_{At Jake’s Corner, turn off the Alaska Highway onto Hwy 8 West. The sign says Tagish 22 km, Carcross 53 km, Atlin 100 km. Ahead of you is a long broad valley. Atlin Lake, Little Atlin Lake and Atlin are in that valley. There are mountains to your left made of white granite, with evergreens at the base. If you look off to your right, the big flattened cone-shaped mountain at the farthest end of the valley is Mount Minto. It’s on the border between Yukon and BC. Mount Minto almost always has a cloud stuck on top.}

_{Follow Highway 8 for about 2 km. Turn left at Highway 7 (The Atlin Road). It is 60 miles or 100 km long, a good paved and gravel road maintained year ‘round. Speed limit 90 km (54 miles) which you should have no difficulty keeping.}

_{Highway 7 runs down the East (left) side of the Atlin Lakes; sometimes it runs along the lakes and sometimes inland; sometimes it’s scenic and sometimes not. Different terrains.}

_{The pretty little lake on your right is Little Atlin Lake. It drains south into Atlin Lake; Atlin Lake then drains west and north, becoming the Yukon River, which flows 1500 miles to the Bering Sea. Atlin Lake, and the glaciers which feed it at the south end, is the headwaters of the Yukon River. At Little Atlin Lake there is a Rest Area with 2 outhouses and a boat launch. Watch for Bald Eagles overhead.}

_{7 km - You can look across the lake here; you are up on a fairly high bench. Along the left side is a mountain stocked with mountain goats. There is a pull-off at 9.8 km. The Mount White Trail starts here. You can often see mountain goats on the face of the mountain. Take care driving, the goats sometimes wander down onto the road. You might also see sheep on the road.}

_{22 km - Long steep hill: 12 Mile Hill. Get your speed up and keep it up. Lots of rockfall on the road. Stay in your own lane. The top is a plateau. This is the area of interior lakes. There was a burnover in this area 50 years or so ago. Trees grow slowly here due to climate and soil; the slow regrowth is obvious. Look deep into the pine forest, you can see burnt out stumps and fallen burned trees.}

_{Tarfu and Snafu Lakes were named this when the road was built in 1949. They are obviously named with a WWII sensibility. Prior to 1949, supplies and passengers came by ice travel over Tagish Lake, Marsh Lake, etc. in the winter.}

_{32.5 - km Sweet little log cabin. Affordable. Much photographed. Not really very old; just falling down.}

_{38 km - Nice view of Mount Minto - cloud stuck on top? Hitching Post is closed.}

_{42.5 km - Long stretch of road. The BC/Yukon border is coming. Precisely where you see the ‘Super Natural BC’ sign and the Yukon ‘Welcome to the Magic and the Mystery’ sign, is the 60th parellel. If you stop and get out, you will see a cutline for line-of-sight surveying. It is wide enough to be seen from commercial airplanes descending into Whitehorse. It goes down the hill to the lake and across and up the other side.}

_{52 km - Atlin Lake is laid out before you. Beautiful! At the very end is Atlin Mountain on the west side of the lake; Atlin is on the east side,  directly across the lake from Atlin Mountain (the lake is 4 miles wide in front of town.)}

_{61.3 - km Base Camp Creek - name is from 1949, has a WWII quality.}

_{67 km – Gravel changes to "chipseal" pavement.}

_{70 km - Ranchlands, outskirts of Atlin - note the various kinds of fences. Horses used to be allowed to free-range. Since most horses were only used for fall hunting, they were turned out for the rest of the year. Horses would wander throughout town, and along the roads. Many of us miss them.}

_{74.5 km - Carlson’s Ranch is noted for the huge organic vegetables they grow. Gardening note: Atlin has 61 growing days and has frost every 30 days all summer. Growing time for potatoes from transplant to harvest? 61 days! Impeccable timing required for that crop! I envy any gardener here who can grow anything big enough to eat.}

_{82.6 km - Davey Hall Lake - Straight ahead, you’ll see a snow-covered mountain – that’s Birch Mountain on Teresa Island, the highest peak in a freshwater lake in the world. To its right is Atlin Mountain.}

_{86.2 km - to the left, is the road to MacDonald Lakes. Good fishing.}

_{88 km - near Fourth of July Creek – named at the turn of the century for a 4th of July gold strike by Americans.}

_{97 km - Intersection that goes in to Atlin (right). Or turn left for half a km, then right (south) for Warm Bay Road.}

_{4.8 Drinking water spring}

_{5.0 Slow to 20 km at Suicide Hill and gravel pit. Stay right.}

_{9.2 Taxgoon Road – entry to Five Mile Reserve}

_{12.2 Lookout for Llewellyn Glacier}

_{12.4 Sidka Tours – uphill to the left}

_{13.2 to 16.3    Slow – road is curvy and has steep grades up and down. Stay right.}

_{16.3 McKee Creek – site of hydraulic gold mining up to 1970’s. Note the erosion of the banks.}

_{20.0 Palmer Lake sign for BC Forest Service – small area for overnight camping, user-maintained, pike fishing, swimming, wildlife viewing. Canoes and kayaks are ideal here.}

_{23.3 Warm Bay sign for BC Forest Service – lakeside area for overnight camping, user-maintained, wildlife viewing, too cold to swim. Canoes and kayaks are ideal here along the shore. Note: Warm Bay is called that because outflow from the Warm Springs flows into Warm Bay, raising the temperature slightly.}

_{24.0 Residence at right is Warm Springs Homestead – organic farm; greenhouses have warm springs running through them; this extends the season beyond the usual 61 growing days per year which is typical in Atlin.}

_{24.3 Warm Springs entrance at left – Look for a tiny sign with yellow letters at the right side of the road. Picnic area, no overnight camping (Warm Bay and Grotto campsites are nearby.) Treat the Warm Springs pool with respect. Use the outhouses provided. This pond is not a bathtub – no soaps or shampoos please! Soaps cause algae buildup and contamination of the water. Use at your own risk. If you’d like to take some watercress home for dinner, go to the Grotto and pick it from the cold fast-running water.}

_{27.1 Grotto sign for BC Forest Service - overnight camping, user-maintained, wildlife viewing, watercress at the Grotto.} 

_{Travelogues are copyright of Carolyn Moore. Please feel free to print copies for your own use. Copies are also available at the Atlin Museum, courtesy of the Atlin Historical Society.}