Reptile Creek Layover - August 2

View from the ridge above Reptile Creek

We took a day off to hike along Reptile Creek.

We were able to follow game trails along the creek until we reached a canyon

and then had to bushwack up above the cliffs.  Lots of lichen,good caribou habitat, I guess.

The going was rough, with scrub birch, hummocks and bogs.  We followed a good game or horse trail for a while but it eventually led to a swamp, so returned to the creek and ate lunch overlooking the creek in a really good blueberry patch.

Berry of the Day

On the River - Duo Lakes ton Reptile Creek, August 1

The next morning we took our camp down and portaged the rest of our gear to the put in.  The Swiss men were still camped there and had decided to fly back to Mayo as one of them was not feeling well.  They gave us some much-appreciated fresh apples and Ritter Sport chocolate bars, and the guys helped them portage their gear back to the lake.

Put in on the Snake River

Eventually we were all packed in and hit the river.

Ready to go

And we're off

The first day's paddle turned out to be more challenging than we expected; water levels were quite high, and there were some tricky narrow channels with sharp corners and difficult to avoid headwalls.

Both the raft and our inflatable kayak were pushed into one headwall, the raft bounced off, but when we hit the wall, Leo and one of our drybags fell into the river.  We didn't capsize and Leo jumped back into the boat, we collected the bag, and were on our way.

More seriously, Birgit fell out of the raft and got caught up in some netting and dislocated her finger.  The netting was immediately removed, but she had to paddle all the way to the end of the trip with her injury.

With the portage, it was a short day on the river, and after 10 km and two hours we reached our first camp at the mouth of Reptile Creek,

Campsite on Reptile Creek

It was a sunny day, so we were able to dry everything out after yesterday's rain.

Layover at Duo Lakes

The scenery here was fabulous so we spent an extra day and hiked up a ridge toward one of the peaks and got great views over Duo Lakes (left) and the river (right):

Bird of the Day:  Lapland Longspurs

Berry of the Day:   Oops, been informed by my sister that these are bearberries!

In the evening a big thundershower came through so it was early to bed!

Fly into the Snake- July 30

The gang at Blacksheep Aviation before our flight

The next morning we reported to Black Sheep Aviation in Mayo for our flight into the Snake.  We loaded all our gear into the plane 

and took off from the Stewart River for the 40 minute flight over mountains, lakes and rivers toDuo Lakes where the plane landed.

All our gear unloaded and the pilot prepares to leave.

We set up camp on the shore of Duo Lake

and then portaged the boats over to the  river, about 1.5 kilometres away.  There were two Swiss men camped at the put in, they had arrived earlier in the day and were waiting for their paddles, which had been left behind in the plane and were brought in with us.

Then I proceeded to empty out all the drybags full of food to find out where I'd put things, a job I'd repeat many times over the trip.  The hot chocolate I never did find till we got home again.

July 29 - Whitehorse to Keno City

The next morning we drove to Keno City,about a five hour drive northeast of Whitehorse.  Five hours, that is, if you don't miss the turnoff and drive 1 hour the wrong way towards Haines Junction before you figure it out.

However, Glen, Cathy, Birgit and Dale were patiently waiting for us in Carmacks at the Coalmine Campsite where we camped on our Yukon River trip 4 years ago.  Great cinnamon buns,great hamburgers, andthey roast their own coffee!

We stayed at the Silver Moon Bunkhouse, with very nice units, a separate bathhouse, and a great lounge, kitchen area, kind of like an upscale hostel.  

Keno is an old mining ghost town, with a vibe like Wells and Atlin, BC, but smaller.  There's also the original hotel, which looks very not renovated, and a funky cafe where we ate our supper, home cooking and pizza.

Keno City Snack Bar

They have a pretty good museum, with three buildings full of old mining equipment. I liked the collection of photos from the 1950s of locals in their homes.

Spoiler: We survived!

Got a bit caught up in Olympic fever after we get home, but I'll be posting about our Snake River trip in the next few days.

We're in the Yukon Now

Boya Lake to Wolf Creek Territorial Park, Whitehorse

We slept in until 8:30 this morning and were on the road an hour later.  We saw a small black bear just as we were leaving the park; it didn't stick around for a photo. 



Soon after crossing into the Yukon, we were greeted with this view.

It was about a 5 hour drive to Whitehorse, where we found Glen and Cathy camped at Wolf Creek Campsite, about 15 minutes out of town. 

Wolf Creek Territorial Campsite

They let us hang out in their camper to wait out an afternoon shower.  Then we ate dinner before we went on an hour hike that led from the campsite along Wolf Creek and over to the Yukon River.



Cathy on the Yukon River