Hiking Gold Rush Trails in Alaska & Canada

Welcome to Alaska

Start your journey in Skagway, Alaska, the coastal town where the major Gold Rush began and the original setting for Jack London's The Call of the Wild. Meet your guide at the hotel at 5pm for a welcome dinner, history talk, and an orientation about the adventure ahead.

Historic Train Ride & Glacier Trek

Today starts and ends with a scenic train ride aboard the historic White Pass & Yukon Route Railway. This journey is paired with views of spectacular waterfalls, rushing rivers and jagged mountain peaks, all complemented by a narrated commentary on the Klondike Gold Rush history. At Glacier Station, begin a fully guided round-trip hike of up to 8 miles, through old-growth forest, along a tumbling river and up the moraine for an ascent in the clean mountain air all the way to the magnificent Laughton Glacier.

Journey to Canada: Alpine Tundra Hike & Hot Springs

Head into Canada to retrace the Dalton Trail, once used by Tlingit peoples for trading oils, furs, and copper nuggets with their Athabascan partners. Enjoy a blissful 5-mile hike over alpine tundra before traveling to Carcross for lunch. Next stop is Whitehorse, capital of the Yukon and a premier Gold Rush trading city. After checking in, take a stroll to the Yukon River or explore Whitehorse's historic sites and galleries. An optional relaxing soak in geothermal mineral pools can be found at Takhini Hot Springs, just outside Whitehorse.

Hike Kluane National Park

After breakfast, depart for Haines Junction and the The Da Ku Culture Centre — an innovative cultural facility that celebrates the culture and traditions of the Champagne and Aishihik First Nations peoples. Next, fuel up on lunch at the well-known Village Bakery.

Haines Junction, Yukon, Canada is the gateway to Kluane National Park, a dazzling land of extremes — home to Mount Logan, Canada's highest peak, its largest ice field and North America's most genetically diverse population of grizzlies. This afternoon, take an exceptional hike that meanders through Kluane's alpine meadows, amidst awe-inspiring landscapes.

Chilkat Pass & Kluane Wilderness Hike

After breakfast, meet at the hotel lobby and board a van for a beautiful drive to the Chilkat Pass, a mountain pass on the border of Alaska and British Columbia at an elevation of 3,510 feet. Enjoy a long hike into the immense wilderness with majestic views of the Chilkat mountain range. After the hike, drive across the border and into Haines, Alaska, where your historic hotel accommodations for the next three nights await.

Moose Meadows Hike

Fill up on a hearty breakfast at the Pilot Light and hear a talk by a guest local author, before grabbing your sack lunch for picnic and hike to Moose Meadows. Take in stunning vistas of Rainbow Glacier and the waters of Lynn Canal, the deepest fjord in North America (outside Greenland). On the way back to town, there's an option to visit John Svenson Extreme Dreams Gallery to see the works of many local artists. Enjoy dinner on your own tonight.

Climb Mount Riley

After breakfast, set out on a full-day hike up Mount Riley for an astonishing 360-degree view of the entire peninsula looking north into Canada and south toward Juneau. This trail features incredible panoramic vistas of rivers, oceans, mountains, and glaciers, as you walk through old-growth coastal forests and boggy alpine muskegs. If weather is not permitting, we can hike out to Battery Point, a flat 6 miles of walking, or arrange another lower elevation hike.

Bid Farewell to Alaska

After breakfast, transfer to ferry terminal or Haines airport for departures homeward.