 |
|
| August 08, 2008. Day 58 - Dawson City - Rain and overcast |
|
|
|
|
| When we uncovered the solar car to charge the batteries this morning the
solar array was generating less than 150watts. At this rate it will take
a few days to fully charge the batteries which was sitting at just over
half full. Wishful thinking but perhaps it will get charged up by the end
of the day. Carrie is catching up on her emails and watching "A Team" and "family guy" with Mo. Marcelo is still sick and talking like Donald duck (quack quack). The rain and overcast weather is grounding us in Dawson. No complaints. The city is extremely charming and beautiful. Since we are here longer than expected may as well make the best of it and tell you more about this beautiful and picturesque place named "Dawson City". "Dawson City, Yukon is found within the traditional lands of the Tr’ondëk Hwech’in and today represents the character and adventure of the world-famous Klondike Gold Rush. In August of 1896, three Yukon "sourdoughs", George Carmack, Dawson Charlie, and Skookum Jim found gold in Rabbit Creek, now called Bonanza Creek, and changed the history of the Yukon forever. Their discovery triggered what was arguably the world's greatest gold rush stampede as nearly 100,000 souls yearned to strike it rich in the Klondike gold fields. By 1898, Dawson City was a modern city of nearly 40,000, situated upon a muddy moose pasture. Today, gold seekers still visit Dawson City. Some come to mine the Klondike gold fields while others come for the gold in the hearts of those who call Dawson City home. Some come for golden moments in the wild and others for the golden memories that will last a lifetime." To learn more about Dawson City visit www.dawsoncity.ca Not to sound corny but we definitely found gold in the hearts of everyone we came across here in Dawson City. From the RCMP officer who pulled us over under the request of the NWT motor vehicle, locals to tourists. Our stay in Dawson will be memorable. Like any small town, everyone knows everyone. Many of the residents are people who originally just came to visit the area and fell in love with the region taken by Dawson's charm, making it their home. Everyone has an interesting story. Any writer looking for inspiration will find plenty here. Some people came from big cities like Toronto wanting to be closer to nature and live a different life style, like the rest of the Yukon, wilderness is in the backyard or just around the corner from most people's home. Here is a good slogan for the territory "Yukon, nature is our backyard". Lots to do and see in Dawson, for the historic buff there is the thrill of visiting the gold mines and checking out the historic places and more. A bit for everyone, hiking, bars, shows, casino and of course a ride on the nostalgic paddlewheel boat on the Yukon river. We are planning on taking a photo of the solar car next to the paddlewheel boat once the weather gets better. Dawson City according to Carrie; awesome place to live because of the strong sense of community, walkability and happenin art scene, Dawson City according to Mo; It's Alright! Two thumbs up! Dawson City according to Marcelo; the ideal honeymoon place. What next? Anchorage, AK. Crazy ah? Since we are so close to Alaska, Marcelo thought it was a good idea to extend the tour and visit the former "Russian land". Luckily we are getting some support to make it happen, John A. Rusyniak from the Log Cabin Wilderness Lodge just outside of Tok is offering us a place to stay. Thanks John! If you know anyone in Anchorage that can provide us with some support let us know. Also, if you would like the solar car to visit your town, state, province, country or continent contact us, it could happen. Carrie and Mo decided to extend their participation with the solar car project tour until Anchorage, Ak. Sounds like Marcelo is not the only one addicted to the solar car. This is the second time the duo have decided to extend their participation and that's great because they are doing a great job!. We are looking for two volunteers to take over Carrie and Mo, if you or anyone you would would like to participate send us an email. More later..... The rain finally stopped but the sky remained overcast. For our surprise the batteries were full by the end of the day. Yeah! Mo and Carrie got busy making volunteer wanted signs and later went exploring, placing the signs at some of the poster boards throughout the city. Marcelo spent some time checking out the route to Anchorage and planning out a driving strategy. There is some challenging terrain ahead and a considerable amount of climbing. Late afternoon we received a visit from Peter Clarkson and his family and were treated for dinner. Thanks Peter! Special thanks to; Peter Clarkson, Inuvik, NWT, Canada for adopting 200km Valerie Menard who is busy working behind the scenes to get the word out about the project. |
|
|
|
