Anchorage to Dawson City
 

Just wondering what there is to see driving from Anchorage to Dawson City / Whitehorse?
Quite a few years ago we drove from Anchorage to Alyeska, Seward, Talkeetna, Denali etc. and really enjoyed the scenery. We have done a couple of Alaska cruises and also enjoyed visiting Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan etc. What about Dawson City to Whitehorse?
If flying back to an airport hub after driving what would be the best place?

Also interested in your hotel / B&B suggestions along the way.

This trip we have no real plans: fly in to San Fran and fly out of LA.
We are thinking of a few nights in San Fran ( been before ) drive to Seattle and fly to Anchorage from there maybe??

We will still have plenty of time to go somewhere else after this section.
Any ideas?
We really enjoyed out last trip to Portland, Chicago, Green Bay, Door County, Milwaukee etc.
Have been to a lot of places before: New York, Florida, Memphis, Savannah, Charleston, New Orleans, San Antonio etc. and looking for something a little different or unusual.

It will be my husband and I and we fly into San Fran on the 1st of July and out of LA on the 25th July.
Thanks for your help

Dawson is a blast; however getting there from Alaska is quite complicated.

First, there are no flights from Anchorage or Fairbanks to Whitehorse or Dawson. There used to be some summer flights to/from Fairbanks operated by Air North (a Canadian carrier) but those have been discontinued.

The national/international car rental companies don't allow their cars to be taken on unpaved roads, and the main road from Alaska to Dawson, the (very scenic) "Top of the World Highway," is mainly gravel.

There are a couple of rental companies in Alaska, such as GoNorth (whose website appears to be fubar at the moment) that will allow their vehicles on gravel, but they charge a fortune compared to the majors.

So what to do? Here's the complicated work-around.

Fly to Juneau and take the ferry or a short air taxi flight to Skagway. You can rent a car (Avis only) in Skagway and drive to Whitehorse (very scenic) and from Whitehorse up to Dawson, then just retrace your steps.

Alternatively, during the summer you can take the tourist train that runs over White Pass from Skagway to Carcross, then there's a connecting bus into Whitehorse. Get a car there and off you go. You could return the car to Whitehorse and fly to Vancouver at the end (or do this whole thing in reverse.)

Or, of course, just skip the Alaska part and just fly to Whitehorse from Vancouver, do the road trip, then fly back.

With your overall timetable (1-25 July) and desire to drive north from California to Seattle/Vancouver, frankly I'd just do that - take a week to drive up, fly to Whitehorse from Vancouver, then back.

As for scenery, It's very nice but IMO not breathtaking stuff. It's much more about human geography and history in the Yukon; Dawson is still very much caught up in gold fever (look for the "Gold Rush" TV series) and the legacy of 120 years of mining in the area is everywhere - http://gardyloo.us/1124%20002s.JPG and http://gardyloo.us/1124%20006s.JPG - but still going on. Dawson is sort of on the tourist circuit, with famous Diamond Tooth Gertie's gambling hall, etc.

Speaking of gold mining legacy, one thing you might consider (easier and probably cheaper) would be to fly to Anchorage from Seattle but change planes and fly on to Nome, the historic gold rush town on the Bering Sea. You can rent vehicles in Nome and drive out into the real bush on the Seward Peninsula - wildlife, Native villages etc. - for a real taste of an Alaska that you haven't seen yet (or so it seems.) Return airfare from Anchorage to Nome is around $320, hotels will be comparably priced to those in southcentral Alaska, and the experience will be pretty memorable. http://www.alaska.org/destination/nome/scenic-drives and http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm...ewardpeninsula

Gardyloo,
thanks so much for your detailed response!
You have certainly given us a lot to think about.
We will definitely check out the links and web sites you have listed over the weekend ( It is Friday night in Australia )
In regards to the Nome area / peninsula do you have any recommendations of where to stay?
Thanks again

Hi Gardyloo, just thought I'd touch base and let you know we have decided to fly from Vancouver to Whitehorse and will then have 10 days or so to see Whitehorse, Dawson City, surrounds, Carcross/ Skagway etc.
Any other suggestions for accommodation, eating out, sights to see etc. would be welcome.
Thanks

Thanks for getting back - have a great trip!