Carcross

Carcross is a Tlingit town, full of artisans. It's a real frontier style town with no frills. Situated on Lake Bennett which flows into the Yukon River, this town was a hub in the gold rush days. It was here that the miners who had trekked up the White Pass would wait by the frozen lake waiting for the ice to break up. That was the signal that the rivers would be navigable to the goldfields further inland.

It's essentially now a town where the first peoples live and create their unique arts and crafts. They are the Tlingit. We stop at Carcross going and coming. It's an interesting little town. Homes are small and many are shot cabins ie if you stand inside the front door and fire a shot at the back wall, they are so small it is said that the damage to the exterior wall would be minimal!

The town sits astride 2 lakes. Lake Bennett and Lake Nares. The shortest river in Alaska, Nares River, joins the 2 lakes between the rail bridge and the road bridge. Depending on the water levels in the lakes, the river flows both ways.

The name Carcross is short for caribou crossing - an activity which happens twice a year.Read more