Dawson City, Yukon: The Heart of the Klondike Gold Rush
Dawson City, a small town in the northern reaches of Canada, celebrates its history perhaps more than any other place we’ve been. In fact, many aspects of the Klondike Gold Rush era are still alive and well today—dirt roads edged by wooden plank walkways, vaudeville shows, sultry saloons, a bath house in lieu of showers, and even rowdy gold miners. As irony goes, my favorite town so far on our “Alaska” road trip isn’t in Alaska (or even the US) at all.
Dawson City is the first big detour on our Alaska road trip. After friends in Portland regaled us with tales of this unique mining town near the top of the world and its famous Sourtoe Cocktail (the secret ingredient being a mummified human toe) we had to add it to our list of destinations this summer.
Dawson City History
Dawson City rose to fame as the epicenter of the Klondike Gold Rush in the late 1890s. Between 1897 and 1898 5,000 people successfully completed the grueling journey to Dawson City seeking their fortunes. By 1899 that number had grown to 30,000 people. It was the largest community north of San Francisco.
To say that Dawson City is a place where you can see living history, is a vast understatement. Most cities have a historic district with a few blocks of original buildings. In Dawson City, everywhere you look appears to be a scene from the late 1800s. Well if you exchange cars for sled dogs, and cell phones for guns I suppose. My point is that much of the original Dawson City architecture still exists today. Many of the buildings have been restored. However, some have been left to age naturally. Can you tell which ones they are in our photos?
What is a Sourdough Exactly?
When you arrive in Dawson City, one of the first things you notice are all the “Sourdoughs” with nary a bakery in sight. Okay, there are bakeries, but what I mean is that various businesses, restaurant dishes, and local products area called sourdough this and sourdough that, and they’re not referring to the tasty bread.
So what is a sourdough? One theory we heard is that it refers to people who don’t have enough dough to leave here and they’re sour about it. That’s not what it really means though. A sourdough is someone who has seen a freeze and a thaw in Dawson City—basically if you’ve been here long enough to survive a winter, you’re a sourdough. The nickname came about because residents used to keep their sourdough starters close to their bodies in winter to keep them from freezing.
Things to Do in Dawson City
Dawson City was our first real taste of the Land of the Midnight Sun. With the sun setting after midnight and the stars never showing their twinkly faces, you can pack a lot into your days. We’ve rounded up some must see sights and experiences in Dawson City as well as our recommendations for where to eat and stay.
Walking Tours
Parks Canada offers numerous guided tours around the city and specialized tours at different historical sites like the SS Keno—a paddle wheeler from the 1920s. Most of the tours are cheap—under $7 Canadian. You can get the full tour schedule at the Visitor Information Center on Front Street.
Alternately you can do your own walking tour. Just use the Visitor Center map to find the historic locations around the city and read the informational plaques and signage. You’ll learn all about the buildings and characters that made up this vibrant gold rush town.
Dawson City Museum
This may be the first time I’ve ever looked at pictures in a museum and thought, “Sure looks a lot like the view out the window.” The Dawson City Museum is the perfect place to learn about the gold rush boom, subsequent waning, and more recent rebuilding of the town.
Join the Sourtoe Cocktail Club
It’s toe time! The Sourtoe Cocktail is of course a take on the sourdough term, but with a twist. Or more accurately, a toe. According to local lore, a miner and bootlegger lost his toe to frostbite in the 1920s. Maybe he was a hoarder, because he preserved the severed digit in a jar of alcohol. Half a century later a Yukon local found the jar with the toe in his cabin. He proceeded to bring it to the bar and plop the toe into patron’s drinks. This was the founding of the Sourtoe Cocktail Club.
The first toe is long gone (accidentally swallowed), but the tradition continues. A mummified human toe is placed into a shot of booze of your choice. You must take the shot and the toe must touch your lips. Those are the rules folks. Upon successful consumption of the Sourtoe Cocktail you’ll receive a certificate for your efforts. As of the day we joined the club, there were 87,751 other members. Touristy? Yes. Rather gross? Yup. Rubbery? Most definitely. Would we do it again? Hell yeah! There are times and places where you just have to embrace your inner tourist. As they say, “When in Dawson City.”
If you’re interested in joining the Sourtoe Cocktail Club, go to the Sourdough Saloon in the Downtown Hotel. “Toe time” only happens between specific hours each day (9-11pm when we visited) so check the latest schedule before you go. Oh, and whatever you do, don’t swallow the toe! Besides crossing the line into cannibalism (hey, there are still some rules here) you’ll get a $2,500 fine.
Palace Grand Theatre
Now let’s talk about a much classier establishment—the Palace Grand Theatre. While, not the original structure, this theatre was built in the 1960s. It’s an almost exact replica of the 1800s original which was deemed too unstable for restoration.
Today, Parks Canada maintains and operates the theatre, putting on daily shows from May through September. During the boom of the Klondike Gold Rush at least half a dozen elaborate theatres like this existed in Dawson City. If the entire town didn’t already have you feeling like you rode the DeLorean (or dog sled) back in time, the Palace Grand Theatre most definitely will.
Diamond Tooth Gerties Gambling Hall
While this is Canada’s first casino, you don’t have to gamble to enjoy Diamond Tooth Gerties. The main draw here is the vaudeville show. It’s put on three times each night. For $15 CAN you’ll get a membership card that grants you unlimited access to the hall during your stay.
Ferry Across the Yukon River
A free seasonal ferry operates 24 hours a day from May to September bringing folks across the mighty Yukon River to West Dawson. The ferry carries both foot and vehicle traffic. If you have a big rig, you might need to wait a while to make the river crossing. The ferry can only take a handful of vehicles at a time. We heard of people waiting for over five hours when trying to cross at popular times after a holiday weekend. However, we crossed with Stan the Tan Van a few days earlier and only waited 15 minutes. If you ferry your vehicle across the river and stay on that side, you can always hoof it back to downtown like we did as the ferry terminal is just a short walk away.
Top of the World Highway
Once across the ferry, you’ll be on top of the world—or at least on the Top of the World Highway. A combination of paved, gravel, and some type of in-between surface that runs from West Dawson, over the northernmost US/Canada border crossing into Alaska. Like the ferry, this highway is only open for the summertime and we found the road conditions to be surprisingly better than we expected. The views really do make you feel like you’re driving on top of the world—with dusky mountains and green valleys spreading out in all directions.
Dempster Highway
Want to actually drive to the top of the world? Well, the Dempster Highway will take you there. As of 2017 you can drive all the way to the small community of Tuktoyaktuk (often called just Tuk) situated on the Arctic Ocean. You can get more information about the drive and latest road conditions at the Northwest Territories Visitor Center just across the street from the Dawson City Visitor Center.
Where to Eat in Dawson City
One thing there’s no shortage of in Dawson city is places to eat and drink. Here are some of our favorite places to eat and a saloon or two for good measure.
Joe’s Wood-fired Pizza: The pizza here was seriously some of the best we’ve had since Italy. You can bet we went Italian style and each got our own.
Sourdough Joe’s Restaurant: They claim to have the best fish-n-chips in town. From what we saw, they may be the only place to serve fish-n-chips, however we can’t argue. There’s also a nice outdoor seating area here.
Klondyke Cream and Candy: Because Summatime = Ice cream time. Also, you can walk across the street and take in the Yukon River views while you eat your sweet treats.
Sourdough Saloon at the Downtown Hotel: Yes, the same Sourdough Saloon of the famous Sourtoe Cocktail. They happen to have a tasty bar menu. I recommend the nachos…shocking I know. This saloon is also where we met a modern-day gold miner whose exuberant stories of camp life led me to think that while the mining process has changed in the last 100+ years, the human condition has not.
Where to stay in Dawson City
Dawson City Campgrounds
With Hookups: If you need hookups and want to be in the center of town (and don’t need much privacy) check out the Gold Rush Campground.
Dry Camping and Hostel: Technically the Dawson City River Hostel is in West Dawson, just across the Yukon River. This is where we stayed and we definitely recommend it for camping as long as you don’t have a big rig. The whole experience here is very unique. The grounds feel like a cross between an artist’s workshop and a scrap yard. You’ll find unexpected gems (like 1970s stationary bicycles) along wooded trails and the outhouses are decorated with original paintings. Instead of a shower, there’s a full bath house complete with a barrel stove for warming water and metal tubs. This was the most fun lodging experience we’ve had in a long time.
Dawson City Hotels
If you’re looking for more traditional lodging, there are plenty of hotels right in downtown Dawson City. This one is centrally located and has great reviews.
As you can see, Dawson City is a place unlike anywhere else. It’s a place that will transport you to an exciting, reckless era. A place that proudly holds onto its frontier roots. A place that soaks up some of the unbridled wilderness which surrounds it. And then there’s the whole mummified human toe thing.
