Our final day in Skagway

Today we start by going to Liarsville--no that's not a typo, L-i-a-r-s-v-i-l-l-e, just outside of Skagway.

This is the place where, about a hundred years ago, the Press (you know, the newspaper reporters; 'paparazzi') set up their camps for on-the-scene, on location reporting of what was going on way up at the Gold Fields--without really trudging that hugely challenging, rather inconvenient trail to way up there (almost like some 'truthful' reports nowadays).  Jack London was a reporter here for awhile.  Needless to say (also like today) most the news was fabricated.  This place even had the same name then, "Liars-ville". Of course reporters didn't call it that. 

But first, something different:  pure & tasty Alaskan-caught WILD salmon, grilled over an open alder wood fire

An all-you-can-eat feast in the forest also included an assortment of warm and cold dishes like Chilkoot Chicken, Panners Pasta, Prospector Pete’s Reindeer Beans, Liarsville Rice Medley, Sluice Box Slaw and other fresh salads, plus cornbread and blueberry cake for dessert.  It was quite a buffet.

Three dogs like this were supposed to be the sled dogs.  Signs asked that they not be fed but as you can see they are as big as the table.

They could be called Kitchen Help.  "Go ahead, drop something, I will help you clean it up."

Music was provided while we dined.  

After we eat and eat and eat, we walked over to the historic city of tents and the Liarsville Hippodrome where a cast of sourdoughs and dance hall girls dazzled us with a hilarious 

 melodrama while they recited Robert Service poetry. (Or so the brochure said). We had 

time to wander through the saloon, bordello and laundry tents and discover the antiques 

and vintage clothing left behind by the miners and ladies of the evening.  We could have 

shopped in the Liarsville General Store.  And we listened to the strolling musician.

 



And we talked to the cast members or the "hosts' of the village.

The play and musical were humorous & amusing.  At least it wasn't "The Cremation of Sam 

McGee" again.   After the play we went gold panning.  Since there was never any gold discovered here in Skagway, the three or four flakes we found must have been imported.  Imagine that .  .  . importing gold to Alaska.

           

After the bus returned us to the campground we visited Jewel Gardens.  Quite a treat.

Early Skagway promoters had planted big, showy gardens to impress the tourists, and dubbed the town "Garden City of Alaska." Jim and Charlotte Jewell revived this tradition using grounds originally planted by gold-rush stampeder Henry Clark.  They maintain some of his original 1898 plantings, including fruit trees and a 4-foot-tall rhubarb. Besides the organic show garden, with  boardwalk and model train within a landscape, the Jewells also produce food for their cafe here, and offer visitors lessons on composting and growing in cold conditions. Artists demonstrate in a glass-blowing studio, and their whimsical creations decorate the gardens.

It was a rainy day now as we explored these famous gardens. 
So regardless of the fact she is Oregonian My Dear Bride
decided to use her umbrella.  


Me, I just got wet.  Real
 smart, I am.

We took a lot of pictures at the Gardens:  lots of beautiful flowers.  I hope all this doesn't bore you but as I have told My Dear Bride (aka the Editor) if you don't like what you see--just skim over it.  

There she is, under that umbrella, conversing with a gardener.

Then before you know it, she is teaching a class. (Ha!!)

Ideal Begonia climate!

More Kale Purple colored Kale contrasts beautifully with the other plantings.  This is sustainable design!  I'd like to try this concept out at home! Alaska's famous cabbage Boardwalks helped keep our feet dry A good idea for spent blooms -->

The combination of the glass works and flowers is seen throughout the garden. A great model train setup with hundreds of feet of track moves through some typical Alaskan landscape features.  There are two trains, running on two separate tracks, which almost make one believe he's seeing a full size train running along. This an example of combining the flowers and the tracks.  Take a look at that trestle!  Just image the hours it took putting it together.  Wonder what they do with it in the winter.   This model is hauling big gold nuggets.  Doubt if they are real. Can you see the size of the plants along the tracks and beside the bridges?  Bridges, flowers, plants and rocks combined to make this display outstanding. Here is a gold camp beside the track. The trains journey past homes, junctions and depots. They even go by villages with the people waving to them. As it exits a tunnel it passes the historic shoot-out between Soapy Smith and Frank Reid. There was even a waterfalls beside the track.  We have 22 more pictures of the train but, if I am lucky, this is all the editor will let me get away with.  For those in the know, this is a G sized Model, what ever that means.  Now let's go visit the glass blower.                                                                        He is the creator of the glass designs we saw in the garden and  many items in the gift shop.  He talked about what he was doing, and we watched for a while. When the glass comes out of the oven it is a bit warm.     Here is where he starts the shaping. Adding more color.   Another smaller bottle.  He put the finished product in a "cooling oven" faster than I could get a picture.  If they cool too fast there are problems. Here he is making a form without blowing. It is becoming a bird.  Yep, it is a bird.. Something different this time.   Pushing into the middle and spinning the hot glass And he has spun a dish.  Like the bears, he didn't pose very much.  I guess when your holding something at 2,200 degrees you can't wait around while tourists take pictures. But it was pretty.  Can you take my word of that? As we leave these beautiful gardens here is something to think about. We went back to the RV to get ready to leave Skagway tomorrow, and for the last time we will be going north. After the Gold Rush fizzled out, the town's remaining people decided this would be a popular tourist destination--due to the deep harbor port, the railroad, and outstanding environs.  So they moved most of the historic buildings onto one street, called Broadway.   Ships do not stay in port for very long.  Two years ago, when we came by ship we were in town for about six hours with some 10,000 other people.  This visit, since we are not on a ship and the cruise ships are gone for the day, I took a drive down the historical street, without the crowds, while My Dear Bride prepared a late supper.   After the cruise ship tourists leave this becomes the locals watering hole. Another view of that Artic Brotherhood Hall This used to be the Train station and is now a Visitor Center.  Full title is Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park Visitor Center. This is the famous Red Onion Saloon, a brothel and bar, where it still costs you ten dollars for 20 minutes with a hostess.  Just like the old days, she just will talk to you. Of course that is right. And the Golden North Hotel, another famous location mentioned by Jack London in one of his article or so the sign says.   Last but not least, this is Covingtons, famous for their collection of ivory, gold and carvings.  Their free Museum was the best we saw.  We dropped a few gold nuggets into their palm for ivory (or was it bone?)  My Dear Bride will tell you about it. (It's a lovely necklace pendant of carved bone.) We saw even more we would have liked to have BBBUUUUTTT---Way too much 'gold' required. This is a street display of the snow-blower that kept the White Pass Rail route open for many years.  I haven't the faintest idea what they use now, but this looks like it would do the job. Tomorrow we'll go up--in more ways than one:  we are going northward, plus the road out of here is an 8% grade UP, for a lot of miles!  A lot of RVers come and go via water, just to avoid this hill, but we are still in no hurry, and the engine is still working fine.  We will see.   See you later.........