North Pole, Alaska
Day 700
We have now been traveling in the Sphinx for 700 days. Today we are at the North Pole to visit with my friend, Santa Claus.
When we first arrived he wasn’t here. He told me that he was a little under the weather, as he has trouble adjusting to 24 hours of daylight. He is use to the 23 hours of darkness in the winter time, and, of course, on Christmas Eve, when he makes his deliveries around the world, it is always at night. But he did tell me I could sit in his chair until he arrived,
and Barbara could sit in Mrs. Claus’s chair.
So, when you write those letters to Santa, where do they go? Why to the North Pole Post Office, of course. 
Although, you would think the zip code would be 00000.
Tidbit of Information: We are now at that time of year called the midnight sun. That is, the sun does not set until after midnight. Tonight it sets at 12:13 A.M. and will rise again in a couple of hours. Because of the short time between setting and rising, it is never really dark. In fact is seems like it is daylight 24 hours. Some in our group don’t like it, I think it is neat, although you don’t see the stars or moon.
Technical Stuff:
Tok, Alaska to North Pole, Alaska: 199.2 Miles
4 hours 10 minutes
10.6 MPG
Diesel: $3.45
Tok, Alaska
Day 699
Tok is the first major community you arrive as you cross from Canada to Alaska. The area was originally settled by Athabascan Indians who named the area Tok, meaning water.
Not far from Tok is Delta Junction. This is where the Alcan ends. The road now continues, and is called Richardson Highway.
Across the road from the marker was the Sullivan Roadhouse. John E. Sullivan was born in March, 1866 in Wisconsin. He worked as a merchant until June, 1895, when he headed north to Alaska to join the first stampeders to the Klondike to mine for gold. However, he found it was more profitable to operate a roadhouse. Roadhouses were springing up along the new roads being built to accommodate the prospectors looking for gold. He built this house himself. 
Complete with kitchen 
Living area
They had a gentleman there, who might have been one of the original pioneers. He was able to answer all of our questions. For example, Klondike is a region and not a place. It lies around the Klondike River, a small river that enters the Yukon River from the east at Dawson City. The name “Klondike” evolved from the Athabascan word Tr’ondëk, which means “hammerstone water”. Early gold seekers found it difficult to pronounce the word, so “Klondike” was the result of this poor pronunciation.
Of course, they had a gift shop there.
And an ice-cream stand
“Can I have the spool, when you finish?”
Technical Stuff:
Kluane Lake, Yukon Territory to Tok, Alaska: 242.8 miles
5 hours 40 minutes
10.0 MPG
Diesel: $1.32 Canadian/liter
Kluane Lake, Yukon Territory
Day 697
Kluane Lake is located in the southwest area of the Yukon. It is the largest lake contained entirely within The Yukon Territory.
Across from our campsite was a grissily bear and her two cubs.
Finally, the bear said “no more photos”.
We also saw mountain sheep high on the mountain ridge
Technical Stuff:
Whitehorse, Yukon Territory to Kluane Lake, Yukon Territory: 150.6 miles
3 hours 33 minutes
10.2 MPG
Diesel: $1.32 Canadian / liter
White Pass and Yukon Railroad
Day 696
Milepost 66
We took a bus ride from Whitehorse, Yukon to Fraiser, Yukon to catch the White Pass and Yukon Railroad, which will take us to Skagway, Alaska.
Along the way we stopped at Emerald Lake.
The beautiful blue-green color of the lake is created by sunlight reflecting off a white layer of “marl” on the lake bed. Marl is a white calcium carbonate clay that forms in the water and settles unevenly on the lake bottom.
We also stopped at the Carcross Desert.
Of course, it is not a real desert, but it is called that to attract tourists. And here we are. It is really an ancient lake bed, now dried up as part of the glacial process. The Carcross Dunes are a rare habitat and one of only a few dune systems in northwestern North America. 
The town of Carcross (originally known as Caribou Crossing) was a railroad town for those building the White Pass Railroad. After the completion of the railroad, the town remained as a popular stopping place for prospectors going to and from the gold field.
James “Skookum” Mason was an Alaskan native who found a gold nugget in Rabbit Creek in August of 1896 that began the Klondike Gold Rush.
The train line was born of the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897. Construction started on May 27, 1898 and was completed July 29, 1900. It is a 110 mile narrow gauge railroad. It had to be narrow gauge to get through the thin mountain passes.
After the gold rush subsided, the line changed hands numerous times, finally, the White Pass Route was reopened between Skagway and Fraser in 1989, purely for tourist passenger traffic.
The narrow gauge railroad only has one track through the mountains. At each end, the engine goes from one end of the train to the other for the return trip. 
There were lots of water falls.
Ground Squirrels
Muskox
Mountain Goats
Arctic Fox
Caribou
We were fortune to see a Caribou give birth
That afterbirth sure tastes good
