Miles Canyon – Robert Lowe Bridge to Canyon City

Miles Canyon makes for a great day hike. There is a whole series of trails along the north bank of the Yukon River, but certainly the most scenic is the one that follows along the shore out to where Canyon City once stood. On a sunny day, the river is spectacular, at times, reflecting a beautiful aqua green from the silt carried in the water.

The Robert Lowe Suspension Bridge

You begin the by crossing the Robert Lowe suspension bridge from the parking area on the south side of the river. This historic little pedestrian bridge was built in 1922. The trail follows along river with a couple of fairly steep rough sections to a flat area now overgrown with trees that was once know as Canyon City. Canyon City was a bustling little tent city with a few building including a North West Mounted Police Building, an office for the log tram way and a fox farm. Canyon City was where the thousands of ‘stampeders’ traveling down the Yukon River to Dawson City stopped to plan their next move before negotiating the treacherous waters of Miles Canyon and the Whitehorse Rapids. Many unloaded their boats and laboriously portaged their goods, but others risked the rapids. Nearly 300 boats were wrecked and 5 people drowned, so the North West Mounted Police finally ordered that anyone wanting to negotiate the rapids would require a pilot.

Miles Canyon

There are some amazing views from the high cliffs

On the shore at Canyon City

A couple of entrepreneurs saw also an opportunity and built a log tramway running aroung the rapids. There is a restored tram car and information at the Canyon City site. The gold rush was short lived and the few buildings that were in Canyon City were disassembled and move downstream to the new town of Whitehorse.

Stampeders negotiating Miles Canyon – notice the difference in water levels in this picture to the picture of the canyon earlier – a result of the hydro electric dam that tamed the rapids