The discovery of gold in the Klondike started one of the most remarkable stampedes of people in history.

 Getting to the goldfields, though, was very difficult, and hundreds of companies were formed to get people there by ship, wagon, horse, dogsled, railroad and even by balloon! 

The White Pass & Yukon Route is the only one of those companies which still survives today.

Many people said that a railroad could never be built through the granite of the Coastal Mountains. They were almost right - it was an incredible challenge to engineers and laborers alike.

Construction on the 112-mile line to Whitehorse, Yukon began on May 27, 1898 in Skagway, Alaska.  Just over 2 years later, on July 29, 1900, the final spike was driven at Carcross. 

 Combining British financing, American engineering, and Canadian contracting, the White Pass and Yukon was the first major civil engineering project on the continent above the 60th degree of nortern latitude.  Completed in 27 months using only hand tools, black powder, and regional timber, the White Pass and Yukon rises almost 2,900 feet from sea level at the port of Skagway to the White Pass summit on the U.S.-Canada border in just 20 miles, accomplishing one of the steepest climbs of any railroad in the world.  

Built for approximately $10 million to promote the Klondike Gold Rush around the turn of the century, the 110-mile narrow-gauge railway remained an important part of the mining industry - transporting gold, silver, copper and lead ore from Canadian mines across the coastal mountain range to Alaskan ports - until it was closed in 1982.  The railroad found new life six years later as a thriving excursion line serving the cruise-ship industry.  The round trip from Skagway to White Pass was a highlight of our Alaska experience.