Sud Yukon
1. Up early to enjoy the first sunrays, quite rare however…
2. Some lakes empty into others in tumultuous torrents.
3. As I head to Carcross, fall colors are vibrant again.
4. I make several “photo stop”…
5. … throughout the many lakes of southern Yukon.
6. They really resemble to fjords.
7. And always these incredibly saturated colors!
8. Carcross, a very welcoming small village.
9. Here is the curiosity of the area that people call “the smallest desert in the world!” This is actually a great dune formed by the prevailing winds ammassing sand of Bennett Lake for thousands of years. Rather incongruous amid this mountainous landscape.
10. I decide to climb the highest surrounding mountain the next day, the Montana Mountain, and VivaLaVida takes me to sleep over 4,500 feet elevation. A nice place to enjoy a northern light over Whitehorse, about 80 miles away.
11. I will go to bed quite late again…
12. Still, I’m up before sunrise, ready to climb the peak that awaits me.
13. After two hours ascending, the conditions turn out almost like in winter. As I have to cross a quite icy snow slope chilled to 40 degrees, I regret that I left my ice ax in VivaLaVida as my only one walking stick don’t give me much assurance … Even hiting my shoes hard in the slope, my sole only grips less than one inch in the snow. I assure each of my steps carefully.
14. but progression continues…
15. … and I soon reach the ridge where I get an incredible panorama.
16. After another hour, I finally reach the summit, in the second plane on this image. I continue the ridge til the funny rocket – probably a radio relay – erected on the secondary summit.
17. The view of the surrounding lakes is just grandiose!
18. Selfie picture despite the bitter cold: 10°F on the thermometer of my watch.
19. Three hours later, geting back to VivaLaVida, a picture of this beautiful mountain that doesn’t seem very impressive from here.
20. Descent by the Mountain Hero Trail partly washed away by rain. Somewhat to remind me bad memories in Baja..!
21. I see many molting willow ptarmigan during this descent.
22. Having discussed with some locals who recommended it to me, I went discovering and sleeping in the Annie Lake Valley, another remote valley…
I then headed to Whitehorse where I spent a weekend of bad weather writing the last updates and does an oïl change to VivaLaVida. Stay tuned for later news of VivaLaVida’s journey… 😉