Day 23 - 25 Kluane Beauty

Sept 3, 4, 5  Kluane National Park

This is more like it!  We've settled into a quiet rhythm of holiday camping, rather than hardship and strife!  West and north from Whitehorse, we're into Kluane National Park, a wild and rugged landscape of snowy peaks and deep emerald lakes.  The campsite at Kathleen Lake is set in the boreal forest of aspen and spruce with scattered glimpses of the lake below.  We've spent the days paddling and fishing, hiking and sightseeing.
 
The lake is deep and glacial, surrounded by freshly dusted snowy peaks.  The water is so clear I watched a big pike hunting the smaller fish in 20 feet of water.  Known for its lake trout, they're clustered at the mouth of the outlet river, but not biting our hooks.  I'm disappointed not to catch a big one, but Norbert is happy to go for the feisty grayling in the river again. 

The bottom here is 20 feet down but clearly visible.

Grayling fishing - not successfully today though.

It's blissful to paddle in this turquoise water, watching the ever changing light on the mountains, and listening to the loons.  We're on a not so successful quest to see all four species of Canadian loons, and we may have a photo now of the rarest, an ivory billed loon.  It will need further adjudication.

The days here have been warm and sunny, enough that we took a very quick dip in the lake one afternoon.  With the clear skies, the nights have been very cold though - we woke to minus 2 degrees.  I've been getting all my clothes on when I get up in the night so I can go out and look at the sky.  The stars are brilliant and the Milky Way streams across the sky.  No aurora yet, but next week my aurora predictor app says we have a better chance.  Let's hope for more clear nights. 

One of the benefits of the cold is the enforced stretching routine I need to do first thing in the morning to get dressed under the covers.  It's really cozy in bed, but baring my skin in the icy camper is not my favourite thing, so I drag my clothes in, then when they're warm I wriggle and squirm into them while trying to stay completely covered.  Very effective movement therapy - I should patent it.

Kluane landscape 

These peaks are the nearer range, but still very impressive.

The days pass easily, with long stretches of doing very little, a skill I'm not usually known for.  But in the camper it comes easily.  We linger over breakfast, tidy up a bit (it doesn't take long to sweep out our 20 square feet), wash the dishes, then head down to the lake to fish.  I read or knit once I'm bored, which is an hour into a fruitless fishing expedition, and Norbert comes back when he has dinner.  We sit by our campfire with wine and books, or play Scrabble until our lids are heavy.  Pretty peaceful existence and very satisfying.  I feel like we needed this R+R after our Dempster ordeal.