| Campground: | Mendenhall Campground (site 69- very wide) |
| Total Distance: | 3426 Miles. |
| Traveled today: | 165 Miles driving +ferry with the RV. |
| Key highlights: | Tagish bridge. White Pass (HWY2 CA–>98 US). Skagway downtown. Ferry from Skagway to Juneau AK |
That was one hell of a day! With the clouds formally gone, blue skies everywhere, and the mountains capped with fresh snow – the drive to Skagway was a major attraction. We pulled over at almost every viewpoint to appreciate the view and could not leave the bridge in Tagish- that offered an excellent pullover spot
and a great location for breakfast. Next time, we recommend driving a bit further from Teslin to camp on the RV campground just by Tagish. From there – the road winds through Fraser and climbs to the white pass (Which can also be visited by scenic train ride from Skagway or Whitehorse). WOW – take 1.
The US border checkpoint is on the descent from the white pass to Skagway. We had almost lost all our food and wood-fire due to US regulations forbidding importing fruits and wood from Canada. We were lucky to have Ruti keep all her receipts- to show that our meat was purchased at Costco Seattle. We highly recommend mastering the custom rules before crossing the borders and, undoubtedly, declare everything you have at the checkpoint – or you will be fined.
Skagway is a very picturesque town that was invaded by cruise ships to the point that it is overly touristic. Had we had more time – we would have biked along the fjord bays there.
Yet at noon, we checked in to the ferry going to Juneau, AK, with our RV (not cheap, but worth every penny). The adventure of backing off with a tailer while doing a right turn into a ferry was challenging (understatement). The crew on the ferry is really so professional – they made our dock in the first shot—Kudus to their driving instructor. The 7-8 hour sailing in the narrow passage going to Hanes and then to Juneau was spectacular. Mountains all over, great view, solarium on board to view the landscape while sunbathing (yeah) was a treat. Two-thirds into the way – the whales started to show up with some incredible show from a Humpback whale that was clapping his fins for minutes- creating a great splash show. WOW -take2!!
We have Arrived at Mendenhall RV camp at 10:30 pm, just in time for a soup and bread dinner – happy and smiling. It’s a great camping site. Both in nature and fully hooked up. Just under the beautiful Glacier