Arrived safely in the Yukon Territory

Well, another day of Alaskan Highway travel complete!  We have arrived safely in Whitehorse, which is the capitol of the Yukon Territory. We had dinner at Georgio's, a very nice restaurant here, and are nestled in our room at the Skky Hotel. Having traveled up through here already, I had kept my eyes peeled for the better places in these tiny places we are driving through, and we are reaping the benefits on the return trip.  It is a very nice, modern hotel, and, wait for it...it has air conditioning!  Probably the only hotel within a couple of hundred miles that an advertise that!

The traveling here is just soooooo different.  You can go 100 miles without seeing more than a handful of cars, and no other signs of life or civilization.  It is idyllic and untouched, but not the easiest territory to travel through. Also, this is road construction season here, and we have traveled over nothing but gravel for long periods of time.

We did find this beautiful lake today, however, nestled in Western Yukon. We skipped rocks across the surface and enjoyed our time, but the bugs are driving Natalie to distraction, so we eventually had to abandon the spot...seems like the warmer weather has really brought out the mosquitos, which are a hot topic of conversation among the locals.  If you don't know what to talk about here, talking about the weather or the mosquitos will open up doors of conversation anywhere you go.  Last night, Natalie asked me if we could find a restroom somewhere, but we were in the middle of NOWHERE! So I pulled off at a little grocery store, which was closed, but the owner opened up for us (people are very, very friendly here!) We then spent fifteen minutes talking about the weather and various bug zapper contraptions that he had tried...amazing!

Tomorrow will be a long day of driving.  Our goal is to finish the Alaskan Highway and return to 'civilization'.  We have about 14 hours of driving ahead, depending upon the road and weather, but we should spend tomorrow evening in Fort St. John, British Columbia if all goes well. That will leave us a short day of driving on Tuesday to arrive at Edmonton, the capital of Alberta, where there are 'normal' roads / freeways, with exits that have, you know, gas stations and things.  Helpful when you travel.  It has truly been an adventure, and we are eager to return to friends and family.  Hope you all are ready and eager to start a wonderful week!