The "Historic Mileposts" self drive tour is focused on the most scenic places of Alaska and the Yukon. Travel on the historic gold-rush trail and visit Dawson City and Skagway, explore the great northern arctic region from Fairbanks, enjoy excellent wildlife viewing opportunities, discover the vast untamed wilderness and majestic mountain scenery of the Yukon Territory. Additional features include: a cruise through magnificent Prince William Sound home to Columbia Glacier, grizzly bear observation in Denali National Park, a wildlife and whale watching cruise into Kenai Fjords National Park. Pan for gold, take a ride on the wild-side with the historic White Pass & Yukon Railroad steam train along the famous Chilkoot & White Pass trail, visit Dawson City old time gambling halls and hike to the Five Finger Rapids of the Yukon River. This program may be combined with a visit to famous Glacier Bay.

Departure Day

SUN, MON, WED, THU, SAT - other dates on request

14 Nights Superior or First Class Hotel Accommodation

Prince William Sound Ferry Whittier - Valdez (Car)

Hotel & State Taxes

Alaska Ferry Skagway - Haines (Passengers)

15 Day Rental Car (Compact) - Upgrades available

Alaska Ferry Skagway - Haines (Car)

Unlimited Mileage

Denali Shuttle Bus Ticket to Eielson Visitor Center

Rental Car Licensing Fee

Denali National Park Fee

Airport Pick up / Drop off fee

Kenai Fjords National Park Cruise including Lunch

Rental Car Taxes

Seward Harbour Tax, Kenai Fjords Park Fee

Full Coverage Rental Car Insurance

Tour Documentation

Prince William Sound Ferry Whittier - Valdez (Passengers)

Sightseeing Information

Anchorage - Talkeetna (120 miles)
Pick up your rental car at the Anchorage airport and drive north on the Parks Highway. Enjoy sweeping views of snowcapped mountain peaks while traveling from Anchorage via Wasilla (Iditarod Museum) to Talkeetna - the base for most climbing expeditions. This afternoon you may enjoy a flightseeing tour to Mt. McKinley (optional). This magnificent flight takes you within six miles of Mt. McKinley's summit. As your flight departs, you begin to see how the last ice age has shaped the land. Moments later, you enter a world of rugged high mountain peaks and wide glacier filled valleys. See the Sheldon Amphitheater, beautiful Ruth Glacier, and the Great Gorge. Overnight: Talkeetna

Talkeetna - Denali National Park (110 miles)
Continue your journey along the Alaska Range through Denali State Park with countless wildlife viewing opportunities. Stopover at Byers Lake and rent a canoe or kayak. Arrive at Denali Village. The Denali parks office provides many informative ranger-naturalist programs, slide shows and sled dog demonstrations. Overnight: Denali National Park

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Denali National Park
Early departure (pre-reserved time) for a full day national park and wildlife observation tour within the shadows of 20.320 foot Mt. McKinley to the Eielson Visitor Center or scenic Wonder Lake with a immense view of “ the Mountain”. Watch out for grizzly bears, moose, caribou, wolf and fox moving along the ridges and riverbeds or observe one of the 150 different bird species which inherit the park area. From the park road you enjoy great hiking opportunities. Return to the Denali Park entrance anytime during the day. Overnight: Denali National Park

Denali National Park - Fairbanks (120 miles)
Short drive via Nenana (Alaska Ice Classics) to Fairbanks. Fairbanks, known as the Golden Heart City of Alaska, is the gateway to the interior and features almost 24 hours of daylight during the summer months. You are invited to explore the local gold rush history, its vibrant traditional native cultures as well as its abundant wildlife and fantastic scenery. Tucked into miles of unexplored wilderness only 120 miles from the Arctic Circle, Fairbanks offers excellent year-round outdoor recreational opportunities. This afternoon you may visit the renown Alaska University Museum featuring Alaska's natural history best collection, Alaskaland or take an authentic sternwheeler on a scenic 20-mile roundtrip cruise down the Chena and Tanana Rivers. Enjoy lively narration, stop at a reconstructed Athabascan Indian Village to learn about native hunting & fishing techniques and watch a dogsled demonstration. Overnight: Fairbanks

Fairbanks - Dawson City (380 miles)
Travel towards Tok, Alaska. The community originated as an Alaska Road Commission camp for the construction of the Alaska - and Glenn Highways in the 1940s. Continue your journey on the Top of the World Highway with endless views into spectacular alpine valleys. If you travel after the first hard frost - usually in mid August, the hills turn colors so brilliant that it seems almost unreal. You cross the mighty Yukon River and arrive in Dawson City. The legendary capital of the 1898 Gold rush is a living relic. After 100 years, miners are still digging for gold. Overnight in Dawson City. Note: We can add an overnight in Tok if you wish to drive the distance in two days.

Dawson City
Visit the historical buildings, Jack London and Robert Service cabins, abandoned commercial buildings and old stores that were the pulse of the gold rush capital in its hey-days. And as you drive through the heart of Dawson City, your imagination will run to the likes of Klondike Kate, Arizona Charlie Meadows and Diamond Tooth Gertie strolling down Dawson's boardwalks. Their spirit is as alive today as it was in 1898. From the one-time capital of the Yukon you'll follow history up Bonanza Creek (pan for gold) to Discovery Claim and Grand Forks once boasted a population of 10,000 where the Eldorado Creek and Upper Bonanza come together to form the "mighty" Bonanza Creek. Overnight: Dawson City

Dawson City - Whitehorse (340 miles)
Heading south, the Klondike Highway passes through stands of white birch and black spruce, often photogenically close to the Yukon River. Soake up the raw beauty of the surrounding landscape, often paralleled by the Yukon River. Stopover at the Five Finger Rapids and hike down to the shore of the Yukon River. Late afternoon you will reach Yukon's capital city, Whitehorse - a city with a unique combination of pioneer values and urban sophistication. Take a side trip to scenic Miles Canyon. Overnight: Whitehorse

Whitehorse - Skagway (110 miles)
Short drive via the South Klondike Highway to Skagway. In the rush years of 1897 and 1898, Skagway and its ghost-town twin city of Dyea were the logical places to get off the boat to head off on the trek to the gold fields near the new city of Dawson City, Yukon Territory. Skagway instantly grew from a single homestead to a population of between 15,000 and 25,000. This was a wide-open boomtown, a true Wild West outpost that in its biggest years was completely without law other than the survival of the meanest. Then, almost as quickly as it started, the rush ended and the town deflated. Overnight: Skagway

Skagway (White Pass Railroad)
Today you have the chance to board the historic narrow-gauge White Pass & Yukon Railway and ride along the White Pass Trail to the White Pass Summit. The entire distance between the gold-rush community of Skagway to the summit was completed in only two years in 1900's. The steamer pulls the train a couple of miles, then diesels take the cars - some of them originals more than 100 years old - up steep tracks that were chipped out of the side of the mountains. In the afternoon walk around the historic townsite and check out the old buildings. You may even visit the grave of "Soapy Smith" and walk part of the famous Chilkoot Trail. Overnight: Skagway

Skagway - Haines - Kluane National Park (150 miles + ferry)
This morning, enjoy the short ferry ride across Lynn Canal to Haines. The highway winds from here over the Chilkat Pass - the highest summit on this highway. You pass Klukshu, a native summer fishing camp offering great photo opportunities. Drive through the Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve before arriving at Kluane National Park. The Kluane area covers the largest non-polar icefields in the world. Visit the sheep mountain visitor center with its interpretive programs about the flora and fauna. Viewing telescopes are available where you can spot dall sheep on the mountain slopes. Overnight: Haines Junction

Kluane National Park - Tok (290 miles)
This morning go on a short hiking trip before driving north along the shores of beautiful Kluane Lake. Stopover at Sheep Mountain and look out for dall sheep gracing alongside the mountain slopes. Your journey continues on the famous Alaska Highway through endless wilderness areas. Arrive in Tok, often referred to as the "Dog Mushing Capital of Alaska".
Overnight: Tok

Tok - Wrangell St. Elias National Park / Valdez (250 miles)
Your journey continues on the Glen Highway, offering an impressive view of the Wrangell Mountains - Mt. Deborah, Mt. Sanford and Mt. Drum. Once you have reached the Richardson Highway stopover at the historic roadhouse in Copper Center and watch native fish wheels at the nearby Copper River, providing an excellent salmon run. Shortly afterwards the Worthington Glacier peeks into view where a boardwalk leads to the toe of the glacier. Valdez - often called “ the Switzerland of Alaska” is a gateway for salmon fishing trips and narrated cruise tours to the magnificent Columbia Glacier. Visit the terminus of the Alaska Pipeline Terminal or enjoy some kayaking or short hiking trips. Overnight: Copper Center or Valdez

Valdez - Prince William Sound (Ferry) - Seward (80 miles + ferry)
Scenic cruise through Prince William Sound onboard the Alaska Marine Highway Ferry. Watch out for whales, bald eagles, seals, sea lions and other marine wildlife. In the distance you'll see the ice floating from Columbia Glacier. Arrive in Whittier and drive to Portage Glacier. After a stop at the visitor center continue to Seward, a small fishing community at the gateway to Kenai Fjords National Park. This afternoon you have time to visit Exit Glacier. Short trails lead to the toe of the glacier where you can climb on the surface of the glacier itself. Overnight: Seward

Seward - Anchorage (130 miles)
In the morning join a Kenai Fjords cruise tour boat for an exciting glacier and wildlife cruise into Aialik Bay with its calving glaciers and stunning scenery. Covering 110-miles, the trip is narrated by a National Park Ranger, who is highly adept at spotting wildlife and pointing out the many spectacular sights. Wildlife is abundant throughout Kenai Fjords National Park, and the tidewater glaciers are massive. You'll visit the mighty Aialik or Holgate Glacier where guests witness calving - a process by which glaciers shed giant blocks and slabs of ancient ice. Leave Seward and travel past saltwater bays, ice blue glaciers and alpine valleys. You have a great chance to spot a bear, moose and dall sheep along the way. Arrive in Anchorage and check in your hotel. Spend the last evening visiting one of Anchorage's excellent seafood restaurants.

Anchorage
Check out of your hotel. Your vacation ends with the return of your rental car at the airport.

Optional Rental Car Upgrades & Extensions
Rates include Taxes, Fees, Unlimited Miles, Insurance

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