Traveling Up Miles Canyon

by Robert Bales

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Traveling Up Miles Canyon

Artist

Robert Bales

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While visiting Whitehorse, Yukon we spent a little time exploring the Miler Canyon!

The most dramatic natural feature near Whitehorse is Miles Canyon, where the Yukon River has cut its way down through a flow of basaltic lava. The lava flowed from a vent approximately 8 km (5 mi) to the south, between Golden Horn and what is now the Mount Sima ski hill, about 8.5 million years ago.
The dramatically constricted flow of the river through the canyon caused fish, salmon in particular, to pool above and below it, and the first people in the area started taking advantage of that thousands of years ago. Tools found nearby have been dated to 2,500 years ago, but people have probably been fishing and hunting there for 8-9,000 years, arriving shortly after the glaciers retreated from the rich valley.
The canyon has always been a popular attraction for both Whitehorse residents and visitors. In 1922, the 85-foot-long Robert Lowe Suspension Bridge was built across the narrowest and most dramatic part of the canyon.

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July 31st, 2020

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