BCAA

1 Flying High It's always good to start with a raven's eye view. Designated a UNESCO site in 1979, Kluane National Park and Reserve is home to Canada's highest peak. At 5,959 metres, Mt. Logan looms large and, due to tectonic uplifting, is still growing. Book a plane and fly over the endless glaciers creased with crevasses as deeply blue as any Caribbean lagoon. Eighty-three per cent of the 22,013 km 2 park is encased in ice and jagged mountains. This protected habitat is home to grizzlies, caribou and Dall sheep (kluaneglacierairtours.com). 2 Hot Springs for Cold Nights Takhini Hot Springs is open year round. Soak in the heat and watch the Northern Lights shine overhead. The entire month of February is dedicated to the Frozen Hair Contest…of course (takhinihotsprings.com/events). 3 Rushing for Gold The great gold rush began in 1896. Dawson exploded from barely more than a perma-frosted moose pasture to a city containing as many as 40,000 gold-crazed citizens. Explorers still arrive today, eager to stake their claims. The Dawson City Museum and the MacBride Museum in Whitehorse are great windows into that booming and brothel-filled past (macbridemuseum.com). 4 Local Flavour For the best caffeine and bakery fix in Whitehorse, line up with the locals at Baked Café & Bakery. Check back later, there's often local bands playing in the evening (bakedcafe.ca). Further north in Dawson City be prepared to spend some time hanging out and feeling the bohemian vibe at the Alchemy Café (alchemycafe.ca). With any luck you might catch a moccasin making class or yoga lesson. The food is organic, the espresso divine. Stroll down the boardwalk to Bombay Peggy's. Although Peggy's is shut down for the darkest days, it re-opens February 26. Dawson's last operating brothel and bootleg joint back in the day has been restored into a great little hotel and pub (bombaypeggys.com). 5 Festivals Whether it's axe throwing, chainsaw chucking or the roving can-can dancers, the Sourdough Rendezvous is the place to let off steam. When daylight is in short supply, tenacity, stubbornness and the ability to party are keys to surviving cabin fever. Pull up your long johns and get ready to dance. Feb 24-28th. Other festivals to check out include: Available Light Film Festival, Feb 7-14th, Thaw-di-Gras Spring Carnival, Mar 18-20th, and Crane & Sheep Festival, May 6-8th. Planning ahead? Book now if you want to take in the Dawson City Music Festival, July 22-24th. For all festival information visit travelyukon.com. 6 Northern Lights From February to April, the days start to lengthen, but unlike in the summer, daylight hasn't yet taken over every available hour. These are than a perma-frosted moose pasture out and feeling the bohemian vibe at (above) The Frozen Hair Contest at Takhini Hot Springs; (bottom) experience dogsledding destinations Yukon 12 bca a .com SpRiNG 2016 (top) Takhini Hot Sprints, Government of Yukon/cathie archbould

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