Dawson City was built on a gamble. In August 1896, gold was found in a creek flowing into the Klondike river, and within two years, more than thirty thousand people had come to the swampy flat at the river's mouth, having crossed mountain passes with tons of supplies, floated down the Yukon, and spent everything they had. Most got no gold. A few got rich overnight, and the town rose, with saloons, theatres, hotels and dance halls, to become the largest city north of Seattle and west of Winnipeg.
Writers and chroniclers made the place famous. Jack London spent a winter in a cabin near here, and Robert Service, a bank clerk, wrote his ballads about the gold rush while living in town. Today the wooden false-front buildings of Front Street, restored by Parks Canada, still give the place a feeling of the past, with boardwalks along the dirt streets and a casino that keeps the gambling hall tradition alive. A local drink called the Sourtoe Cocktail, which includes a preserved human toe, is a famous party trick that you may or may not want to try.
The setting is dramatic. The Yukon River, broad, silty and fast, flows past the town below a steep slope of loose rock called the Midnight Dome, and in summer, the sun barely sets. Winters are long and dark, with temperatures of minus forty. The ground is permafrost, so some of the old buildings lean at odd angles.
For riders, Dawson is the starting point of the Top of the World Highway, which climbs out of the Yukon valley along a ridge toward Alaska. A small cable ferry carries vehicles across the Yukon river free of charge in summer, and the road on the other side is partly paved and partly gravel, with big views. Fuel is available in town, and you should fill up before heading out, since there is none for a long way. The border at Poker Creek is open only in summer. Check weather, carry spare supplies, and expect mosquitoes.