DAY NINE - July 3, 2017 - Whitehorse, Yukon

We started our day at the Kwanlin Dun Cultural Centre where the Adaka Cultural Festival is being held (June 30 to July 6).  It was a unique experience.  Various artists were displaying their work, demonstrating their talents, and holding workshops.

First up were the boats.  Kayak.

Moose hide cargo canoe.

Birch bark canoe.

Dugout Canoes

Then, the finer skills:

And the smoking of fish.

Just $10 per fillet, the Arctic Char was well worth the price!

The fellow who sold us the fish had been taken from his family at age 6.  He returned from the residential school at age 13, and conquered the resulting alcoholism 20 years ago at age 42.

We made two visits to the festival today.  In between, we toured the sternwheeler S.S. Klondike.

Apparently, one of the items the Klondike carried was Pilsener Beer in 10 dozen pint kegs.

If you read the sign, you will understand that there were parts of the ship that Mardi wasn't allowed to visit.

But Bud was allowed to participate in one of the upper class activities.  My friend Andy Hardy (a.k.a. Gary Parker) will appreciate that Quoits was played on the Klondike.

After leaving the ship, we visited Miles Canyon.  The Yukon is navigable from the Bering Sea to Whitehorse.  But upstream rapids (now dammed) held back the steamships from entering the canyon.  

In the centre of the picture is a foot bridge which we walked across.

Yes, the bridge does sway.  You can see the basalt columns along the river, the result of volcanic eruptions just 8.5 million years ago.

But, we didn't go much further.

It is a beautiful spot.  The green colour is what we saw, but couldn't show in pictures, at Muncho Lake.

Today's Big Thing (not stupid) is a totem that represents the clans who reside in this area, e.g. bear, raven, wolf, eagle, etc.

All in all, a very interesting, but relaxing, day.

Tomorrow we enter Alaska, to help them celebrate July 4th.