The Sign Post Forest in Watson Lake started in 1942 when Private Carl K. Lindley placed a sign pointing to his hometown of Danville, Illinois. The idea caught on, the ‘forest’ has grown and when we added our little sign (12,681 km to Christchurch, New Zealand) they numbered close to 80,000.
Alaska and the Yukon, the two places are intertwined in history and location. Visit one and you will likely find it hard to resist visiting the other. A shared history of the Klondike gold rush, of wild, adventurous folk pioneering the last frontier of North America, of traditional peoples linked through trade and culture back to a time when the modern borders of the USA and Canada had no meaning. It is easy for the absent-minded traveller to forget which country they are visiting—are you in the USA or Canada? Until you try to buy something.
Visiting Dawson City is like travelling back in time to the gold rush era. The dirt streets are lined with wooden boardwalks all leading to buildings that cause you to believe you have accidentally hit 88mph and travelled back to the wild west.