Our first adventure in Skagway was a trip on the White Pass & Yukon scenic railroad, a narrow gauge railroad built in 1900 to take the men seeking their fortunes to the Yukon during the Klondike gold rush.

We had ridden a similar train in Colorado. That train was steam-powered while this was diesel, and I think the views in Colorado were a bit more dramatic.

But the views today were still lovely, and I really enjoyed learning more about gold-rush history. It’s amazing to think they built this railroad in this harsh environment back then, and also amazing that only 35 men out of about 35,000 that labored to lay the tracks perished in the effort.

As we traveled, we saw part of the original trail across the pass that the prospectors used before the railroad was built. The thousands of men and women who passed through Skagway at that time have been replaced by hundreds of thousands of tourists. Oddly, aside from Ketchikan, the tiny towns we’ve visited didn’t feel overwhelmed with people. I guess because so many excursions go to different areas while the boats are in port.

Our second excursion of the day was one of those – a guide drove us out of town for a two-mile hike on the Chilkoot trail. In my quest for history, it was really cool to be on even a tiny part of the path these early explorers used in their search for gold.

Today, the Chilkoot is a 33-mile recreational trail, but it was another trail the gold prospectors used to reach the Yukon goldfields. It was steeper, but quicker, than the White Pass trail. Just doing two miles and carrying virtually nothing, it’s hard to imagine how difficult that experience must have been.

Our trip was enhanced by our entertaining guide, Zay. He was a guy with a big personality and big biceps that were needed on the second part of our trip, a float down the Taye River.

Jim and I have never rafted before, and this was a good starter float. We just sat and watched the scenery go by while Zay did all the work.

One of our amusements on this trip has been making a point to sample a local craft beer at each location. In Skagway we bellied up to the bar at a place called Bonanza for a local beer that features spruce tips in the brewing process. According to Zay, this provides as much vitamin C as orange juice, so we were just being healthy. We also took a break from fine dining with chowder and fish and chips, which were both excellent.

When we returned to the ship we were informed that we were the last passengers to board. Nice to know we took full advantage of our time in Skagway!