Departing from Carmacks & the Yukon River: Day 18 of the Yukon River Trip

...continued from "Jake's Return to Carmacks:  Day 18 of the Yukon River Trip"

In spite of the last 24 sleepless hours of bootless fishing, incessant gold panning, ill-intentioned visitors, relentless packing, and drawn out shuttle rides, we somehow managed to load up the Expedition for our impending departure.  Without reprieve, our next challenge awaited us:  getting the Sundowner on the trailer (and eventually out of the Yukon River!).   We knew battling the strong, swift Yukon current was unavoidable.

This picture is from the Sundowner's deck.  Our plan was to back the stern away from the bank & use NRS straps to pull the boat upstream a short distance to load the Sundowner onto the trailer before having the Expedition pull both trailer & boat up the ramp & out of the Yukon River.

Experience taught us to prepare for the worst-possible scenario:  losing the Sundowner to the current.  No boat ramps existed downriver, not even for the boat alone.  Overpowered by the current, the Sundowner would surely wreck, creating an expensive & nearly impossible retrieval.  Taking precautions, we tied one end of a blue NRS strap to our boat & anchored the other end to the trees until we combined the other NRS straps into two longer straps, securing both from our boat to the trailer.  These would serve as guide ropes, aligning the boat & trailer while also pulling the Sundowner close enough to attach the manual winch strap, which when cranked secures her into position.  We also hitched our battery powered winch on the bow of the Sundowner in anticipation of needing more than just muscle to load our boat.  And once again, we had an audience; a local couple materialized & watched us from their parked car on the circle drive (which, of course, added to the already escalating stress & pressure we were under).

Anchored by NRS Straps in Carmacks, YT

Backing the trailer down the boat ramp & into the water triggered yet another onslaught from the Yukon's unrelenting campaign to deny us any predictability.  As Jake inched the trailer farther out toward the necessary depth to receive the Sundowner, the river's powerful waters waged full force against the trailer.  The Yukon River strove for victory as its surging current grabbed onto the tail of our 2000 lb. trailer, threatening to carry it downstream.  The unforgiving water pledged one of three outcomes:  to mangle the trailer beyond use, to break the trailer from the Expedition, or to claim both the trailer & the Expedition as casualties in its assault.  My frantic screams & gestures sent the Expedition & the trailer lurching forward as Jake drove back up the ramp and broke the water's promise of demise.  And still, the couple brazenly watched our struggles unfold from the circle drive (a little help would have been nice!).

Onlookers usually parked on the left side of the circle drive
near the Carmacks boat launch.

 

Plan B transpired and then soaked in my anxiety & worst-case scenarios as Jake backed the trailer & the Expedition off the soft, squishy river bank & into a shallow pool just upstream of and next to the ramp.  From there, we followed our original idea of using NRS straps to secure & guide the Sundowner onto the trailer.  The forceful, icy current taunted me, and doubt stole my courage as I balanced on submerged bars of the slippery trailer & fought rushing water up past my knees.  I gave up trying to guide our boat toward the trailer with the NRS straps; Jake took over & grappled with the reigns to align the boat before we both wrestled the Sundowner into her secure position (and not without help from both the manual & battery powered winches).  The river just didn't want to let her go.

Climbing back into the Expedition, Jake stomped on the gas daring the mighty Yukon River to give the Sundowner up to its soft, mushy bank.  I yelled for Jake to stop after watching slushy sand & pebbles hinder the departure.  Tension rose as I shared my hesitation with Jake, and incredibly, two sets of eyes still stared out at us from behind the windshield of the parked car on the circle drive.  Jake ignored my disbelief & the gawking locals and floored the pedal again, this time spurring movement (& hope!).  The Expedition roared as it slowly inched forward.  My heart pounded as the back tires grabbed for pavement.  Holding my breath, I watched the trailer's first set of tires slide through the soggy sand.  Jake didn't let up, and the engine dominated with a slow, steady pace as the stern of the Sundowner left the water and the trailer's last set of wheels finally mounted the paved road!  I imagine the inquisitive locals parked on the circle drive expected their curious, doubting stupor to last longer.  Now what would they do?  I stood in my own lingering fog of skepticism & marveled at our first stroke of luck since our departure from Whitehorse nearly 3 weeks ago on Day 1 of our Yukon River Trip.  

Jake put the truck in park & joined me on the bank of the Yukon River to celebrate our latest feat before saying goodbye to our beloved spot in Carmacks.  Exhausted, we stood together trying to absorb the sobering reality & surreal finality of our exit off the Yukon River.

COMING SOON:

Click here to continue by reading 

"Returning to Whitehorse:  Day 18 of the Yukon River Trip."

 Like YRT on Facebook!

 Check out our YouTube page.

Visit our website.

Jake's Return to Carmacks: Day 18 of the Yukon River Trip

...continued from "Alone & Anxiously Awaiting Jake's Return to Carmacks:  Day 18 of the Yukon River Trip"

The Expedition continued toward me & the Yukon River until the circle drive rounded it away from the water's edge to grant easier access to Carmacks' public boat launch.  Backing up, Jake plunged the trailer into the water and then turned the Expedition to point back up the road for our impending departure from the mighty Yukon River.  Driving forward, Jake perched the trailer to wait on the edge of the bank while we would load the truck & plan how to combat the swift & powerful current in order to get the Sundowner onto the trailer.

Jake's exhaustion advertised itself on his face, showing me fatigue had claimed him as well.  After our reunion kiss & hug, Jake credited his delay to the bossy Germans that shared the shuttle with him & a friendly Swiss couple.  The Germans evidently mistook the canoe shuttle service for a chauffeur service when they so rudely commanded the shuttle driver to "Halt," making the other shuttle passengers & driver wait while they dropped in on & visited with a friend.  A second unscheduled stop at the Braeburn Lodge had also prolonged Jake's return from Whitehorse while the Swiss & German couples savored the famous, oversized cinnamon buns that nicknamed the Braeburn Airport as the Cinnamon Bun Airstrip.

Braeburn Lodge, photo by James Brooks

Braeburn Airstrip, photo by Luigi Zanasi, Wikimedia Commons Contributer

Before loading up, I started to share my vexing encounter of the ill-intentioned, pushy girl & her two creepy accomplices.  Because I was pleased with my performance, I presumed Jake would be also.  I expected showers of praise on how I handled this or that but was instead rebuked: "I knew it!  I told you!  ...That is exactly what I feared by letting you stay here alone....  Do you know how bad this could've been?!..."

"But Jake, nothing happened!" I would counter again & again after each chiding interruption.  The fact that nothing happened didn't seem to make a difference to him.  It was the could-haves that stoked Jake's temper (and still does years later).  

We will never see eye-to-eye on the decision made to our dilemma in Carmacks.  Jake will always regret letting me stay behind alone with the Sundowner because of the--in his mind--almost atrocious ending to our Yukon River Trip, and I will forever rejoice not fetching the Expedition & trailer all alone from Whitehorse, which excused me from facing the concocted possibilities of Worst-Case Scenario Girl.

COMING SOON: 
Click here to continue by reading "Departing from Carmacks & the Yukon River:  Day 18 of the Yukon River Trip."

 Like YRT on Facebook!

 Check out our YouTube page.

Visit our website.

The Expedition Will Take Us to the Yukon!!

A big thanks goes out to Kent’s Automotive Service Team in Noblesville for getting our repairs done in record time.  The next time you need automotive services, contact Kent’s.  We’ve been going there for over a decade and are always happy with the work and prices.  This unexpected, last-minute repair had us wondering if we were going to make it to Canada.  We told Kent’s our goal:  to get the Expedition to the Yukon & back (over 6,000 miles) on our limited budget.  They were honest and told us what must be fixed to be safe and what could wait until after our return.  Thank you, Kent’s!

And here was our biggest culprit: 

All four rear control arms were crumbling apart; this was the worst of the four.  YIKES!

Now that our Expedition is drivable & safe, we plan to leave tomorrow to begin our journey of 3,193 miles to Whitehorse in the Yukon!

 

Click here to continue by reading "Almost Ready!"

Like YRT on Facebook!

Check out our YouTube page.

Visit our website.