty lurking whirlpools, and one formed up seemingly out of nowhere, and took Dylan out, or rather took him down. I had the GoPro on and was able to catch its vicious attack.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/228084657" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="640"></iframe><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/228084657">The whirlpool that ate Dylan</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user4051868">Yukon Frolics</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.<br />
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Just downstream, the Redstone joined up, and this would be the last major tributary until the Mackenzie. Somehow, while reliving Dylans under-water tour, we missed the hotsprings. <br />
We came across the last major canyon on the drainage, a formidable looking thing with all that water being funnelled into its open maw, then rapidly turning a 90 degree to who knows what (where?).<br />
The others made a quick scout on river left to confirm the canyon, while scary looking, was straightforward. We went into it, carefully skirting the huge eddy lines, and enjoyed the views.<br />
The Redstone continues down through some very cool country, with high, steep hillsides and some tortured geology. The water was very dirty, and finding clean water became our number one priority.<br />
We made camp that night on a beautiful flat, well above the flood scoured and debris littered bars at river level. We had a fantastic, bug free camp with an A-1 camp fire site. No clean water, but letting the silt settle out in our containers made the dirty brew pretty palatable.<br />
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The river came down more than a foot that night, as measured by our sophisticated cairn measuring system.<br />
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The next day, we put in a long one, arriving at the Mackenzie in the soft evening light. All the bars were covered in mud and debris from the flood event, but we managed to find a nice sandy bar complete with lots of firewood and a clear, gravel filtered pool right behind camp.<br />
We lazed around the fire enjoying the late sunlight and warmth.<br />
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The heavy rains we had encountered earlier had brought the Redstone up approximately 4 meters, as measured at its recording station 65 km up from the Makenzie. This flood level basically kicked us out of the mountains much quicker than we anticipated, allowing us to log 90-100 km days with not much effort. The down side was dirty water and less camp site choices, but the easy floating was certainly enjoyed.<br />
The final day dawned sunny and hot, and we hit the mighty Mac to put in a long 100 km day to reach Tulita. The first 40 km down from the Redstone, the Mac cranks along at about 15 km/h or so, but by Old Fort Point, it slows and becomes little more than a huge lake for the final 60 km to Tulita. Its not without current though, and with a helpful tail wind, we alternately paddled and floated to our final camp, a clean gravel flat just 5km above town.<br />
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We bathed in the muddy, warm water, lounged in the late night sun and re-lived our journey.<br />
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We phoned Tintina air in Whitehorse to let the manager know that we had arrived earlier than anticipated, and they were flexible enough to move our pick up date ahead, and said they would be there the next day at 3 pm.<br />
Early the next morning we made the huge ferry across the Mac and arrived in our destination, where we promptly cleaned our boats, packed up and walked into town to the Northern Store, home of snacks and other much missed food stuffs.<br />
We hung out in the gazebo, enjoying the shade (it was about 28 Celsius out) and chatting with the friendly locals, who were eager to know where we had been. It was amazing that so many of them were quite familiar with the mountains and rivers we had just journeyed through.<br />
Our Piper Navajo showed up promptly at 3pm, and 2 hours later, we were home in Whitehorse. We determined that out of all the options, chartering a plane direct from home was the most cost effective, not to mention easiest method of getting home again.<br />
The days after a long trip such as this always involve a certain degree of sadness. Sadness in that the easy routine of breaking camp and moving with your friends towards a common yet distant goal is replaced with the workaday routine. <br />
I guess ultimately, if pressed, the reason one takes on these longer trips is to put things into perspective. How much do you really need? Whats important in your life? How important friends are.<br />
Thanks Dylan, Sky and Paul for helping put things into perspective. <br />
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-20839420187169100992017-08-07T09:18:00.003-07:002017-08-08T10:56:16.932-07:00T3 Part IV: Hell Roaring Creek to Thundercloud Creek.Hell Roaring (yet another evocotive Nahanni country name) creek is typical of the creeks in these parts.<br />
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Wide gravel flood plains to absorb the run off and excess flows from thunderstorms. The Limestone geology of the mountains doesn't allow for much water absorption, so when the heavens open up, the water comes flowing right into the creeks.<br />
We began hiking up Hell Roarings gravel highway late in the afternoon. It was a hot, sunny day, and frequent wading kept us cool.<br />
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The creek constricted a few times allowing us to gaze at the high canyon walls.<br />
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Eventually we camped on a nice flat by the river. A quick bath in the river and we were lounging by the mids enjoying the evening sun.<br />
The next day found us enjoying more of the same; cruising up the gravel flats, then wading to avoid canyons. The gravel flats eventually faded out, leaving us following game trails through open spruce forest until finally reaching a nice meadow where we stopped for the night. Nearby leftover ice sheets kept things cool.<br />
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The next day, we ended up bushwhacking over the pass to Flood creeks broad valley. We tried following game trails through the thick buck brush and willow, but ultimately ended plowing our way through as the animals just didn't seem interested in going where we wanted to.<br />
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We did finally happen upon an A-1 game trail that dropped us out of the pass and down to Flood creek. Awesome!<br />
Cruising up flood creek was a breeze. And the scenery was pretty great too. Big limestone peaks with folding were everywhere.<br />
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An afternoon thunderstorm moved in just as the creek narrowed into a cool canyon.<br />
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We followed the canyon as it narrowed, alternately wading and walking gravel bars. Finally, it ended in an impassable, deep slot, so we found an escape ramp and scrambled up steep choss to the top.<br />
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From there it was (mostly) easy cruising on animal trails to a fantastic, mossy campsite nearer the pass.<br />
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It was a stoked foursome that relaxed in the meadow that night, enjoying the view and bug free evening.<br />
Later, and enormous thunderstorm rolled through and entertained us with torrential rain and uncomfortably close lighting hits. This storm heralded changing weather, and the morning revealed overcast skies with rain threatening.<br />
We moved over the pass the next day, enjoying fine hiking on limestone terrain. We found a cool lake complete with its own duck population.<br />
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This was the headwaters of Thundercloud creek, and we followed it down on intermittent animal trails. We kept picking up streams, but the creek kept braiding out and never really got to a point that we considered blowing up.<br />
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A heavy afternoon thunderstorm had us throwing up a tarp for some down time.<br />
From there, we followed an animal superhighway all the way down to the broad valley where Thundercloud creek picked up a major western tributary, feasting on blueberries along the way. We found a cool warm springs that unfortunately did not form a pool.<br />
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Once out on the flat valley bottom, we blew up while trying to hide from the worst mosquitoes of the trip.<br />
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The last few kms of the hike skirted the edge of an interesting canyon that the creek (at this point more of a small river) flowed through. It was late enough in the day, and appeared daunting enough that we didn't bother blowing up and trying to run it.<br />
At this point, we could smell the Mackenzie and wanted to get cracking.<br />
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-11526133229057481832017-08-06T18:18:00.003-07:002017-08-06T18:18:17.635-07:00T3 Part III: Grizzly Creek to Black Wolf.Up to this point, while things had gone well, one problem we had been encountering with the heavy loads was that while Paul and Dylan in their new Gnarwhals were riding high and proud, Sky and myself, in our older Llamas, were dragging. A lot.<br />
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We had heard through social media that the Black Wolf had torn open one of the boats of our American friends, on sharp rocks.<br />
With our Llamas scraping along, and with generally lower water levels, Sky and myself offered an alternative plan to the others, where we would carry pretty much everything, thus enabling Dylan and Paul in their Vectran Gnarwhals to go super light and fast on the Black Wolf.<br />
So while Paul and Dylan packed up and hit the trail to Grizzly lake (and hot springs...), Sky and I stayed the night then had a fun paddle down the next day to the mouth of the Black Wolf.<br />
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Did I mention that the mouth of Grizzly creek has a 5 star camp site?<br />
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In the end, Sky and I were a bit bummed not to paddle the Black Wolf, but it was the best decision overall. Paul B and Dylan had a good trip down, unencumbered with extra gear and food, and managed to enjoy some of the Black Wolf.<br />
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I'll let Paul narrate THAT story over at his <a href="https://pburbidge.exposure.co/" target="_blank">exposure</a> site, as there is a tale to tell.<br />
We had incredible sunny, warm weather that day and the next, and after a lazy day at the mouth of the Black Wolf, two Gnarwhals, only slightly worse for wear from their wolf encounter, bobbed into site.<br />
After a relaxing night, we packed up early and hit the Broken Skull for the South Nahanni, which was only a few kms downstream.<br />
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We had about 90km to put in that day to make it to Hell Roaring creek and the next hiking portion of the trip, but a slowing river necessitated a buggy camp on a small creek.<br />
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Another to sunny day loomed as paddled onto the gravel of Hell Roaring creeks alluvial fan, where we had a swim, sorted gear and made ready for the longest hiking section over to the headwaters of Thundercloud creek, and the gateway to the Makenzie.<br />
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-60956399374985631832017-08-06T16:08:00.000-07:002017-08-06T17:48:12.280-07:00T3 Part II: South Nahanni to the Broken Skull.Sunday July 16th.<br />
The big hike loomed large.<br />
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We had a quick brew up on the creeks gravelly mouth, packed up and shouldered the beasts to begin the trek to the Broken Skull.<br />
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Stoke was low as the weight sagged into place. We reckoned on 70-80lbs in the <a href="https://www.hyperlitemountaingear.com/4400-porter.html" target="_blank">HMG 4400's</a>.<br />
Considering they recommend a max weight of 60, they carried surprisingly well. Sky had even more weight in his (85?), and while we constantly expected a shoulder strap to blow out, they never did so much as blink. I don't recommend carrying this much in them. Its not much fun. Bt, its nice to know that even though the flesh is weak, the HMG is up to it.<br />
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We carried up the creek, linking gravel flats, until being forced out of the valley and up into a relatively clear old burn. We followed this up to the alpine in off and on again rain before calling it a (long) day around 8PM.<br />
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It wasn't a great site, as there was no water, but it was flat-ish and located spectacularily.<br />
It poured rain all night, and in an MVP worthy move, Paul B scuttled about in the maelstrom, filling water bottles and pots from rainwater off the HMG tarps.<br />
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Camp was socked in when we got up, but the clouds began breaking up, and we followed game trails along ridges in clearing whether.<br />
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We ended up having to bust into a valley and back out again to access the route to our pass. Well placed Moose and Caribou trails allowed us to move quickly well above the tangled Alpine Fir forest.<br />
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We got into some amazing alpine meadows, and when an afternoon thunderstorm blew up, we gratefully threw up a tarp and had a brew up.<br />
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We walked over the pass late into the evening, in wonderful sunny weather, and made a 5 star camp in an alpine meadow well above the un-named lake referenced in the Nááts'ihch'oh <a href="https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/nt/naatsihchoh/visit/Visit" target="_blank">trip planner</a>.<br />
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They are correct. The area around the lake is a hiking nirvana. It would be wonderful to spend a week here and explore. Valleys extend off into the horizon allowing easy access to spectacular mountain ridges.<br />
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We however had a date with the un-named creek draining out of this lake and followed sporadic game trails before finally busting down through the forest into the buck brush and willow choked valley bottom.<br />
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We followed game trails downstream until finally picking up enough water to consider blowing up and floating.<br />
We paddled for about 10 minutes before encountering the first canyon. It had a narrow waterfall that necessitated a horrible portage around it. It was hot, the bush was thick, and the scree covered canyon walls made the climb out and descent back in quite unpleasant. <br />
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Relieved to be floating again, our stoke was rapidly shut down when we encountered the next impassable canyon. As if to drive another nail in our stoke coffin, the weather gods decided to pour rain. We deflated and packed up in a driving thunderstorm, and went searching for a game trail in the dripping vegetation that would take us around the canyon.<br />
We found the trail, but became soaked in the process by the thick, overhanging foliage.<br />
It was a cranky quartet that stopped at a creek mouth and blew up again amidst clouds of mosquitoes.<br />
The gods can be kind sometimes, and this was such an occasion.<br />
Five minutes downstream we came upon a perfect shingle bar, complete with firewood and no mosquitoes.<br />
With shelter up and fire on, crankiness was soon replaced by contentment and hot drinks.<br />
I would be lying however to say there wasn't an undercurrent of stress.<br />
We had no idea how the rest of the creek (small river) would go. The previous nights portages had us a bit gun-shy, and it was with a certain degree of uneasiness that we set off the next morning, although sun busting through last nights rain clouds had us smiling.<br />
The river dropped away in front of us, with several obvious constrictions ahead conveying thoughts of un-runnable canyons.<br />
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This was not the case however, with lovely little Limestone canyons popping up here and there with fun, splashy class II goodness. The odd easy III chute popped up, and one small log jam.<br />
Good times and we christened the waterway Gnarwhal creek in honour of Paul B and Dylan new boats.<br />
We made good time down to the Broken Skull, and in short order arrived at the mouth of Grizzly creek and access to the Black Wolf.<br />
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<br />Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-13511131746345697902017-08-06T13:21:00.002-07:002017-08-06T17:47:29.891-07:00T3 Part I: Little Nahanni to the South Nahanni.<div style="text-align: justify;">
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Saturday morning, July 15.</div>
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Anthony dropped us off just North of Flat Lakes, and we and our gear explosion blew up and loaded on the side of the road.<br />
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Drizzle and mosquitoes set the tone, but spirits were high.<br />
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The Little Nahanni is a gem. Canoeing it would suck. Well, thats harsh. But it would suck in a loaded tripping canoe. There is a lot of really good whitewater that would be very difficult in a loaded boat.<br />
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In a packraft, it was Fun, Fun, Fun. Crooked canyon in particular was PR heaven.</div>
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Don't undertake the Little Nahanni lightly however. A swim in Crooked Canyon could be long. </div>
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We boat scouted everything which included getting a bit surprised by Crooked Canyon. It was harder than we were expecting. Canoeists run it, right? Well, turns out most canoeists don't and portage it. <br />
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We ended a fantastic first day at a bug free, idyllic camp where Steele creek (river) joins the Little N.<br />
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The next day the sun was poking though and stoke was high. After all, this was the day that would get us to the South Nahanni, as well as getting to run the big ledge rapid just downstream. </div>
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We scouted it and then ran it. Good fun. Pretty straight forward drop and pool. The water was high and I imagine a loaded canoe wouldn't have been as stoked in its frothy maw.<br />
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Large standing wave trains livened things up all the way to the South Nahanni.<br />
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Living up to its trade route status, we encountered a group of canoeists as soon as we hit it. This is the exception rather than the norm, as they were the only canoes we saw.</div>
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We floated another 10km or so to the mouth of the creek which would theoretically provide (easy?) access to the ridge tops and our pass over to the named creek which would takes us to the broken skull. </div>
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-3675567231516708222017-08-06T13:21:00.001-07:002017-08-06T17:45:51.806-07:00T3: Tungsten To Tulita.<div style="text-align: justify;">
Back in 2008, the federal government created the Nááts'ihch'oh (Porcupine in Dene) National Park Reserve. Since then, Parks Canada has been actively promoting the virtues of the Nahanni's' shy cousin as an adventure destination.<br />
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In particular, the have created a glossy trip planner brochure that they publish every year.</div>
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Packrafters are always looking for fresh new lines, and the images and description of the rivers and mountains in Nááts'ihch'oh captivated us. These same images captivated others as well, but more on that later.</div>
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In particular, Black Wolf creek was a standout, with no information available anywhere, other than it looked amazing. Black Wolf creek drains into the Broken Skull (how cool a name is THAT!) river just upstream of its confluence with the renowned South Nahanni. Access is to get ones butt to Grizzly lake, about 10km hike for the Broken Skull, or, alternatively, drain the bank account and fly.</div>
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All winter we (we being the usual suspects of Anthony, Paul B, Sky and Dylan) schemed on various route link-ups we could use to explore Nááts'ihch'oh and access the Black Wolf for the coveted first descent (well, we assumed FD).</div>
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Well, as the Stones said, you can't always get what you want, but sometimes, you get what you need.</div>
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Word reached us that a marauding group of Americans had their eyes on the Black Wolf as well, and were scheduled to hit it a month before us. The nerve! They steal our first round draft picks, and now OUR FDs! </div>
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All joking aside, they had a great trip and lots of adventure. I didn't meet them, but they had beers here in Whitehorse with the other members of our trip prior to their departure. They took a very different route than we did to access the Black Wolf. Indeed, for both of our trips, the Black Wolf ended up being more of a parenthesis to the trip rather than the main topic. It would be cool to have some beers with them now and compare notes.</div>
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In the end, our route boiled down to the following:</div>
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<li>Drive to Tungsten NT on the CanTung road. Paddle the Little Nahanni down to the South Nahanni.</li>
<li>Hike up and over from the South Nahanni via ridges and alpine to access an un-named creek (Gnarwhal creek), paddle it to the Broken Skull.</li>
<li>Hike to Grizzly lake and the Black Wolf.</li>
<li>Paddle the Black Wolf back to the Broken Skull.</li>
<li>Paddle to the South Nahanni and down to Hell Roaring creek.</li>
<li>Hike up Hell Roaring creek to Flood creek, then over the divide to the headwaters of Thundercloud creek.</li>
<li>Paddle it out via the Silver Berry river, Ravens throat and the Redstone to the Mackenzie and down to Tulita NT.</li>
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All in all, we had 736 kms to cover: 100 or so hiking and the rest paddling, or some semblance of.</div>
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We reckoned 21 days would do it, so thats how much food we took. Ultimately, flooding rivers in the NT kicked us out of the mountains faster than we had anticipated and we took 17 days.</div>
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We elected to go without a resupply and carry it all, just to see how it would go.</div>
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July 15th was departure day, and Anthony (who in the end couldn't come along) stepped up to the plate and belted it out of the park by volunteering to drive our vehicle back to Whitehorse from Tungsten, thereby eliminating a major logistical hurdle for us.</div>
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We rolled out of town Friday afternoon, had a burger at Rancheria lodge (worthy!) and camped at the Hyland river campground on the CanTung road. The mosquitoes were horrendous and we were all super relieved to have brought the bug liners for the <a href="https://www.hyperlitemountaingear.com/ultralight-backpacking-shelters-tents/pyramid-tents.html" target="_blank">HMG Ultamids</a>. HMG was super stoked on our trip, and gave us a whack of their gear to check out, including Ultamid 4s with bug liners, tarps, 4400 Porter packs and some other goodies. I don't know if we really deserved their largesse, but, we certainly appreciated having this top notch equipment. If you haven't tried their gear, you should. Well designed and well executed is just the tip of their iceberg.<br />
Ultimately, this was, for myself anyhow, a trip of a lifetime. Hopefully not THE trip of my lifetime.<br />
Perhaps better described as an ultimate trip, of which I hope there will be more.<br />
Trips like this ultimately only come off when everything comes together perfectly. Most importantly, what has to come together is a perfect group. We had that in spades.<br />
Travelling with Dylan, Paul B and Sky is always a great experience.<br />
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Given the length of the trip, I have broken it down into parts I to V.<br />
Hope you enjoy the posts. There will be a video at some point. Paul B will also be posting another excellent account on his <a href="https://pburbidge.exposure.co/" target="_blank">Exposure</a> site at some point.</div>
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-23167335967792649322017-07-09T13:53:00.000-07:002017-08-06T17:49:20.412-07:00Burning the TyersGrant and I walked into the remote and seldom (like, I have heard of one party to paddle it in the past 30 years) visited Tyers river in the South East Yukon. They spoke of portages, canyons and epics.<br />
Access is off the CanTung road via old mining roads and animal trails.<br />
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The Tyers flows into Frances lake, and to make the loop, you then paddle down the Frances river to the bridge on the CanTung road. The Frances has its own fun with a BIG water class III canyon just below the Tuchitua river. Watch for monster holes and waves!<br />
We found fantastic white water, canyons galore (all runnable) and beautiful country. At least it seemed to be, what we could see of it given that it poured rain and the river was flooding.<br />
A classic that should be be on your Yukon hit list, given its easy one day walk-in access and quality white water.<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/224856097" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="640"></iframe><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/224856097">Packrafting the Tyers River</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user4051868">Yukon Frolics</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-86284006298625447102017-06-04T13:11:00.000-07:002017-08-06T17:49:42.284-07:00Upper Wheaton Run 2017<div style="text-align: center;">
The Upper Wheaton Run is becoming something of a Yukon PR classic.</div>
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Not yet a trade route, as there aren't that many PR's around, but it will get there.<br />
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Paul Burbidge, aka The Surveyor General has documented this classic with many fine nug's on his <a href="https://pburbidge.exposure.co/the-classic-upper-wheaton-pack-raft-runs" target="_blank">exposure site</a> .</div>
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Thanks Paul B, Josh, and Dylan for another good trip.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hiking in Friday night after work.<br />
Lot of snow up there....</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loving the sun.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lots of wallowing in deep, isothermic snow.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The creek below had blown out earlier in the day.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Amazing evening light.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">9PM, Friday night.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Following Sheep trails up the ridge and avoiding the snow.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More isothermal snowpack. Making poor time and considering camping in the pass as its 10:30 PM. <br />
No campfire in the trees tonight sadly. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">It snowed all night.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More isothermal snow for breakfast.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We would have had snow free walking the night before if we had carried on.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Radelet peak.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Finally!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The views never get boring.</td></tr>
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-53455153740456193192017-05-21T13:31:00.001-07:002017-05-21T13:32:04.496-07:00Carrying a PFD for PackraftingYou know how much of a PITA it is to carry a PFD.<br />
Bulky, so they take up room in your pack, same goes for the exterior, and they are always snagging bush. <br />
If you own an HMG Porter, this system works well.<br />
The Porter Stuff Pocket is a pretty much necessary add on to these packs, and if you have one, stuffing the PFD behind it is a great way to keep things sleek.<br />
However, the plastic gimcracks that hold the pocket to the daisy chains on the pack are fiddly at best, and pretty much eliminate any sort of quick release function.<br />
Solution: use some accessory 'biners (I like the plastic Black Diamonds)to attach the pocket to the daisy chains. You can cut the old plastic ones off if you like.<br />
Now, you can place the PFD under the pocket, and use the pocket to hold the FD in place and out of the way. Depending on the PFD, you can vary the placements of the pocket straps to the daisy chains quickly and easily.<br />
Speaking of PFDs, while the Astral V8 seems to be a standard light weight, it does lack back protection and a bit of buoyancy.<br />
You can pick and chose from many excellent (heavy, bulky) rescue PFDs, but for remote trips, my own philosophy is that if you are getting into situations where a rescue PFD seems like a necessity, you are either willing to carry a lot more weight and bulk than I am, or, maybe consider scaling back the gnar. <br />
Regardless, after much research, I settled on the NRS Ion as a good compromise PFD. Its not a rescue PFD, but it does have good back protection and high buoyancy. Bonus, its not much heavier than the V8, and its not bulky. No zippers to mess with either.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This can be tidied up by tucking the straps behind, but you get the idea.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkiKEO7hUP_kGu4GE77XlRrUmzJMZVwNko6R3ipG1V4r0lfeFwfeiKkqJrkdBInb61tgipymae0PXa3buh2sJetNRgYC4g7w5ct0R2kLoX42NMkDz0s_B7LcBQYSclDL0J5NAWg5f6dJjZ/s1600/image1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkiKEO7hUP_kGu4GE77XlRrUmzJMZVwNko6R3ipG1V4r0lfeFwfeiKkqJrkdBInb61tgipymae0PXa3buh2sJetNRgYC4g7w5ct0R2kLoX42NMkDz0s_B7LcBQYSclDL0J5NAWg5f6dJjZ/s640/image1.JPG" width="478" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">BD accessory 'biner.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br />Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-58731937936276885862017-02-22T18:40:00.000-08:002017-02-22T18:40:36.078-08:00Tubeless Surly ClownshoeThere are quite a few ghetto DIY tubeless setups for CS out there.<br />
Split tubes have their own draw backs, and sourcing the right size tubes can be a pain.<br />
The Gorilla Tape version seems to be the most popular, but, as with any tape based CS tubeless setup, the major fail point is the longitudinal seam that any tape less than 4" (100mm) will have.<br />
At some point, sealant will penetrate the long seam and mess up things.<br />
However, there is an alternative.<br />
Siga tape. Siga makes building membrane sealing tape in a variety of types and sizes.<br />
The one to get is the Wigluv 100. Its 100mm wide, sticky as hell, fiber reinforced and can be found at most building supply centers. Kilrich has it here in YXY. Drawback? At $100 a roll, make sure you have some friends who want to go tubeless as well.<br />
Another drawback is that it DOES stretch. Tony put me onto the Wigluv, and hes had it on his tubeless CS/Bud?lou set up for a while, but with only the rim tape backing it, and running the wheels at hard condition PSI, he finally had a bulge fail.<br />
In a nutshell, I have about 300 Km on this system now, and its been bombproof, touch wood....<br />
So, bearing that in mind, the install that seems to be solid is as follows:<br />
<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxf8a7QREp2jd3R1J-cU9JTR75ZPFJFmGymdvExIlSrXC3hbQLNZmieROkEHS_6yeRQuEB6IRibWhzgt8CTmS0e1bMnVL15SolLDfuvf0zKxdXd8FHskTTgOBo38s9c79836WwZbo9LAy/s1600/P1050397.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidxf8a7QREp2jd3R1J-cU9JTR75ZPFJFmGymdvExIlSrXC3hbQLNZmieROkEHS_6yeRQuEB6IRibWhzgt8CTmS0e1bMnVL15SolLDfuvf0zKxdXd8FHskTTgOBo38s9c79836WwZbo9LAy/s640/P1050397.JPG" width="360" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An early attempt using Tyvec Tape. As can be seen, Stans sealant gets everywhere.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgROzhV6RXsAzVDxz98txIL3u7ewCeAdMgy7mHSuXGc16Jk2JdMfN7KMKU8vdEbrTvWgqldcUhmv745uqyR3ab2ZHRwdQnW7pOPOUkSreZIOxew6hT8f_E8pi8tzJ2DIUIpAkYFkj7ocOkC/s1600/P1050398.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgROzhV6RXsAzVDxz98txIL3u7ewCeAdMgy7mHSuXGc16Jk2JdMfN7KMKU8vdEbrTvWgqldcUhmv745uqyR3ab2ZHRwdQnW7pOPOUkSreZIOxew6hT8f_E8pi8tzJ2DIUIpAkYFkj7ocOkC/s640/P1050398.JPG" width="360" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yuck.<br />
Essentially, in version 1, the sealant got through the Tyvec layers and only the rim tape was sealing. This can happen with the Gorilla fiber tape as well.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimm7ZC4FJ6d1HBT4qzs7KE28N9nXsc_qF64fX_3df2HAtLPpw9RU8iULLb8JFl5p_h56yflLbMfgZkZnEDIR2JxKK8WI9vo5nacLAL-2CFeAtD6fN0T8M49l6xU7_2sdTHIQyy9CDoOm0t/s1600/P1050399.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimm7ZC4FJ6d1HBT4qzs7KE28N9nXsc_qF64fX_3df2HAtLPpw9RU8iULLb8JFl5p_h56yflLbMfgZkZnEDIR2JxKK8WI9vo5nacLAL-2CFeAtD6fN0T8M49l6xU7_2sdTHIQyy9CDoOm0t/s640/P1050399.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gorilla Repair Tape. Strong, light and clean. Needed to prevent bulging of the rim tape. Seems to be better than the Black duct tape like Gorilla tape as it doesn't leave residue behind when you remove it.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvdgctY4GNQy-EHkXj-H1Th7c0tPCVyGKz82mIRXtLkJRoGaM4LCi-BS9mrs-y74t_XuEK2Qt82Pls8Ah8l86Bb_Oa6SF1JNWxm3q43dznFCs_eAXdjz9PsRDYOxBz8TDaU18Q-z_bhO6w/s1600/P1050400.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvdgctY4GNQy-EHkXj-H1Th7c0tPCVyGKz82mIRXtLkJRoGaM4LCi-BS9mrs-y74t_XuEK2Qt82Pls8Ah8l86Bb_Oa6SF1JNWxm3q43dznFCs_eAXdjz9PsRDYOxBz8TDaU18Q-z_bhO6w/s640/P1050400.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After you have cleaned the rim tape and surface, run a single strip of Gorilla repair tape down the middle. Important! Use a heat gun on low to ensure good adhesion. This is key.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghDL9ifkoG1SonxP9cg5_gVGiJ7KYHIGAW8nlTtZyN_fV62hf7FmvW0XDU0xSc2jlX5zVfu8JoWNVPF8PljMhUaN9QCEyC4khdKfBU3vMOER2xOobOS94CJbc_VZxNf4A3oUJkR-h2ubyg/s1600/P1050402.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghDL9ifkoG1SonxP9cg5_gVGiJ7KYHIGAW8nlTtZyN_fV62hf7FmvW0XDU0xSc2jlX5zVfu8JoWNVPF8PljMhUaN9QCEyC4khdKfBU3vMOER2xOobOS94CJbc_VZxNf4A3oUJkR-h2ubyg/s640/P1050402.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">After the first middle strip of Gorilla repair tape, add a strip to either side of the rim channel, ending it on the shoulder, then add one more on the middle. This adds strength and prevents bulging and therefore strain on the Siga tape.<br />
Use heat on all strips.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh96tDKmhGye_sgj6Jpz58KC77WD3lfUxSmtwYTD7V0MWCCk7ft6QwgLU6bdcpv2Mo488vGIBDmaByvfDdgHACygRZBue40EofPgEMVLbqiP7ze4BrM6O9HX8nZzgfy0qsEtcCj3GQIg98f/s1600/P1050403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh96tDKmhGye_sgj6Jpz58KC77WD3lfUxSmtwYTD7V0MWCCk7ft6QwgLU6bdcpv2Mo488vGIBDmaByvfDdgHACygRZBue40EofPgEMVLbqiP7ze4BrM6O9HX8nZzgfy0qsEtcCj3GQIg98f/s640/P1050403.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A thing of beauty. 100mm of WigLUV! Use heat on this as well, low heat, gently.</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje1sDDZKgLwwAX94W77Ul-vIOaq3IS5S1bhu9jNhyphenhypheneDGVx1rVn9CqnJ2deW518k5TfZu3FD8ICh3WEPz7tz9iyYMbQfVmmR7UUaNwu7o80ACAykcim10cJWZbaUoQiD5w0nAv_oPMg6sZI/s1600/P1050404.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje1sDDZKgLwwAX94W77Ul-vIOaq3IS5S1bhu9jNhyphenhypheneDGVx1rVn9CqnJ2deW518k5TfZu3FD8ICh3WEPz7tz9iyYMbQfVmmR7UUaNwu7o80ACAykcim10cJWZbaUoQiD5w0nAv_oPMg6sZI/s640/P1050404.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The final bit; 1" Gorilla Tape to build up the shoulders. In hind site, I think I would have used the Gorilla repair tape. Again, apply with heat.<br />
It <i>seems </i>like lots of tape, but the stuff is lighter than the Black Gorilla tape.<br />
So far, so good, no bulging of the rim tape and I've been running pressures to 17 PSI.<br />
Note: in the above image, you can see some Wigluv outboard of the Black tape. Take a sharp Olfa/razor blade and trim it.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-38244357877933036042017-02-22T06:10:00.001-08:002017-02-22T06:10:21.944-08:00Rabbit River VideoFrom our trip last summer. Not too much longer 'till summer....<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/205166321" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="640"></iframe><br />
<a href="https://vimeo.com/205166321">Packrafting the Rabbit River.</a> from <a href="https://vimeo.com/user4051868">Yukon Frolics</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-18018372671363237082017-02-19T09:50:00.000-08:002017-02-19T09:50:04.382-08:00Friday Creek the Right Way.A couple of years ago, Dylan and I checked out Friday creek off the Alligator lake road.<br />
Turned out it was a great ride in the alpine.<br />
So good, we decided to head back to ride it the other way, which is starting at Fish lake and ending up at Annie lake.<br />
So good.<br />
Lots of descending on buff dog sled trails.<br />
Paul B, Evan W, Josh D and I set off on Saturday from Fish lake. Josh made it approximately 5 meters before snapping his Carbon fork airing off a large rock in the parking lot.<br />
The rest of us had a great ride,ending up at our collective cabins on the Annie lake road.<br />
Josh, you would have loved it....<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq731BEIP3Qm6KqzwpTjFZ2mnSAc0GlLgkBoUyx2Klw86CA7jIusj6T6tQIRMAqJ-p2KVBYG7M0Cprq5oBSz6UTzGS9NkSS_qu_Q6vGXvYcIrP0kAnErVi0h7tHlJfo_C6tcod_kLeqlGb/s1600/P1050410.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq731BEIP3Qm6KqzwpTjFZ2mnSAc0GlLgkBoUyx2Klw86CA7jIusj6T6tQIRMAqJ-p2KVBYG7M0Cprq5oBSz6UTzGS9NkSS_qu_Q6vGXvYcIrP0kAnErVi0h7tHlJfo_C6tcod_kLeqlGb/s1600/P1050410.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Punching our way across Coal lake.</td></tr>
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Coal Lake</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj-sf6AMJ0-vc-apD5oOtQ34Z3TrZeVRI9L2KEZQUOZz-qldjD7quqVFx_LTRcelCuw_vX9XyFY2YYl7dGbVtbxsMvBDhP5VYa8eCd1WLJ2x7oqOVPUDfK7oacnU7uCy8k7_3TVhVMP4xG/s1600/P1050408.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjj-sf6AMJ0-vc-apD5oOtQ34Z3TrZeVRI9L2KEZQUOZz-qldjD7quqVFx_LTRcelCuw_vX9XyFY2YYl7dGbVtbxsMvBDhP5VYa8eCd1WLJ2x7oqOVPUDfK7oacnU7uCy8k7_3TVhVMP4xG/s1600/P1050408.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Evan about to bliss out on the descent to Coal lake. So, so good.</td></tr>
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<br />Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-10693051392090138742016-10-11T21:29:00.001-07:002018-08-16T09:55:38.329-07:00Summer 2016 RandomnessThe Rabbit trip was the "Big" trip, but there were lots of other shorter trips squeezed in.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Rose River.</span></b><br />
<b><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></b>
I had the bright idea to try to PR Seagull creek off the South Canol. Bad deal. No water.<br />
However, there we were on the South Canol with 4 days in hand. Didn't want to head home, so we blew up at the Rose River bridge #5 and cast off. The Rose is full of fun rapids, and while not terribly "remote", its still a fun 3 day paddle down into the upper Nisutlin. The lower portion from bridge #2 to #1 is almost never paddled, and we had no intel, so it was fun exploring.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoVvP22zn8PpdzMrrqdel_tRSlDyiL2G9xW_IlV_uz8EmfBTZ7XV8KJHmFEdFKA6NKsTh_-CbPeoxVLQipC64TOvx94WcQVjHn0IOy1krx1xn35pXa5C5AfNYCjve7SfmXEO-CfErpZT9I/s1600/P1050095.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoVvP22zn8PpdzMrrqdel_tRSlDyiL2G9xW_IlV_uz8EmfBTZ7XV8KJHmFEdFKA6NKsTh_-CbPeoxVLQipC64TOvx94WcQVjHn0IOy1krx1xn35pXa5C5AfNYCjve7SfmXEO-CfErpZT9I/s1600/P1050095.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Supposedly III at normal flows. It was low.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFNTt9MjGEbQLGFGSrjOpva3oxg_WWrrxXrB5vfpLY9IFieOX7aH5v9XAdLBxpvtucou7nu7AtfuWa_XDY4vtra7fVGSEbyXJiSU3vjIuAUmYB4poTu-fKHBTnU1mhIULJ_ySdeo6BYPSc/s1600/P1050099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFNTt9MjGEbQLGFGSrjOpva3oxg_WWrrxXrB5vfpLY9IFieOX7aH5v9XAdLBxpvtucou7nu7AtfuWa_XDY4vtra7fVGSEbyXJiSU3vjIuAUmYB4poTu-fKHBTnU1mhIULJ_ySdeo6BYPSc/s1600/P1050099.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gotta love river camping</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQHUq3WZb7ywwjUqeQUxqO66eGzFv5ubRzY07PYcozNsC9HDZiM5wkGLDk4Dd7mUYMaSExhXiCSkT6UxRYKKfORy9iRT8uxPEvVQ0K7sU-sov4FtJmWI5kW7309airiyc7Zj07dVqEIXz-/s1600/P1050101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQHUq3WZb7ywwjUqeQUxqO66eGzFv5ubRzY07PYcozNsC9HDZiM5wkGLDk4Dd7mUYMaSExhXiCSkT6UxRYKKfORy9iRT8uxPEvVQ0K7sU-sov4FtJmWI5kW7309airiyc7Zj07dVqEIXz-/s1600/P1050101.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yukoners don't deal well with rain of any sort</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is some of the fun below bridge #2 which almost never sees a paddle.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">More fat camping</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lounging on the flat water of the Nisutlin</td></tr>
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-58964393691754173362016-07-22T15:29:00.000-07:002016-07-23T12:16:16.942-07:00Muncho Lake to Rabbit River <div style="text-align: justify;">
Ever watch Monty Python's Holy Grail? Remember the bunny rabbit scene? Sure you do...</div>
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OK, the Rabbit river isn't a killer bunny, but it isn't your average cute little stuffed Easter bunny either.</div>
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This Rabbit has teeth.</div>
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And that's what attracted us to it.</div>
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Us being the usual suspects of Dylan, Paul B and new gang member Dave Gonda. This tripped "patched him in" as it were.</div>
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The Rabbit is a remote river in Northern BC with very limited access. The "normal" access is by float plane into Netson lake, and then down Netson creek into the lower Rabbit. We were attracted to the seemingly unknown upper Rabbit that looked to have heaps of rapids and a really nice walk in.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Walking/portaging in Red, floating in blue.</td></tr>
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It had all those things, plus 2 canyons with LARGE waterfalls, fat camps and an amazing lower canyon, but more on those things later.</div>
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We packed up the MegaCab and booted out of town after work on Friday the 15th of July. We rolled into Muncho lake late that night and dossed in a gravel pit for some much needed Z's.</div>
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The plan was to hike into the upper Rabbit river drainage via valley bottoms and horse trails, then start floating as soon as we had enough water. We'd take out at the Coal River Lodge on the AlCan, then hitch a ride back to Muncho lake. Great plan.</div>
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Saturday had hot weather, sunny skis and fantastic hiking up gravel bars and horse trails.</div>
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Numerous creek crossings kept us cool and soggy.</div>
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At a major drainage intersection, we took a short cut up a smaller drainage that would get us onto a major horse trail one of the outfitters in the area uses. It proved quite interesting.</div>
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Some heavy afternoon thunder showers had us setting up the trap for some down time.</div>
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We rolled into a nice old horse camp tired, soggy and ready for dinner.</div>
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The next day was a repeat with a hot sunny morning. We hit the horse trail and followed it up a creek and into the alpine. </div>
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While taking a breather at the top of the pass, a small rabbit hopped past us without so much as batting an eye, indeed if anything it was a rather coquettish rabbit. We took it as a good, welcoming omen rather than the Python-esque prognosticator of Doom.</div>
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The hiking in over the two passes is mind blowingly beautiful. Great horse trail and alpine vistas abound.</div>
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There is some brush however. Without the horse trails, it would be pretty miserable going.</div>
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We dropped down to the nameless tributary which we have affectionately dubbed The Upper Rabbit. Pretty slim going at first, so we put in a few Kms and made a camp at the first major tributary coming in on river left. Here there was now enough water to consider blowing up. The walking is easy going on nice horse trail, and easy on the eyes as well.<br />
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The next morning we aired up and embarked on our journey. The river was just full enough for drag free paddling, and in short order, small rock gardens started spicing things up.<br />
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Pretty soon, the first canyon appeared and from then on, things got seriously fun.<br />
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Dave doing his best to avoid Gin-Su-ing the stern of his boat.<br />
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Soon we hit the first major canyon, and after a short scout, we discovered the first of three major waterfalls that had us looking for a portage route. Fortunately, we found a good horse trail around the canyon, and although it put us in a bit further downstream than we would have liked, it beat thrashing about in the bush.<br />
Of note, the first waterfall appears to be hard IV, but the next two drops are definitely class V. <br />
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After sweating out a few gallons of water, we put back in at a nice pool and cruised off. The river slows down below this canyon until hitting a small constriction which forms this nasty little class IV.<br />
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Paul B and Dylan eyed it like a couple of hungry dawgs for a bit, but ultimately decided that the big boil at the bottom only meant trouble. It would have been fun to try in a non-wilderness setting, but you have to pick your battles out in the wilderness.<br />
We found an A-1 grade camp just as the sun was staring to dip. We cranked up a fire and settled down to some fat camp living.<br />
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The first rainy day greeted us as we paddled off to the next big canyon. We hit the entrance rapids, pulled out for a scout, and promptly made a ferry over to river right to air down for the big portage. Just below the entrance rapids, the river jacks left into a big hole, and continues down into a sluice box waterfall. Maybe someone will run it, not us.<br />
It was an ugly portage, with the odd trace of an old horse trail, but it did the trick.<br />
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We got back into the river, again much lower than hoped. Future parties could do a much shorter portage river left and come in just below the sluice pictured above.<br />
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As we had gotten out of camp quite early, we finished the portage around noon, then kicked back for some fat floating. Netson creek came in from the left and added a bunch more water to the Rabbit. At the end of the day, we met the Gundahoo river and made the best camp yet.<br />
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The cool thing about the Rabbit, well, there are lots of cool things, but it has zero evidence of other travelers. Owing to the canyons on its lower portion, this isn't a surprise. We did our best to make sure future travelers won't notice ours.<br />
The Gundahoo adds a bunch more water to an already good sized river, and things felt much less creek like as we sped off early the next morning. This section of river doesn't have many rapids worth noting. One fun class III had an interesting split below a ledge that grabbed your attention for a moment or two.<br />
We kept trying to find as good a camp as the previous nights, so we ended up paddling much later than we really wanted, and it was a hangry foursome that finally pitched camp on a Dryas flower flat at the tail end of an island. A big fire and fat de-hys soon improved our outlooks.<br />
The next day was the BIG day. Previous trip reports had indicated a big canyon with no easy portage and at least one class IV rapid with many more IIIs. The only trip report we found on the lower Rabbit was a canoe trip in the low water levels of fall, with the recommendation that others avoid the higher water levels of summer. Our water level seemed average, but with no gauge on the Rabbit it was tough to tell.<br />
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The rapids kept increasing in number and size until we finally hit the entrance to IT.<br />
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This canyon is one cool spot. Amazing Turquoise water, Limestone walls, Tufa srpings, rapids!<br />
As I pulled over to take a shot of Dylan, I sliced the bottom of my floor and seat. A quick repair job had us back on the water in no time.<br />
The big rapid finally came. It was preceded by heaps and heaps of fun III's. Great times!<br />
We had a look from river right, made the plans, and I shot video of Dyland and Paul hitting it. The following image is from the video (to come) and while poor, gives a good idea of it.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">September image of same rapid. Photo credit Laurel Archer</td></tr>
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In the end is was pretty straight forward, and well had a great time running it. The water below is very narrow and boily with lots of funny whirlpools and squirrely water. All too soon we were down to the Liard.<br />
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We ran a sneak line on river left through Whirlpool canyon and then ended up at Coal river lodge. We took turns trying to hitch a ride, and Dave was finally successful. We drank beer in the sun around a picnick table, shot the shit with the owners and locals, and generally enjoyed ourselves. Dave returned from Muncho lake with the truck around 8, then we loaded up for the 7 hour drive back to Whitehorse showing up at 3 AM.<br />
Thanks Dylan, Paul B and Dave for a fantastic adventure in amazing country. A great team makes the trip. </div>
Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-54818219838065230832015-09-10T18:49:00.001-07:002015-09-10T18:49:50.555-07:00A snowy return to the PrimroseIt was so good 2 years ago, we had to go back. But with more snow....<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snow? In early September??</td></tr>
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Great trip. Our objective was to run all the rapids besides the falls and its canyon.<br />
Mission accomplished.<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/138929093" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe><br />
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-23557235962568816812015-06-07T15:38:00.001-07:002015-06-07T15:38:32.854-07:00Back in the Saddle for 2015<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig11mBp0qrFIHzJ6JfKDXpDhqAZJp_I2oNHxsKOODNZbIsWm4As7w57V0_Ddlv-CCC4yzkw9piUXwR8w6mrBdahtI7KUzBjumo4GMtRiDzHXxC3ZcoEEPOfHeezYRjo_nvCxkCCHAXZEY5/s1600/P1040903.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig11mBp0qrFIHzJ6JfKDXpDhqAZJp_I2oNHxsKOODNZbIsWm4As7w57V0_Ddlv-CCC4yzkw9piUXwR8w6mrBdahtI7KUzBjumo4GMtRiDzHXxC3ZcoEEPOfHeezYRjo_nvCxkCCHAXZEY5/s1600/P1040903.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking into the coast range</td></tr>
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Yee gods.<br />
Its been one hell of a while since a post.<br />
But as I have written before, I'm not going to waste my time or anyone else's time with inane gear reviews, what I ate for lunch, or my daily routine.<br />
Not that I have been sitting in a shack, holed up doing nothing. There was 2 months in New Zealand hiking and mountain biking. And while its a great place, its not exactly a "wild" country with new adventure to be had.<br />
So, back to The Yukon.<br />
The rivers are up, the snow is gone from the high country, and the lads are back at it.<br />
Wheaton River, upper run.<br />
Paul B and Tony did it 2 summers ago. Walk in to the Wheatons headwaters, camp, paddle out.<br />
Amazing country, and a great overnight back country fix. <br />
Friday afternoon, saw Paul B, Dylan, Tony, Grant and myself walking up the Berney creek road. We nipped over a small pass and dropped over into the upper Wheaton river valley. Fantastic hiking in open, alpine terrain.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Berney creek road and Mt. Skukum behind </td></tr>
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Easy cruising with one small cliff-out had us camped in the wonderful Pine flats around 10 PM. You just have to love endless daylight. A wonderful mix of campfire, whiskey, great company and the song of the river wafted us to sleep.<br />
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We were up relatively early, and on the river by 9 AM. We ended up walking downstream a bit, as it was a touch bony by camp.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heading down through the old burn with Radelet peak in the background</td></tr>
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The next few Kms are great fun with lots of boulder gardens and chutes. After a bit, the Wheaton slows, meanders and generally settles down, until Berney creek joins the party. Then its fast, tight fun until Fenwick creek joins. Watch out for wood!<br />
We hit the bridge again around 3:30, and headed back to our cabin for beer around the campfire. <br />
Great fun.<br />
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<br />Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-7739788213745749462014-09-19T09:19:00.000-07:002014-09-19T09:19:18.399-07:00Wheaton River Lower RunLast weekend was looking to be the nicest of the fall, so Dylan and I hatched some quick plans to paddle the lower Wheaton river out to Bennett lake, camp overnight, then cross the lake and back to Carcross.<br />
It was wonderful.<br />
The lower Wheaton rarely gets run, not due to any technical difficulties, but its usually choked with wood. A major rain event earlier this summer pretty much flushed it out, and with the exception of some sweepers and one log jam, it was clear albeit shallow sailing.<br />
The colors were at their peak, it was warm, the camp site at the mouth of the Wheaton is 5 star.<br />
We spent a great night around the fire, enjoying a beer.<br />
We were up early, as the wind was fierce and we wanted to get across before it really picked up.<br />
It was fine bobbing across in the PRs though.<br />
We took out and walked the railroad tracks back to Carcross, as it was faster than paddling.<br />
Dylan had suggested bringing packs, but I said we wouldn't need them. Wrong. We carried the gear hobo style, but it worked out.<br />
Summers pretty much done.<br />
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<br />Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-166643721988004322014-06-01T13:10:00.000-07:002014-06-01T13:17:32.317-07:00O'Donnell River Upper CanyonThe O'Donnell is a cool little river near Atlin BC. The lower run, which is by far the most popular, is a fun river for tandem canoes, with lots of tight maneuvering in rock strewn canyons. Log jams can and do add to the challenge. <br />
I have paddled the lower run numerous times in a 16' Mad River Freedom, but never checked out the upper run. Rumors had it as class III in tight canyons, a bad run for canoes.<br />
We thought it sounded great for a pack raft run.<br />
Run-off water levels are essential for the O'Donnell, as it is a low volume river with lots of rocks. Other rivers are running strong right now, so we figured it was time to take a drive to Atlin.<br />
The same cast of characters from the Arkell trip met up at Warm bay south of Atlin on Friday night.<br />
We piled into Tony's trust FJ and made the drive in to the upper river put in. The roads in good shape right now with minimal mud and only one nasty wash out which is easily navigable with care.<br />
We had one casualty on the way in.<br />
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We blew up in a stiff, cold south wind and hit the river.<br />
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It winds though really cool meadows with the odd old placer mine (and associated old equipment) along the banks. In short order you hit the beginning of the canyon section, with the odd rock and ledge appearing.<br />
Apologies for poor image quality, lots of water on the lens.<br />
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The next few Kms down to the lower put in are super fun.<br />
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We scouted two blind corners with lots of rock in them, but all the drops and rapids are really clean with no wood. If I run it again this summer, I wouldn't scout at all. Always wise to check for wood after any high water event.<br />
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It was over too soon, and we passed the lower put in and were on the lower run.</div>
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The river stays fast though, and with the odd rock to dodge, you soon hit the first of the smaller canyons.</div>
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One has a nasty log across it that while not terribly life threatening, ruins the good line.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bad shot, but you get the idea</td></tr>
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A fun rocky traverse allowed us to avoid the portage along the canyon rim.<br />
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The lower portion of the river near Atlin lake has tons of log jams which suck with a canoe, but are speedily dealt with carrying only a PR.</div>
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We hit the lake at 5:30 and paddled back to Warm bay under sunny skies and in 5' swells.</div>
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Awesome day trip. <br />
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Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-34796024133062272082014-05-27T21:59:00.000-07:002014-05-27T21:59:24.495-07:00Arkell Crick<div style="text-align: left;">
Another creek that has been begging for a pack raft trip. Arkell creek.</div>
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Flows into the Ibex near its confluence with the Takhini. We'd wondered about if for years.</div>
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Last weekend, that itch was scratched.</div>
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Anthony, Paul B, Dylan, Rob and myself headed into the Ibex valley last Sunday to give it a go. Had a false start when Robs Frontier found the biggest ruts to fall into. Fortunately, Mario lives nearby, and Mario has The Goods.</div>
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He very handsomely leant one of his many monster F-350 4x4s, and in short order the beast had yarded out the wee Nissan.</div>
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Back on track, we continued on and found the old horse trail. Pleasant walking had us down to the Ibex lickety split.</div>
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We followed the horse trail up Arkell creek after first verifying there was actually water in the damned thing. There was, barely. But at some point, man had that thing been in flood.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crossing The Ibex</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Whole Area Had Been Flooded In The Not To Distant Past</td></tr>
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The horse trail was very well defined and offered fast walking up the Pine flats next to the crick.</div>
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Eventually the crick narrowed and steepened as we got into the mountains. Lots of griz sign.<br />
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As I said, there was enough water, barely. We blew up at a point where the creek upstream looked just too bouldery.</div>
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The water was actually pretty deep, but the boulders were plentiful and large, so we pumped up the seats extra full.<br />
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We had great fun bouncing and splashing down. A couple of corners were spicy enough to keep your attention.<br />
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It would be fun to go back with another foot in it.</div>
Paul Christensenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14563565528459102423noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3319311336288780774.post-24118007230639179512014-04-27T09:37:00.000-07:002014-04-27T09:37:09.215-07:00Aishihik RiverYup. That time of year again. Break out the pack rafts.<br />
Not much is open right now, but the Aishihik from the Yukon Energy tail race is.<br />
Right where the tail race from the hydro site and the West Ahishihik join, its open water all the way to the Alaska highway. <br />
Anthony, Paul B and Dylan were keen to get wet, so Saturday we headed to Canyon, stashed the bikes for the shuttle, and headed up to the put in. The East Ashihik is still ice bound, which is fines as its probably not pack raft friendly, at least at high water.<br />
We had to drag for about 1 Km until we hit open water. Lots of shore ice, some debris in the water here and there. No rapids, but we got to get in the water.<br />
Nice bike back to the put in. Saw a great big old wolf. Cool.<br />
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