Yukon and Alaska Bound, Part 22. Gold Mining and Dredge No. 4

Placer Gold Mining - Dredge No. 4

Gold Bottom Mine Tour

Gold that is!

It's the 10th of July 2014 and we are waiting in front of the office at Gold Bottom Mine Tours office on Front Street in Dawson City, Yukon.

Old Mine shaft

An active placer mining site

We are about to embark on a placer gold mine tour. Placer gold mining is the mining of stream bed deposits for gold or other minerals.


Placer mining may be done by open-pit or by various surface excavating equipment or tunneling equipment.


The gold, having been moved by stream flow from an original source such as a vein, are typically only a minuscule portion of the total deposit.


Since gold is very heavy considerably more dense than sand, it tend to accumulate at the base of placer deposits.


Up on Hunker Creek Claim the permafrost first has to been thawed out and washed away before they can find any gold.


This is a method known as hydraulic mining, hydraulic sluicing or hydraulicking.


The mine tour costs $55.00 per person and it is well worth it. We hop in to a company van and get chauffeured up to the claim.


Melinda our guide is very nice young women. She first shows us around the claim where they have an office and some cabins.

In their private Museum. Note the large Mammoth tusk.

Pumping water up in to the side hill so the sun can melt the perma frost.

Large front loader dumping dirt into the large sluice. 

Large gravel coming out and being separated.

Final separation is done by hand.

It is time consuming but hopefully worth it.

There we go, it's what we are looking for.

The history and what they have found is very interesting.




It is not uncommon to find huge Mammoth Ivory tusks.




The miners are allowed to keep these and it is an extra bonus for them.




Somehow they are not as controlled up here, they do not have to stop working for the paleontologist to arrive.





They just keep the stuff and the authorities will eventually catch up with them.




After that we drive up to where they are working on the claim.




The equipment is running and it is clanging and banging away.




A front loader dumps pay dirt (possible gold bearing soil or gravel) in the the massive sluice.




The sluice separates the dirt and the gold, all this works with gravity and with the help of water and motion.




The fine dirt now collected in 5 gallon pails is then run through a similar process but with fine eye watching for gold.




It's now our turn. But first we get to see some actual nuggets that have been found on the claim. Wow, incredible.




One chain with a nugget is worth about $10,000.00




Now we get our rubber boots, and gold pans. A quick instruction and we are on our way.




We both find a few specs of gold, but we are not going to be rich today.




We hop in the van and head back to Dawson City.

Anders with a $10,000.00 chain and nugget.

Dredge No 4

Dredge No 4, Canadian National Historic Site.

Dredge No 4, Canadian National Historic Site. It is massive.

The workings of Dredge No 4, Canadian National Historic Site.

Inside the dredge.

Liz walking up the stairs inside the dredge.

This is where the operator watched over things.

We have a quick lunch and then we hop in the truck and head up to Dredge No 4 outside of town.


After gold was discovered in large quantities in the Klondike, dredges were brought into the Yukon.


In the early 1900 there were about two dozen dredges that worked this area.

Dredge No 4 is located on Claim No. 17 on Bonanza Creek near the spot where it ceased operations in 1960.


The largest wooden hull, bucket-line dredge in North America, it was designed by the Marion Steam Shovel Company.


Dredge No 4 started working in 1913. In some of the places where it operated it produce up to 800 oz of gold in a single day.


Some facts about Dredge No 4: it is 2/3 the size of a football field and stands 8 stories high.


It has a displacement weight of over 3,000 tons , with a 16 cubic foot bucket capacity.


Dredge No 4 could dig 48 feet below water level, and 17 feet above water level using hydraulic monitors and washing the gravel banks down.


The amazing part with Dredge No 4 was that it was electrically powered. The power came from the Company's hydro plant on the Klondike River about 30 miles away.

The dredge required 920 continuous horsepower during the digging operation alone. Extra horsepower was needed occasionally for such things as hoisting the "spud" (a pivoting pole) and the gangplank.


The dredge would move along on a pond of its own making. It would dig gold bearing gravel in front, recovering the gold through the revolving screen and washing plant, then depositing the gravel out the stacker at the rear of the dredge.


A dredge pond could be 300 feet long by 500 feet wide, depending on the width of the valley in which the dredge was operating.


The operating season was on average about 200 days, starting in late April or early May and operating 24 hours a day until late November.

This is a very interesting National Historic site. Remember to use your Parks Canada pass.

Anders panning for gold

Liz trying her luck for gold.

After this tour we went to a "free claim" and tried our luck at panning in the river.... No riches this time.

For many more pictures from this interesting day, click here.

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Yukon and Alaska Bound, Part 21. Back in Dawson City

Dawson City, Yukon Territory.

Dawson City and the Yukon River

Liz and Anders in Dawson City, Yukon.

Inside the Dawson City Museum.

Sluice box demonstration at the museum.

It is the 8th of July 2014 and we are staying at the Bonanza Gold Motel and RV Park, a few kilometers outside of Dawson City, Yukon.



The RV Park is a pretty well run place that has a truck wash, laundry and a friendly and accommodating staff.



When we drove the Dempster Highway we left our trailer at the campground (for a fee). Very handy.



I would not bring a trailer up the Dempster Highway. It's not that you can't, but the dust and the mud would make a mess out of your rig.



If you drive the Dempster, and it is dusty, use your A/C. It will pressurize the cab and keep the dust out.



After breakfast we decided to make it a slow day.



After all we drove all the way from Inuvik to Dawson the previous day, 700+ km.



Liz did some laundry, and I washed the truck. Incredible how the mud sticks to the truck like cement.



In the afternoon we went downtown Dawson City and visited the City Museum. It is really nice with a lot of interesting information.

Anders having a drink at the local saloon.

You should add it to your list if you visit Dawson.


At the museum they also had a sluice box demonstration showing how they searched for gold in the olden days.


We went to the local saloon for a glass of brew then back to camp for supper and an early evening.

9th of July 2015, more of Dawson City, Yukon

Liz in front of the SS Keno. A Canadian National Historic Site.

Anders and one of the people working at the SS Keno. Boiler in the back ground

It was a big event the the SS Keno arrived in Dawson City.

The SS Keno going through the "Five Finger Rapids"

Liz in a state room. Pretty small beds.

Liz in the kitchen of the SS Keno.

It was a bit of a cloudy day, very comfortable though, not too cold, not too hot.



After a nice breakfast in our trailer we headed in to town again. We visited the SS. Keno.



The SS Keno was the last "Sternwheeler" to navigate the Yukon River.



In the late 1899 there were 60 Sternwheelers, 8 tugs and 20 barges operating on the Yukon River.



The SS Keno was constructed in 1922, in Whitehorse, by the British Yukon Navigation Company.



This company was a subsidiary of the White Pass and Yukon Route railway company.



The SS Keno mostly transported silver, zinc and lead ore from mines in the Mayo district to the area where the Yukon and Stewart river meet at Stewart City.



The SS Keno was retired from commercial service in 1951 due to the extension and improvement of the Klondike Highway in the years after World War II.



Following its withdrawal from service, the SS Keno was laid up at the BYN Co. shipyard in Whitehorse, before being selected for preservation and donated by the company to the Canadian Government in 1959.



On 25 August 1960 the SS Keno left Whitehorse to sail downstream to Dawson City.



In doing so she became the last of the Yukon's sternwheeler steamers to navigate the Yukon River under her own power.



Three days later she arrived in Dawson and was subsequently installed as a tourist attraction and a permanent memorial to the approximately 250 sternwheelers that provided a vital transport service on the Yukon River and its tributaries during the latter half of the 19th and first half of the 20th centuries.



The SS Keno is now a National Historic Site. Make sure to bring your National Parks Pass and you go in for free. For more information on the SS Keno go to Wikipedia.

Liz in the old post office.

Sign in post office.

Colleen in the old Saloon.

Commissioner's house.

Inside the Commissioner's house.

In the afternoon we took a guided city walking tour. These tours are great and worth every penny. Colleen was our guide, she was super friendly and knowledgeable.



During the walking tour we visited many old buildings; post office, bank, bordello, print shop etc...



After the tour we walked over to the Commissioner's residence, the grandest home in Dawson, on Front Street.



Only the first floor is renovated and that part is very posh indeed. Must have been a special place to live.



The commissioner's job was not only to be the representative of the crown, he was also the public and commercial guru for attracting big business.



After the initial gold rush for the big placer nuggets, it became evident that gold digging for the smaller stuff had to be mechanized.



The Rockefellers and the Guggenheims were wooed to invest in the large dredges. And they did.



The plan for the next day was to go gold panning.



For more pictures from in and around Dawson City, click here.

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Yukon and Alaska Bound, Part 20. Driving back from Inuvik to Dawson City.

Inuvik to Dawson City

Panorama of Wright Pass. Yukon and Northwest Territories boundary.

On July 7th we said good bye to the High Arctic, Inuvik and Northwest Territories in brilliant sunshine.

Northwest Territories landscape

Mackenzie River, Northwest Territories

Our plan was to drive back to Eagle plains and stay overnight and then to continue to Dawson the next day.



However, the weather and the drive was so beautiful, we just drove all the way the Dawson City that day.



A drive of over 700 km in one day on gravel roads. Crazy!



The landscape looked so different coming from the north and with the beautiful sunshine we saw places that were in the fog on the way up.

Tombstone Territorial Park, Yukon.

Tombstone.

My favourite place on the way up to Inuvik was Tombstone Territorial Park.

Tombstone Territorial Park is around 2,200 km² of unique wilderness and rugged peaks, permafrost land-forms and abundant wildlife.

The park is a legacy of the Tr'ondëk Hwëch'in land claim agreement and lies within their traditional territory.

The Dempster Highway goes right through the park where there is an awesome visitor center. 


Be prepared to take in the stunning arctic tundra landscapes and wildlife. If you are a hiker, this is a super nice place for hiking.

Wright Pass looking South in to Yukon.

Taking in the views at Wright Pass, Yukon - Northwest Territories boundary

Going back south then, Wright Pass was my favourite and probably the most beautiful place on the whole Dempster highway.


Wright Pass is the boundary between Yukon Territory and Northwest Territories. 


The pass was named after Allen Wright who, as a highway engineer for Public Works Canada, determined much of the route followed today by the Dempster Highway.


We have been told that a lot of caribou winter in this area. It must be quite a site to see them all roam through the valleys and over the hills.


After many rivers, hills and mountains we eventually reached Dawson City again and were very happy to move back in to our chuck-wagon.


For about 100 plus more pictures from this part of the trip, check out our photo album.

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Yukon and Alaska Bound, Part 19. Inuvik - Life Above the Arctic Circle.

Inuvik - Life in the Arctic

6th of July 2014

Our Cottage at Arctic Chalets

Inside cottage

We enjoyed a leisurely morning at our temporary home at the Arctic Chalet in Inuvik, Northwest Territories.



It was nice to laze around after our eventful tour yesterday to Tuktoyaktuk.



We decided to spend the day just walking and driving around Inuvik.



This town has an interesting beginning. In the 1950 the Canadian Government decided to built this brand new town to replace Aklavik on the Peel River, which was prone to flood and had unstable homes.



Inuvik was built from scratch on pilings above the permafrost.





All the services for fresh water and sewer are above ground in "Utilidors". Utilidors are conduits covered by corrugated steel, connected to most buildings and homes.

Inuvik Northwest Territories. The Western Arctic

Utilidors where sewer and water goes.

Utilidors

Utilidors

In the 1970's oil and Natural Gas was discovered up here. Unfortunately with the collapse of the oil prices in the mid 1980's and the closure of the Canadian Armed Forces Base in 1985, the economy suffered gravely. Some of the ugly remains of the boom time are still littering the Inuvik landscape.

All houses are on pilings.

Inuvik

Inuvik Hospital

Old hockey arena converted to a green house.

There are good chances for the locals to further their education.

Today, the community has high hopes for economic benefits with the construction of the 137 kilometer all-weather-road from Inuvik to Tuk (Tuktoyaktuk).


Talking to the locals, we heard mixed reactions to the project.


The challenge to build a permanent road over the arctic landscape is immense with the permafrost, the tundra, the Mackenzie River delta, and the extreme weather conditions.


The traditions of the Inuvialut, Gwich'in and Metis people are mixed in with today's daily life.


The old hockey arena with the glass roof is being reborn as the huge communal greenhouse with garden plots for individual families.


The local Aurora College gives the approximate 3500 people of Inuvik opportunities the further their education.


Tourism is still in its infancy. The local hotels looked lonely.


One hopes for the economy to improve for Inuvik, but on the other hand it is nice to still find a few old customs and traditional people here above the Arctic Circle.


For more pictures from in and around Inuvik have a look at our "Inuvik Album".

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