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Skagway
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The deepwater port of Skagway is located at the end of the Lynn Canal and is the northernmost point of the Inside Passage, a waterway that goes between islands and through canals along the southeast coast of Alaska to Seattle, about 1000 miles south. Skagway was founded in 1887 on the site of an Indian camp, but was little more than a few tents and cabins until 1897. At that time, numerous prospectors attracted by the Klondike Gold Rush arrived in Skagway, the starting point of one of the two trails (White Pass Trail) leading to the Klondike gold fields. In 1898, the tent camp rapidely turned to a very fast growing town including many wooden buildings, stores, hotels and saloons and became to earn a bad reputation... because of violence and high criminality.
At the end of the Gold Rush, the population of Skagway dwindled but the village managed to survive, owing to its port and the railroad. Today, about 850 people lives in Skagway year around, many more during the summer tourist season. The main activity is tourism with a lot of cruise ships stopping in the harbor and with the White Pass & Yukon Railroad. It is worth to note that Skagway can only be reached by boat or plane from the other parts of Alaska, and that until the completion of the Klondike Highway to Canada in 1978, the railroad was the only ground transportation available to reach Skagway from Canada.
Aerial view of the port of Skagway.
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The White Pass & Yukon new depot in Skagway.
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A WP&YR train at the railroad wharf in Skagway, besides a cruise ship.
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The Golden North Hotel, one of the Klondike Gold Rush era buildings of Skagway.
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A cruise ship docked in the port of Skagway.
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Broadway Street, the main street of Skagway. In the back, a train is stopped at the depot with its engine in the middle of the street.
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