There are adventures tall and true in the land of the midnight sun. Join us as we paddle past the historic townsite of Conrad, hike along Sam McGee’s trail and bike down past the Mountain Hero mine. We’ll actively mine fact from fiction on our Yukon adventures, helping build a picture of the past near Carcross, Yukon.
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Yukon Names and Adventures
Sometimes the story is all in the name.
Conrad.
It doesn’t say much.
We pulled into the Yukon Government Campground 16 kilometres south of Carcross. It was named… you guessed it… Conrad.
“I wonder why they called it that?”
Settling in at camp beside the Windy Arm of Tagish Lake, we looked eastwards at the remains of a recent forest fire. In August of 2018, lightening struck. The forest sizzled for over a month. It was a spectacular burn – especially when the Northern Lights danced overhead.
Windy Arm was as still a millpond today, no wind or thunderstorms on the horizon. Time for some more Yukon adventures. Unloading our kayaks, we took advantage of the lull in the wind and paddled down the lake.
A big black bear ambled on to the shore near the remnants of what looked like a tram tower before slowly meandering back into the woods. Another wooden skeleton of the past graced the hill above the trees.
“That must be Sam McGee’s tramline,” we agreed in unison, paddling in for a closer look.
A little further down the lake, grayling followed the angler’s hook but chose not to nibble. Montana Creek flowed into the clear blue water of Windy Arm.
The sun shone and the fishing rod and tackle were put away. We drifted in the calm, soaking up the warmth and the views of the tramline – our hiking route for tomorrow.
The Real Story behind the Names
Actually, Sam McGee’s tram is a bit of a misnomer. The tramline didn’t belong to Sam McGee. He wasn’t even the foreman of the crew that built it, as some sources quote.
Sam was actually the foreman of a road-building crew in the area. He was in the area during the building of the tramline. His name is memorable enough – thanks to Robert Service and his poem, “The Cremation of Sam McGee”.
More people relate to the poetic version of Sam McGee’s North than they do to harsh reality of one Montana mining magnate named John Conrad.
John Conrad
Silver was discovered on the Montana Mountain in the early 1900s. Montana Mountain is a large massif of volcanic origin. It lies immediately south of Carcross, Yukon.
The Montana massif covers an area of almost 180 square kilometers. Its main peak, Montana, rises 7243 feet above sea level.
SIDENOTE: The historic site of Conrad lies within the Traditional Territory of the Carcross/Tagish First Nation. Conrad is located on the west-side of Windy Arm. The traditional name of this arm is “Tsei Zhele Mene” or “Howling Rock Lake.”
When word got out that there was silver on the mountain, prospectors rushed to stake claims. Montana financier John Conrad heard about the potential boom and set out to consolidate all of the mining claims.
He convinced investors to give him the money to build a network of mule trails, tramways and wagon roads to transport silver ore off the mountain. Conrad was confident in the area’s potential for big rewards.
With the value of silver rising, development of the Windy Arm claims began in early spring of 1905.
Ever wondered what the Yukon looks like in spring?
Check out our Yukon Winter Getaway post!
Want to paddle a Yukon river in summer?
Check out our Nisutlin River Canoe Trip post!
Building Up and Down Montana Mountain
The first tram line – sometimes erroneously referred to as Sam McGee’s tramline – cost $80,000. It climbed up the mountainside from Conrad to the Mountain Hero and Montana mines.
Running almost 5.7 km in length, it gained over 1,000 metres of elevation from lakeshore to mountaintop.
Thick cable pulled 80 ore buckets and down the hillside. Heavy ore coming down was enough to pull workers and equipment in special cars back up the mountain.
Construction of the tram line from Conrad to the Mountain Hero Mine began in September 1905.
By January of 1906, Conrad City boasted two hotels, a hardware store, a cigar and tobacco shop, a laundry and bath house, and a Dominion telegraph office in addition to the mine manager’s office.
The tram faced a few hurdles during construction but was operational by June of 1906. Unfortunately, high transportation costs and low returns put a damper on Conrad’s plans.
By 1908, the Windy Arm stampede was bust.
Yukon Adventures: Hiking Sam McGee Trail
Even though Conrad City came and went in the blink of an eye, mining operations had – and continue to have – a huge impact on Montana Mountain.
Today, scattered remnants of the town remain at the trailhead to the Sam McGee Trail.
Love hiking in the Yukon? You’ll love our post on Hiking in Tombstone Territorial Park!
The trail itself follows sections of the Mountain Hero tram. There are towers, cable and ore cars left to tell the tale.
The hike is about nine kilometres long, with an elevation gain of just over 600 metres.
Cars can be parked in the gravel pit just down the hill from the tram tower (approximately 17 km south of Carcross).
Campers can access the trail by walking through the historic remains of Conrad, across the remains of the old bridge on Montana Creek and up through the gravel pit. The signed trailhead is across the road.
More information can be found on the Yukon Hiking website.
Biking the Mountain Hero Trail
The Sam McGee Trail is also called the Mountain Hero Trail. Mountain biking option starts on the other side of Montana Mountain near Carcross. The trailhead is accessed at the top of the Montana Mountain biking trail system.
The bike route climbs up another 800 metres before starting to drop across through the remnants of the Mountain Hero mine.
A full description of the complete loop can found on Trailforks.
I chose to explore historic Carcross after dropping Brad off at the trailhead for the four-hour ride across and down to our campsite at Conrad.
His photos make me think I shouldn’t have wimped out on this part of our Yukon adventures!
When You Go
Carcross is located less than an hour’s drive (72 km) south of Whitehorse, capital city of the Yukon Territory.
Car rentals are available from the Erik Nielsen International Airport if you are flying to the the Yukon.
Mountain bike rentals are available right in Carcross.
Camping in Yukon government campgrounds is only $12/night. It includes pit toilets, potable water and free firewood.
Want more Yukon camping adventures? Check out Exploring Tombstone Territorial Park or visit our post about canoeing the Nisutlin River!
Additional Resources
Murray Lundberg’s book, Fractured Veins and Broken Dreams, provides excellent detail of the Windy Arm Stampede.
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