Dateline: December 10, 2002. Major rebuild completed: Aopril 2, 2023.

A Guide to Alaska-Yukon Highways

To Page 1, Dawson Creek to Fort Nelson
To Page 2, Fort Nelson to Whitehorse

Click on the images below to greatly enlarge them

A photo of Whitehorse, the capital city of the Yukon, taken from the top of the "clay cliffs" where the airport is located. This view is down Main Street to the Yukon River and the hospital beyond. For more photos of Whitehorse, click here.

Km 1468.9: At Historic Mile 946 you cross the Takhini River Bridge. There's a parking area at the south end of the bridge, offering pleasant views of the river and mountains. The river was still frozen in mid April.

Km 1495: Elk (Cervus Elaphus) are often seen along the Alaska Highway west of Whitehorse. This is the northern limit of elk range, and although elk do occasionally migrate up from British Columbia, the vast majority of our 300-odd animals in the Yukon are descendants of elk that were imported starting in the 1940s. This photo was shot in mid-December.

Km 1484.8: As you drive along the Alaska Highway, there's nothing special about Stony Creek. You might notice a "Historic Mile 956" sign - if you were watching very carefully you might have noticed that there are two "Historic Mile 956" signs, one on each side of the creek. When dedicated people dig for information, though, a long and fascinating history of this location unfolds. Gord Allison's lengthy and well-illustrated "The Grave at Stony Creek" tells that story.

Km 1504.4: At Km 1504.4 northbound or Km 1518.2 southbound is an old section the Alaska Highway that leads to the First Nations village of Champagne. Though only used for village access now, the road is still chipsealed and maintained, though to a lower standard than the main highway.

Km 1526: This is the view of the Kluane Range that you get from Km 1526. To the left of the highway, the old road can just barely be seen.

Km 1546: Otter Falls, at the foot of Aishihik Lake (pronounced Ai-shee-ak), is reached by a gravel sideroad leaving the Alaska Highway at Km 1546 (Historic Mile 995). These falls were on the back of the Canadian $5 bill that was issued in 1954. The falls are 27km north of the highway. I've also posted a video of Otter Falls at high flow.

Km 1547.5: The main feature of the rest area on Canyon Creek (also known as the Aishihik River) is a log bridge that dates back to 1903, when it was built to access the goldfields in the Kluane Lake region. Legendary Yukon character Sam McGee and a partner ran a roadhouse here during that gold rush.

You can walk across the Canyon Creek bridge and up a section of the original Alaska Highway that curves up the hill.

High above Canyon Creek sits the small Canyon First Nation cemetery.

Construction east of Haines Junction, Yukon, in August 2002. When possible, the new road was built beside the old so traffic wasn't held up any more than necessary. Once the new highway was completed, the old one was torn up and seeded.

Km 1566: This rest area offers a particularly fine view of the Kluane Range. This photo was shot in mid April.

Km 1575: Sunrise on the Kluane Range, as seen from the airport at Haines Junction in November with the thermometer sitting at -42°C. Speaking of cold, did you know that the men who built The Road had a special mascot, the Kee Bird? Click here to find out more.

Km 1578.5 (Historic Mile 1016): At the junction of the Alaska Highway and the Haines Road in the heart of Haines Junction, this lovely spot provides a place to sit and enjoy the spectacular views. This photo was shot in early September.

If you're looking for a quiet side road, the Marshall Creek Road at Haines Junction offers that and some history. This 20 kilometer (12.5 mile) long section of the original tote road was abandoned during the first upgrade of that tote road to all-weather standards. It's a dead-end road that's not suitable for large rigs.

Km 1584: a rest area with a spectacular view of the Kluane Range. This view is northbound - the Km 1584 post can be seen on the right.

Km 1589.1 (Historic Mile 1022): Bear Creek Lodge. In November 2006, a few months after this photo was taken, the lodge closed forever when the owners declared bankruptcy following a government order to complete a $20,000 septic system upgrade. The sad reality of the modern Alaska Highway is that few travelers stop at these lodges anymore. We are compiling histories of every lodge that has operated on the highway - see "Historic Alaska Highway Lodges & Roadhouses".

Construction west of Haines Junction, Yukon, in August 2002. The road through here used to be very narrow and very winding, with no shoulders. You can see one of the old sections of road in the distance.

Construction west of Haines Junction, Yukon, in July 2002. Waits like this are seldom more than 15 minutes long. It is local custom that motorcycle riders go to the front of such lines, so they don't have to eat the dust of closed-in vehicles.

An early-July look at the highway as you go north at Km 1629.4, with Christmas Creek at the bottom of the little valley ahead.

Km 1635.8: about 3.4 kilometers (2 miles) down a gravel road heading north towards Kluane Lake sits the largest ghost town in the Yukon, Silver City. Slowly but surely the town is disappearing as the buildings crumble and Mother Nature reclaims the site, but there's still lots to see.

Heading north, about to cross the Slims River Bridge, which was built in 2010. Sheep Mountain, home of one of the highest concentrations of wild sheep in the Yukon, dominates the view in late June.

Just so you know whose country this is once you leave the pavement! Grizzly paw prints along the Slims River.

A huge blast during reconstruction of the Alaska Highway along Kluane Lake. Patience paid off here - the blast was delayed for well over an hour, so I'd been standing by the side of the highway with my camera set up on a tripod for almost 2 hours when it finally went off in July 1991.

In 2007 the massive highway reconstruction project known as the Shakwak Project reached Sheep Mountain. This photo was taken in a light snow on October 6th, 2007.

Winter driving on the Alaska Highway is enchanting in the extreme, particularly at night when you can easily drive for 5-6 hours without seeing another vehicle. January 1993.

Km 1650.8: Just west of the Tachal Dhal (Sheep Mountain) Interpretive Centre, the Soldiers' Summit Trail takes you up the original tote road to the spot where the road was opened on November 20, 1942. This is the view from the trail, over Kluane Lake to the Ruby Range of mountains, with one of several interpretive signs explaining the construction. The Alaska Highway can be seen below, winding around the granite cliffs along the lake shore.

Km 1662.5: This huge pullout has no services and is signed "No Camping" but is steps from the shore of Kluane Lake so offers a wonderful spot to take a break.

Km 1666: Congdon Creek Campground, with 39 large sites, 8 on the shore of Kluane Lake, and 31 in the forest. You can see many more photos from this September weekend at the campground here.

Murray Lundberg, ExploreNorth editor, taking a couple of days off from tour bus driving on July 4, 1991. A good 4x4, a cold beer, and a campsite on the beach of Kluane Lake, Yukon, miles from anybody - does it get any better than this?

Driving on the ice of Kluane Lake, 6 miles from the nearest road. The nearest community to this island is Burwash Landing, Yukon, also 6 miles away. The car has no special equipment. Photo taken in April 1993, during the Burwash Ice Races.

Km 1709.5: The concrete Duke River bridge replaced the old steel truss bridge in 2009. The Duke River floods often and like most other rivers flowing from the Kluane mountain range, its constantly-shifting channel through gravel is a challenge for engineers.

At Quill Creek, Km 1729, an abandoned section of the Alaska Highway leads 6.7 km (4.2 miles) to the Kluane River and a memorial to Lt. Roland Small of the US Army Corps of Engineers. He was killed here in 1942 when his jeep overturned. See an article about this interesting side road here.

Km 1755.5: Morning at the / Icefield Ranges Rest Area overlooking the Donjek River Valley and the Icefield Ranges. Could you stand to wake up here in the morning? Overnighting is legal in any of these pulloffs along the highway that don't have signs stating otherwise (there are very few of those). This photo was shot in August 1990.

Km 1761.6: The Donjek River Bridge as it was in September 1990. The width and unstable bottom of this river made the bridge one of the most difficult on the highway to engineer. It originally was 6 miles upstream, but the road had to be built over a lot of muskeg to get to that point.

A new Donjek River Bridge being built beside the old one, on July 23, 2006. The new bridge was opened to traffic in 2008.

Km 1818.6: The White River, looking north from the Alaska Highway bridge. A flock of swallows, which nest under the bridge, can be seen to the right.

Km 1865: this is a section of roadway for testing various ideas to protect the permafrost lying under the roadway, and thus stabilize the road. See this page for more information.

Km 1868.6: The old steel truss bridge across Beaver Creek was being replaced by a concrete structure (and the highway raised several feet) when this photo was shot in August 2007.

Km 1870.6: Welcome to Beaver Creek, Yukon. With a population of just over 100, this is the most westerly community in Canada.

One of the most unique buildings in Beaver Creek is Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church. It was built by Father Morriset in 1962 using a Butler hut (a redesign of the famous Quonset hut) left by the US Army after construction of the Alaska Highway was completed.

Once past Beaver Creek, Yukon, the character of the country changes as the valleys become very wide. At this point, about Km 1880, the surrounding country is all permafrost, ground which never thaws except for the upper foot or so.

Km 1902.5 (Historic Mile 1221): The Canada/USA (Yukon/Alaska) border. The US Customs post at Port Alcan is a few hundred yards further west. This photo looking east to the "Welcome to Yukon" sign and beyond, and the next 2 photos, were shot at the border in early June during a motorcycle ride from Whitehorse to Chicken and back. You can see a 3-part article with dozens of photos from that trip on The ExploreNorth Blog starting here.

The "Welcome to Alaska" sign is certainly one of the most-photographed signs on the Alaska Highway.

For 647 miles, the 141st Meridian West is the border between the Yukon and Alaska. The International Boundary Commission, United States and Canada (IBC), is mandated by treaty to maintain an effective boundary line between the two countries. This is accomplished, in part, by keeping a 20-foot wide strip (10 feet in each country) clear of trees, brush and other obstructions and the boundary monuments in good repair. This is the view along the cut-line south from the Alaska Highway.

Mile 1221.8: About to enter Alaska at the Port Alcan U.S. Customs and Border Protection post.

Mile 1224.6: A brilliant sunset over Highway Lake, just west of Port Alcan, the US Customs entry port into Alaska.

Looking east from the viewpoint on Highway Lake at Mile 1224.6.

A rock cut at Mile 1276, looking down from near the old road.

Mile 1303: The new Tanana River Bridge in late July, 2010. A particularly nice rest area was built beside it, at the site of the old bridge.

Mile 1313.3: A popular truck stop in Tok, Fast Eddy's Restaurant, just before 8:00 a.m. in mid-February.

My favourite sign along the highway! The intersection of the Alaska Highway and Midnight Sun Drive, Tok, Alaska. The signs are lit up by using a flash on my camera on this very dull day in January.

Mile 335: The Alaska Range along the south side of the Alaska Highway about 20 miles west of Tok, Alaska.

Mile 336: Northbound right at the Mile 1336 milepost.

The "End of the Alaska Highway" monument at Delta Junction, Alaska - Historic Mile 1422.

Winter provides some unique experiences. This photo was taken while driving southbound just north of Delta Junction, at exactly noon on December 20. Yes, that's as high as the sun gets! And in 2002, there really was almost no snow in late December.

All photos are © 1990-2023 by Murray Lundberg, and are not to be reproduced without permission.