Renting a Car instead of White Pass railway

[DisneyScrapper]

For those of you that have rented a car in Skaway instead of doing the train can you give me some insite of your experence please. One of my family members is a very big guy and I think this will be more comfortable for him. Is there anyplace along the way to stop to eat? To go all the way to the lake how long has it taken people? Is there alot of places to pull over to take pictures?

 

TIA

[pushing50]

For those of you that have rented a car in Skaway instead of doing the train can you give me some insite of your experence please. One of my family members is a very big guy and I think this will be more comfortable for him. Is there anyplace along the way to stop to eat? To go all the way to the lake how long has it taken people? Is there alot of places to pull over to take pictures?

 

TIA

 

We rented a car in Skagway and thoroughly enjoyed the drive. It was very heavy fog when we left town and it was a frightening drive for a while because we couldn't see more than a few feet in front of us. The fog eventually cleared and it was beautiful. Carcross is a quaint, cute town and there is food there, as well as a nearby lodge, the name of which escapes me.

 

I want to take the train next time. The White Pass Railroad is a unique piece of history and also well worth your time.

 

Best,

Tom

[Travalot]

We rented a car in Skagway and thoroughly enjoyed our drive up to Emerald Lake. We made many, many stops on the way up and it took less than three hours to get to Emerald Lake. We had lunch near the Lake, and also stopped in Carcross on the way back. The entire trip was about six hours at a leisurely pace.

 

I had previously done the train, but enjoyed the drive much more. We saved a fortune since there were four of us.

[judynorth]

We also rented a car in Skagway. It was a wonderful trip - much better than the motorcoach trip that we took the previous trip. You can also save a lot of money by driving yourself. The best part about it, though, is that you can stop when and where you want to take pictures and enjoy the scenery. There are many, many places to stop. It is an easy drive - just about 75 miles oneway on a good road - so the time that it takes depends on who often and for how long you stop. There is food available in Carcross, Caribou Crossing, and Spirit Lodge - nothing spectacular but it will fill the stomach. You can use Murray's Guide for a mile by mile guide to the drive.

 

I see that you are sailing in mid-September. I'm not sure when Avis closes but you might get there too late to rent from them.

[Seattle Cruisers]

We rented a car last August and had an amazing day. My husbands a big guy too and it was nice not to squished in a seat and to be able to stop when we found something interesting. We stop LOTS - the scenery is amazing and we took hundreds of pictures. We took snack from town when we started out and a small cooler for soda and the whole thing was very inexpensive compared with most of the excursions. We made it up to Emerald Lake and back at a nice slow pace and came back with lots of time to look around town too.

 

Kim

[Seattle Cruisers]

I do second the Murrays Guide suggestion - thats what made the trip! The whole area has so much history you would drive right past if you werent aware of it. Its an easy Guide to follow and we even pulled down a few roads to get a closer look at a few things in the guide.

 

Kim

[LarryF]

There just are not enough superlative words to descibe the experience of driving the Klondike Hwy to Emerald Lake and back. We did this last year and will be doing it again this coming May. Here is how I described it in my journal from last year's trip...

 

Take Care,

 

Larry

 

Wednesday, May 23, 2007

 

I woke with a lot of anticipation of today’s drive on the South Klondike Hwy. to Carcross and Emerald Lake. It was an early morning for me as is so typical when we cruise. I just don’t want to miss anything and I love watching the ship coming into port. Once again, we were blessed with a beautiful day with sunny blue skies! There were four ships in port including two NCL ships and one Holland America ship. Skagway is a very small city and it was nice to know that we would be driving out of town to avoid all the crowds. We wanted to be one of the first to get to Avis car rental so we ate breakfast around 7:30 a.m. with our usual healthy breakfast fare. It was in the 40’s so we wore several layers and packed water and snacks in our backpacks for the long drive. We left the ship about 8:00 a.m. It is about a 10 minute walk to get to downtown Skagway, but we caught a shuttle for $1 each. The shuttle ride takes about 3 minutes and dropped us off very close to the Avis office.

 

We were the second people there to rent a car. We were promptly waited on by a representative who was very nice and informative. There were 3 young ladies working in the office and we found out that they normally work for Avis in Seattle, but were transferred to Skagway for the summer and Avis pays for their boarding and other expenses. It’s a great set up for them and I sure wish I was that young again and could take advantage of that kind of deal!

 

She offered us a map and we told her we already had a good guide to use and she said, “you must have Murray’s guide.” There were now several other renters lined behind us and all of them said they had Murray’s guide as well! The process was very quick as we were out the door about 10 minutes after we had arrived. It’s good that we arrived when we did, because the line was out the door by the time we left.

 

During the past year I had asked the question on these boards and read many replies as to whether it was best to take the train or drive the South Klondike Hwy. We had several friends that had taken the train and told how great the scenery was and there were so many compelling posts confirming how wonderful it was taking the Train into the Yukon. There were equally numbers of posts with compelling reasons to drive. Ultimately, I decided to do the drive for budgetary reasons ($85 to rent a car plus gas versus $200 for the rail tour) and the fact that we could stop any where along the way at any time we wanted appealed to me greatly. I also knew we would come back to Alaska another time and could take the train then. Friends that had taken the train thought we were crazy to drive saying that I would miss the scenery while driving, but many posts on these boards led me to believe otherwise. The others were right.

 

So, we loaded up the car and began our drive as Amy kept close tabs on Murray’s guide and commentary. Before you get out of town you can take a gravel road to a cemetery that is famous for the graves of Soapy Smith and Frank Reid. There was a tour going on when we got there, so we sort of tagged along and learned the history of the cemetery. At the back of the cemetery we took a short trail to a nice picturesque water fall. The views from the base of the cemetery are beautiful and two trains with lots of passengers passed by while we all waved to each other. It was a cool picture to shoot the train against the snow capped mountains background.

 

Back on the road we began our ascent to the summit and the scenery started building after each turn in the highway. The highway is a two lane well maintained road. There are many pass lanes all along the way to Carcross and beyond. I had the impression that the road was going to be a scary winding road with hairpin turns, but that is not the case at all. It was a very safe road with no dangerous areas.

 

On two occasions in my life I have been blessed to witness the greatest miracle in life as I watched my two children take their first breath of air as they were being born. There are very few other times in my life when I have experienced that same type of euphoric feeling. I feel I have been lucky enough on a few vacation trips to experience what I called a perfect day. Shortly after passing the U.S. Customs building on our left and as our rental car with it’s 4 cylinder engine groaned to make it to the crest of a winding uphill road, we rounded the next bend and our nice ride into the Yukon wilderness turned into a magical journey into a fantasy land that even the greatest movie directors would be hard pressed to re-create. Snow capped mountains; glowing snow covered frozen lakes and rivers against the deepest blue skies you’ve ever seen… I was given one of those precious perfect days!

 

I just cannot describe the beauty of this frozen wonderland set before our eyes. Any doubts about renting the car and driving flew out the window. In fact as we pulled over and walked out on to the snow covered frozen tundra that showed no sign any human had ever set foot on this spot, I felt a little sorry for those people stuck on the buses zooming by as all they could do was watch us as Amy and I started throwing snow balls at each other!

 

I don’t know if the road gets busier later in the season, but there were very few cars on the road and we saw more Princess and HAL buses than anything else. I could go on and on and on about the incredible scenery, but it’s something you just have to do yourself to really grasp the vastness and beauty of British Colombia and the Yukon. Murray’s commentary and mile by mile description is incredible. After stopping constantly to take in every view we stopped in Carcross for a bathroom break and to walk around the booming metropolis! Not! It’s a quaint picturesque little town. We walked through the Carcross information center. I got a Hazel Nut Ice Cream Cone that was really good. They had a lot of Alaskan made handcrafts and clothing for sale.

 

From there we drove 10 miles to Emerald Lake. Just as seen in the many pictures I had downloaded on line, the lake was an incredibly greenish blue color that was just beautiful. While my main objective was to see Emerald Lake, I never imagined how incredible and beautiful the drive in BC and Yukon was going to be, so viewing Emerald Lake was just icing on the cake of an incredible drive!

 

We drove back to towards Carcross and decided to stop at Spirit Lake Lodge for lunch. I thought I remembered reading somewhere that the service was very slow at this restaurant, but wasn’t sure, so we gave it a try. When we pulled up to the restaurant there was a Princess bus parked in front. As we entered the restaurant, I was thinking about leaving, but saw no one waiting, so we proceeded to go in. There are two rooms in the restaurant and the back room was filled with all the bus passengers. We were seated in the front room fairly quickly and had our order taken in a decent amount of time. It appeared the only staff at the restaurant was a husband and wife team. I had a cheeseburger and fries which was very tasty and Amy ordered a special that included soup, sandwich and pie. The soup was a vegetable beef, the sandwich ham and cheese, and the dessert was a mixed berry pie. It was all very good. While we were eating another bus load showed up with dozens of passengers and they formed a line and were served pre-packaged sandwiches and chips in sort of a buffet line along the register area. There were other customers in the front room who had not ordered yet or had not been served their food and it was obvious the bus passengers were the first priority at this point. After 15 or 20 minutes, most of those customers walked out of the restaurant and were not happy campers! When we were done with our meal, it was also apparent we were not going to get our check any time soon, so rather than get upset I grabbed a menu and calculated what we owed and left money for the meal plus tip on the table. While the food was decent, I wouldn’t recommend going to this restaurant unless you can confirm that no buses will be stopping there.

 

On our way back I still just could not get over the incredible beauty of the sites. It seemed like we were literally in another world. I found an area about 50 yards off the road where there was a 10 - 15 foot high by 75-100 foot wide rock formation in the middle of snow. I just had to climb on those rocks, so I ventured out into the snow in what initially was about ankle deep and became knee deep as I finally reached the rocks! I am just mesmerized by snow as I was raised in the south my whole life and have never been around snow most of my life. The view from the rocks was worth the trek and climb and it would have been a perfect place to have a picnic if we had had the forethought to do so. The temperature had now reached the high 50’s or low 60’s and was just perfect!

 

It was about 2:30 p.m. and with about a 2 hour drive to get back to Skagway, I climbed off the rocks and we started heading back. I was so happy with the day I was beside myself and couldn’t imagine how things could get much better, when all of a sudden right there in front of us on the left side of the road was a baby black bear just walking on the road! I had been so enamored with the scenery I never even thought about seeing wildlife and was so shocked when we came across the bear!

 

There was a turnout about 20 feet in front of the bear, so I pulled into that spot. The bear began to walk off the road into a bushy area and we thought he was gone, when he then climbed a small tree and started eating leaves. We stayed there for about 30 minutes while I emptied the memory in my camera with shot after shot! I became the hero of the day as I flagged down cars and buses to see the bear. It was funny to see the passengers giving me a “thumbs up” sign as they jumped over each other to get pictures of the bear!

 

We would go on to see many other bears over the rest of our trip, but seeing that first bear was something really special!

 

We made our way back to Skagway about 5:30 p.m. There is only one gas station in town that we found very easy. The couple that had rented their car right before us was filling up their car and we excitedly compared notes and talked about each of our experiences on the drive! Unleaded gas was $3.87 per gallon, but as long as we had driven we only used 4.5 gallons of gas and paid a little over $17.00 to fill the tank up! We then turned the car in to Avis which took no time at all.

[Choozin Croozin]

Wow Larry, what an awesome review. I do not know how I am going to contain myself for the next 17 mos until we go!!!! Except that I need that much time to save up all the $$$$ we are going to need.:D Thanks for posting it.

[carters4usm]

Can anyone give me any pointers for printing off Murray's Guide in its entirety. I've tried everything I know, but I keep cutting off the right hand side of it.

[Budget Queen]

I have done both several times, very worthwhile depending on interests. History is a big part of the White Pass RR and a must for rail fans. :) Scenery is also superior.

 

The drive gets you into the Yukon and with Murray's a wonderful GIFT he has done for travelers. :)

[cruisin'mama]

Can anyone give me any pointers for printing off Murray's Guide in its entirety. I've tried everything I know, but I keep cutting off the right hand side of it.

 

 

I agree....how does everyone get it printed without chopping off the right side?

[judynorth]

I just tried printing the first page and had no problems. We printed it out in 2005 and I didn't remember having a problem but I decided to check. I have Vista which is supposed to do a better job of printing webpages but the type is pretty small.

[DisneyScrapper]

Larry awsome report, and everyone Thank You for all your info. I'm going to give Avis a call and fine out if they are still renting at the time we will be there..........Keeping Fingers Crossed!!

[Podie]

We have 10 hours in Skagway, Should that be enough time to rent a car, do the same drive, and also stop for a one or two horseback ride?

[SEPyle]

I agree Larry, our drive into the Yukon using Murray's Guide was a perfect day! Our first trip to Alaska was in May and we chose the WPRR train. It was great, however the next year I read about Murray's guide and since we had 2 of our adult daughters with us (and of course Mom and Dad still pay); I decided this was a great cost saver. After our wonderful day, I have to say, even without the cost savings, it was a GREAT choice!

 

Our 2nd trip was in August and what a difference from the trip in May. What hit me most was the the varied scenery from Skagway; then going up the pass (is that the right description???); then into the Yukon. The colors of the mountains around us were really amazing to me. We also thought Emerald Lake was beautiful as well as the Carcross Desert! We too remember it as a perfect day; and simply a super family day! We had such fun as our oldest daughter read Murray's Guide telling Dad where to pull off next. Being able to read what we were seeing really made a difference! THANKS MURRAY!

 

Bottom line, going on the regular run of the White Pass Railroad, is a nice trip. However if you do just that, you miss the Yukon, and that to me was the highlight. I really can't remember a trip of the same length with such varied sights. After all, how often can you see waterfalls; beautiful mountains all around; beautiful lakes; rocky terain; wildlife (ok, we didn't see any bears, but we might have;) ); a desert; and a lake the deepest turquoise lake you've ever seen in just a few hours?

 

Someone asked about the length of the trip: We didn't go into Carcross, and I must say I do regret that decision. We got back into Skagway around 2:30 with time to look around town. Looking back, I wish we had spent the whole day and came back 5:30th!

 

Enjoy your trip!

[Budget Queen]

We have 10 hours in Skagway, Should that be enough time to rent a car, do the same drive, and also stop for a one or two horseback ride?

 

Yes Plenty of time. Allow 4-5 hours for the driving.

[caribdvr]

I copied Murray's guide in its entirety into Word and printed without problem. You can reduce the margins and it prints in 15 pages.

[carmensmom]

I also had a problem with part of the page being cut off. I changed the page set up from portrait to landscape and it printed fine.

[smitty3000]

Yes Plenty of time. Allow 4-5 hours for the driving.

I am taking a Temsco Helicopter Glacier Landing at 4:30 PM in August in Skagway. We are renting a car at 8:00 AM from Avis the same day. What time do you think I need to be back from Emerald Lake to make the helicopter tour. How far is the avis lot from where the Temsco Helicopters take off? We are booking Temsco Helicopter ourselves instead of thru the ship so it is up to us to get ourselves there. Thanks for your input. :)

[TampaJules]

Has anyone gone to a dog sled camp during their Skagway day, by car? I know there is one at Caribou Crossing but it seems expensive for what you get. I don't mind paying for it if its worth it. And I think I'd rather see a "real camp", like for an hour or so, not a brief exhibit at the crossing. I have found a couple online, like in Whitehorse, but I'm not sure... Almost wondering if we should try to squeeze it in while in Juneau. But we have so much to do there already and a lot of time in Skagway. We can't do the helicopter to the glacier tour due to weight and money limits. A "ground" trail is just fine. Thoughts???

[judynorth]

How far is the avis lot from where the Temsco Helicopters take off? We are booking Temsco Helicopter ourselves instead of thru the ship so it is up to us to get ourselves there. Thanks for your input. :)

 

Do you have time to return the car after the helicopter trip? That would be the easiest thing to do. You would have transportation to the helicopter landing area and then back to town to turn the car in. You could fill the car with gas when you get back from the Yukon since the driving that you would do after that is minimal (maybe a couple of miles). Just a thought. :)

[vbmom87]

Did anyone who took a Chilkoot bus/train combo still print out Murray's guide to follow along for the bus part?

[judynorth]

Did anyone who took a Chilkoot bus/train combo still print out Murray's guide to follow along for the bus part?

 

We printed it out for the drive but you could use it for the Chilkoot trip too. It would also be good for review before and after the trip. You might miss something in the narration and the guide would help you catch up. I would definitely take it along on the excursion.

[Flacruiser123]

Where can we find Murray's guide? First time in Skagway and I'm still debating the train/vs/car. I like the history part of the train and the $$$ and independence of the car. Can you hear the history part well on the train?

Thanks

[Yukon]

Where can we find Murray's guide?

 

http://*****