Days 49 & 50 of Lupe’s 2nd Summer of 2023 Dingo Vacation to Canada & Alaska!
9-9-23, the wee hours, Pass 5050 – Great gusts of wind swept over the tiny house, separated by brief moments of calm. In the darkness, snug in a sleeping bag, SPHP no longer heard the steady rain that had fallen for hours. Lupe was dead tired, and had scarcely moved.
SPHP jostled the Carolina Dog.
Loopster, wake up! It quit raining. Want to go out and sniff the air?
She did. In the weak beam of the little flashlight, SPHP watched her now and then as Lupe sniffed here and there out on the wet tundra.
The night was black as sin. No stars. Must still be cloudy. Chilly, but the wind wasn’t as bad as it had sounded from within the tiny house. Even so, a few minutes of the brisk, gusty breeze was enough.
Guess I’m ready to go back in, Looper. C’mon!
Strolling back to the tiny house, SPHP suddenly realized that Lupe hadn’t reappeared from out of the shadows.
Loop, come! … LOOOOP! Where are you?
No response. SPHP shone the flashlight all around. Nothing!
Walking in a widening circle around the tiny house, SPHP kept calling and shining the flashlight everywhere. Where could she have gone? Wandered off alone and now lost in the Yukon? The mere thought was horrible! Anxiety rising, SPHP screamed into the wind.
LOOOOP! … LUUUUPPEEEE! … COME BACK!
From the invisible mountains, an echo. No more.
Luuuuppeee! … Come back!
Bleary-eyed, Lupe reemerged from the tiny house.
Cut it out, SPHP! You’re enough to wake the dead!
She’d already snuck back in.
9-9-23, 7:20 AM, Pass 5050 – Dawn came creeping slowly over the land. Over by Mount Mye (6,763 ft.), 2 small clouds floated, edged with gold.
Still breezy, and rather chilly, but the tundra wasn’t even all that wet anymore. As for new snow, that had all been a speculative figment of SPHP’s overactive imagination.
What’s for breakfast, SPHP?
Not much. Taste of the Wild and water for the Dingo. Trail mix and a vanilla Equate for SPHP. After eating, the sleeping bags looked inviting. A little snooze while the day warmed up a bit wouldn’t hurt anything.
9-9-23, 8:47 AM, Pass 5050 – Sweet! Most of the clouds were gone. Lupe stood next to the tiny house in bright sunshine, a beautiful blue sky over Peak 6400’s long W ridge beyond her.
Let’s do this, Loopster! Onward! Puppy, ho!
Heading ENE, Lupe began a long, gradual descent of the upper W branch of the Vangorda Creek valley, aiming straight for Mount Mye.
Roaming the SE flank of Peak 6500, progress was excellent until Lupe reached a region of rock slides and tall bushes that slowed SPHP down.
Since the talus rock slides weren’t huge, or terribly steep, they proved easier to deal with than the bushes. Maintaining just enough elevation to stay above most of the bushes that filled the valley seemed to be the best course of action. Even so, it still took SPHP over an hour to pick a way through less than 1.5 km of a mix of rocks, bushes, and tundra to reach the edge of the central Vangorda Creek valley.
The descent into the central Vangorda Creek valley went even better than SPHP expected. Encountering fewer rocks, Lupe retained enough elevation to prevent bushes from completely dominating the landscape. Open lanes, and tussocky areas that weren’t too bad, allowed SPHP to pick up the pace again.
Crossing the broad valley, Lupe came to two streams. The first was more of a trickling bog 50-100 feet wide. Fortunately, although soft and wet, it wasn’t all that deep or muddy. The second stream had a well-defined channel, and must have been Vangorda Creek. Merely a few feet wide, even SPHP easily leapt over it.
Once past Vangorda Creek, Mount Mye was directly ahead.
All we have to do now is climb it, SPHP! How much higher is the summit?
1,500 feet, Loop. We don’t want to go straight up this SW slope, though. Lots of steep talus. Should be easier if we go around more toward the S.
Angling SE while gradually gaining elevation, Lupe entered a region of tall bushes. Happily, a surprising number of almost continuous open lanes ran through them. Soon the American Dingo was above the yellow bushes at the base of an enormous steep slope. Looking SSW, a long stretch of the lower Vangorda Creek valley was now in view.
Nice, soft tundra here, SPHP. Can we take a break before starting up?
Sure, we’ve got plenty of time, Looper. Want to share a Cliff cool mint bar?
The Cliff bar offer was eagerly accepted. After a pleasant 15 minute break spent enjoying both the views and the rapid demise of the Cliff bar, the Carolina Dog started up the steep slope. Most of it was talus, but lanes of tundra ran through it, too, especially higher up, once the rate of climb began to diminish.
After gaining 500 feet of elevation, Lupe reached the rounded W edge of a vast bench that sloped gently toward the S. Mount Mye’s summit was still 1,000 feet higher to the NNE, but looking that way, only a small part of the required climb was in sight. Mostly talus again.
Making rapid progress while continuing ENE a short distance onto the S bench, it was soon clear that Lupe might as well get started with the rest of the ascent. Just no way to avoid having to deal with some steep talus.
A tedious trek higher began, picking a route up through the rocks. As usual, Lupe scrambled with confidence, seemingly enjoying the entire experience. Also as usual, SPHP was much slower, climbing cautiously.
In a particularly steep area, suddenly there was trouble. A little higher than SPHP, and 30 or 40 feet over to the R (E), Lupe missed a jump. The Carolina Dog was left clinging the edge of a rock, frantically trying to claw her way up onto it.
Hang on, Loopster! I’m coming!
Impossible! On this terrain, SPHP had no chance to get there in time. A few desperate seconds, and the inevitable happened. Lupe lost her grip and fell.
Not far, only a couple of feet, but onto solid rock. Ouch! Recovering and regaining her balance almost instantly, the American Dingo seemed fine and completely undeterred. Lupe went right back to scrambling with a smile on her face, roaming from one big rock to the next wherever she pleased.
Reaching a patch of tundra, this time SPHP insisted upon taking a break.
Loop, are you really alright? That had to hurt! I’m so sorry! I couldn’t get over there in time to help you.
I’m fine, SPHP. Don’t worry about it.
Luck of the Dingo! You certainly seem to be, but are you sure, Looper?
Positive, SPHP.
Lupe would know. She certainly acted like nothing had happened to her. The ascent continued. Fortunately, Lupe wasn’t stuck on talus for the entire 1,000 feet. After gaining only several hundred, more tundra began coming into view. Aiming for tundra whenever possible, slowly the situation improved. Lanes of tundra began appearing. At first they were all short, but as the Carolina Dog kept climbing, the lanes became longer and wider. The rate of climb began to diminish.
We must be getting close to the top, SPHP!
Dome-shaped Mount Mye went on and on. However, the ascent was now getting easier and easier. Eventually, even SPHP was advancing rapidly across a gradual slope toward a dark escarpment only 30 or 40 feet higher.
A final scramble up the escarpment, and a cairn was ahead, somewhat higher and still a few hundred feet away. In a chilly E wind, beneath an increasingly overcast sky, Lupe headed right for it.
9-9-23, 1:38 PM, 38ºF, Mount Mye (6,763 ft.) – The cairn was perched right at the true summit on a large, slightly curved rock 10 feet from a precipitous N edge.
Congratulations, Loopster! Made it to Mount Mye!
Really wasn’t that hard, SPHP.
Glad you thought so, Loop, but stay away from the N edge. Can’t afford any more Dingo plunges from up here.
SPHP shook the American Dingo’s paw, then retreated 25 feet SW of the cairn to sit on the tundra. Due to the cold breeze, SPHP pulled a jacket over Lupe as she curled up on SPHP’s lap. Unfamiliar Yukon peaks were in all directions except E, where the terrain was lower. Nothing nearby was as high as Mount Mye, although many distant peaks appeared to top out at roughly the same elevation.
Chocolate coconut bar time, SPHP.
Indeed it is, Loopster!
SPHP shared a chocolate coconut bar with Lupe, plus what remained of the beef jerky. Taste of the Wild and water rounded out her menu.
After eating, the Carolina Dog felt tired, remaining on SPHP’s lap a long time. SPHP stroked her ears while admiring the tremendous, unspoiled Yukon views. Sitting there facing S, off in the distance a few high peaks of the St. Cyr Range of the Pelly Mountains were the only ones anywhere in sight that had any snow on them. Perhaps Fox Mountain (7,887 ft.) was among them?
Snug beneath the jacket despite the chill breeze, Lupe watched a steady procession of silent gray clouds sailing off to the W in an increasingly gloomy sky.
Suddenly feels like more snow will be coming soon, doesn’t it, SPHP?
We’re practically a third of the way into September, Looper. Won’t be long now this far N. Mount Mye is likely the last Yukon Territory peak of your Summer of 2023 Dingo Vacations.
Another summer was all but over. A sad thought, yet an inescapable one. It made these lingering, seldom seen views from a remote Yukon peak seem even more glorious and precious than ever.
Inevitably, the fleeting minutes sailed away with the clouds.
9-9-23, 2:38 PM, Mount Mye –
It’s over, Loopster. Our traditional summit hour has fled.
We can’t leave yet! We’ve got to get some pictures, SPHP.
Wandering SW first, Lupe began her final, clockwise tour of the somber, yet splendid views. The Carolina Dog went far enough to see Pass 5050 between Peak 6400 and Peak 6500. Although her tiny house was too far away to pick out from here, Rose Mountain (6,513 ft.), Faro Mountain (5,467 ft.), and Lake 4663 were also visible in this general direction.
The NW edge of Mount Mye was a cliff. Lupe peered down on jagged rock formations. Directly N, a string of ponds was visible in a long deep valley flanked by nameless brown mountains and ridges. The lower end of this valley ultimately curved NW out of sight.
A line of blue mountains stood on the NE horizon, far beyond another deep valley sheltering dark green forests. This view caught SPHP’s fancy as being particularly intriguing. Not until much later did SPHP learn the name of the highest peak in that cluster, Mount Connolly (7,028 ft.).
Another big valley with more extensive forests was to the E.
Circling past the summit cairn, Lupe ventured over to Mount Mye’s E edge. SPHP’s fascination with Mount Connolly continued. From here, Lupe also enjoyed the best view of Peak 6519 to the SE.
Actually, it might not be Peak 6519 at all, Loopster. The topo map shows that as an elevation near a survey benchmark, but also includes a small 6,600 foot contour along the N edge.
If that’s correct, it’s really at least Peak 6600, SPHP.
Yup. Certainly looks possible to me, too, Looper. I’d believe it.
Views almost directly S of the big ridge connected to Peak 6519, and the Vangorda Creek valley W of it, completed Lupe’s Mount Mye tour. Far beyond them, the St. Cyr Range stretched across the entire S horizon.
That giant ridge is the way we would have come here, if we’d been able to reach the official Mount Mye trail NE of Faro, Loop.
That would have been fun! Looks easier than the Moose Trail was, SPHP.
Hah! No doubt, Loopster. More elevation loss along the way, though. Maybe that would have evened things out somewhat as far as difficulty?
9-9-23, 2:58 PM, Mount Mye – 80 minutes after arriving, the American Dingo was back at the cairn. Her summit tour was over.
This is it, Loopster. Final moments on a Yukon Territory peak in 2023.
We had a lot of success this year in the Yukon, didn’t we, SPHP?
We certainly did, Loop. Maybe the most ever. I’ll never forget it.
And yet, as Lupe stood in the breeze high on Mount Mye with glory all about, those still so recent days of the Arctic Apocalypse, her incredible and unprecedented successes in the Richardson Mountains, and journey clear to the Arctic Ocean in the Land of the Pingoes were all already starting to seem like adventures long ago.
We’re living the dream, SPHP!
So true.
Onward! Puppy, ho!
During the descent, SPHP proposed a route farther E, thinking it might be a bit easier. Really not much difference, except that it was a little longer. Still, the journey W once down to the broad bench S of Mount Mye was fast, easy, and let Lupe enjoy a nice romp. Soon she was back at the rounded edge overlooking the Vangorda Creek valley.
While crossing the Vangorda Creek valley again, the clouds started to dissipate. Looking back, sunlight illuminated Mount Mye. The big ridge where the official Mount Mye route went was in sunshine, too, although Peak 6519 remained in shadow.
9-9-23, 7:54 PM – The sun had already set by the time Lupe reached the tiny house at Pass 5050, tired, but happy. Fortunately, the tiny house was still here, despite the E wind which continued blowing at the pass, although it had been calm elsewhere during the return.
Dinner and a long snooze were in order. With a full tummy, the Carolina Dog was soon off in Dingo Dreamland, snoozing comfortably on her red sleeping bag. Due to sore paws, not so, SPHP. Listening to the gusty E wind far into the night, toes worn raw throbbed with pain.
9-10-23, 10:00 AM – Happily the long rest had done SPHP’s paws some good. Mount Mye sank out of sight for the last time almost as soon as Lupe started down the W side of Pass 5050. On the way back to the Moose Trail, this time she crossed the stream N of Peak 6400’s W ridge much closer to the two tarns.
Staying higher along the S side of the valley after crossing the stream, Lupe had better luck finding long open lanes through the thickets of tall yellow bushes. On the lower slopes of the W ridge, bushes gave way to tundra and patches of gritty soil, making progress much easier than it had been during the journey to Pass 5050 two days ago.
9-10-23, 2:43 PM, 57ºF – The Mount Mye adventure a complete success, Lupe leapt onto her pink blanket in the RAV4. Meanwhile, SPHP stashed all the gear. Of course, there had been no avoiding the horrible, wet bushwhack along the mucky Moose Trail, but it was all history now.
Lupe’s eyes lit up when SPHP pulled into the Fingers Interpretive Site on the way back down to Faro. She really did like this place, and enjoyed both watching squirrels and the beef stew SPHP shared with her here during a lazy rest of the afternoon.
9-10-23, 5:37 PM – 4 days after her late evening arrival in the Faro area, Lupe spent a few minutes lying on the green lawn in front of the “Faro – Yukon’s Best Kept Secret” sign near the now familiar junction of Mitchell Road and Campbell Street. Sadly, it was time to move on. Faro had been both kind of crazy and fun.
Maybe we can come back again next year, SPHP?
Hope so, Loopster. We still need to have another chat with Sabine at the Campbell Region Interpretive Centre about how to get to Rose Mountain.
And don’t forget Truitt Peak over by Little Salmon Lake, SPHP. It’s not that far away!
Maybe someday. Who knew? 2024 was still a long way off. In any case, just like on the evening she’d arrived in Faro, the American Dingo had another lovely drive E ahead of her on Robert Campbell Highway No. 4.
Hwy No. 4 was paved all the way to the junction with Canol Road No. 6, and still an excellent gravel road once beyond it. SPHP owned the road, encountering virtually no traffic at all as the RAV4 headed SE through rolling hills and valleys full of yellow trees within sight of the remote St. Cyr Range of the Pelly Mountains.
9-10-23, 7:50 PM – Light was fading, and SPHP had already been looking for a place to spend the night, when the RAV4 reached a bridge over the Hoole River. A quick glance to the L while crossing the bridge revealed the Hoole River’s confluence with the Pelly River just downstream.
Oh, that’s an awesome spot, SPHP! Turn around! You just passed a side road that goes down there.
SPHP did turn around. Plenty of room to park on a bank overlooking the confluence, and absolutely no one else there. Perfect! Set for the night.
Links:
Next Adventure Prior Adventure
Lupe’s Scrollable GPS Track & Ascent Statistics
Moose Trail directions: From the intersection of Mitchell Road and Campbell Street in Faro, head NE on the Faro Mine Access Road. Pass the Fingers Interpretive Site on the L at 2.75 km (1.7 miles), turn R at 9.5 km (5.6 miles). The Moose Trail Lupe started from is 0.1 km (300 feet) on the L from this turn, right after passing an electric power substation.
Note: This is not the same trailhead recommended at the Campbell Region Interpretive Centre in Faro, which SPHP never found.
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