Wildlife viewing is one of the main reasons why we love to paddle, hike and dogsled through the wild places of the Yukon Territory.
From the tiny ground squirrel to the mighty grizzly bear, we cherish our opportunities to observe these remarkable creatures in their natural environment. The Homestead is located right on the edge of the Yukon wilderness, and the local wildlife is an integral part of our lives.
Stories abound of interactions between our guides and these animals. A few summers ago Stephen Reynolds, one of our main guides at the time, was in charge of the Homestead while the rest of us were guiding a wildlife-viewing trip in Alaska. The incessant barking of "Kayak" one of our pet (non-pulling) huskies rudely awakened him from a deep sleep. When Stephen ran out in nothing but his birthday suit and rubber boots, he came face to face with a full-grown grizzly bear at the foot of our driveway! Thankfully Kayak drove the bear off and Steve was able to go back to bed and fall sleep... albeit fitfully!
Our wilderness basecamp is located on the Ibex River which is a major winter thoroughfare for the Ibex Vallley wolf pack. On crisp winter evenings the wolves have been known to come down the river to our camp and howl back and forth to our dogteams staked out next to the yurts. One winter we actually watched a female wolf in heat trot into the doyard by the yurts, trying to lure one of our male dogs down to the river where her siblings were waiting for a potential dinner guest!
During our dogsledding trips that see us mushing through the Fish Lake corridor, we routinely see the Ibex portion of the Southern Lakes caribou herd. We take great caution in ensuring that we keep our dogteams as far back from the caribou as possible. In past years the herd has rarely even acknowledged our presence.
We encourage guests to bring their favorite camera and binoculars. We also provide binoculars and a high quality spotting scope on many of our trips. Below are several images we have taken of wildlife in the Yukon while on trips with our guests. Up until 1999 we only owned a 200 mm lens - so most of these wildlife photographs were taken up close and personal!
