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Carcross & Wildlife Preserve

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August 8, 2025 – Historic Carcross and Yukon Wildlife Preserve, Yukon

2025 Yukon & Northwest Territories

We have breakfast in Ricky’s at the hotel, take our bags to the lobby for loading on the bus and depart Quality Inn heading south on the Alaska Highway. We stop at beautiful Emerald Lake and arrive in historic Carcross on Bennett Lake mid-morning. We have over an hour on our own to explore this interesting historic town, where the gold rush miners arrived after having built their own boats to cross Bennett Lake on their way to Dawson City (hundreds of miles further overland).

We stop at the Carcross Desert, which is the smallest desert in the world, and what remains of a glacial lake. A few of our group hike to the top of the dunes before we hit the road again, heading north to our lunch stop at Bean North’s cafe.

Carcross
Carcross
15 photos

The Yukon Wildlife Preserve in the Macpherson-Grizzly Valley not far from Whitehorse is our final stop of the day. This experience gives our group a unique opportunity to see Yukon’s wildlife, which is otherwise hard to spot in the wild. It is owned by the Yukon government and is operated by a non-profit. It is very well run by dedicated staff who are very mindful of the wild animals’ needs. It is 283 hectares (700 acres) in size, so the animals have lots of space to roam, graze, hide, and interact with each other without humans being in the way. I’m not a fan of zoos or game farms, however this preserve is a wonderful experience – JoeTourist recommended!

Locations of the wildlife in the Yukon Wildlife Preserve

Our group split into two: those who want to walk the access roads on foot, and those of us who prefer a narrated Group Tour on our bus, but with stops along the way. We have almost two hours here, which allows us to not be rushed.

List of wildlife I observe and photograph:

  • Mule deer
  • Elk herd
  • Moose in the distance
  • Thin-horned sheep
  • Musk ox
  • Arctic ground squirrel
  • Elk males
  • Thin-horned sheep
  • Woodland Caribou
  • Billy goats on the ridge
  • Moose
  • Bison
Yukon Wildlife Preserve
Yukon Wildlife Preserve
9 photos
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Puerto Quetzal & Antigua, Guatemala

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2011 Incan Empires Cruise

Wednesday, December 14, 2011 – Day 24 – Puerto Quetzal & Antigua, Guatemala

The cruise ship port in Puerto Quetzal is a welcome change from most of our previous ports, where we usually docked at container terminals. Today, there is a nice, clean dock, with lots of souvenir vendors, and a café and bar serving snacks and beverages, including coco loco (coconut cocktail with or without booze).

JoeTourist: Antigua &emdash; Volcan Fuego emitting smoke

We take the Antigua On Your Own shore excursion, which provides transportation to and from Antigua, a small Guatemalan town designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Our guide refers to Antigua as St. John, since this is the patron saint of soldiers, and the Spanish conquistadors established this town after the original site was destroyed by the nearby volcano. It takes the bus about 1.5 hours to travel from the port to the city. We pass three volcanoes along the way: Volcan Fuego and Volcan Acatenango to the West, and Volcan de Agua to the East. Volcan Fuego decides to put on a little show for us as we pass by, sending puffs of smoke skyward.

I can see that Antigua is normally a nice town to visit, however with all the cruise ship passengers drifting around, there are scores of Guatemalans selling trinkets everywhere. They are constantly after us to buy stuff, so it quickly becomes annoying. We wander the few blocks from our drop off point to the big town square with a cathedral and shops all around. There is a large tour group about to enter the cathedral, so we decide to walk a bit further to see La Merced Church, which is very ornate and very quiet, since it is off the beaten path. Along the way, we see the famous arch at El Carmen, and take photos of the Volcan de Agua framed by the Arch.

We stop to have some cappuccino made with genuine Guatemalan coffee, which has to be one of the best-tasting coffees I have had on the trip so far. I distract myself from all the persistent street vendors by giving myself a photographic assignment as we find our way back to the drop-off point: take photos of all the beautiful and ornate door knockers found on many of the big wooden doors to be found as entranceways to shops, restaurants, and inner courtyards.

Antigua
Antigua
32 photos
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Corinto, Nicaragua

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2011 Incan Empires Cruise

Tuesday, December 13, 2011 – Day 23 – Corinto, Nicaragua

As the ship approaches the harbour, the volcanic mountain range is visible in the distance with their characteristic cone shape. The dock is right at the end of the main street of the little port town of Corinto. I am not signed up for any shore excursions today, but a friend and I walk through the town late this morning to have a look around. It is hot and humid, and without a doubt this is the poorest country we have visited so far. Despite that, the vendors and people are not persistently selling to the crowds of tourists leaving the ship. They smile and seem happy, so it’s nice to see they have some pride and dignity despite not having much.

It is great to stay aboard the air-conditioned ship for the rest of the day. I read my e-book and sip a cold Beck’s beer on the shady side of the ship in the warm, tropical air. The more I travel, the more I understand that what I appreciate most about my time away is the “down time”.

Nicaragua
Nicaragua
6 photos