The Golden Circle Route contains some of North America’s grandest scenery and wildest places. The route covers a wide range of eco-systems from boreal forest to coastal rainforest to immense ice fields.

The Alaska Highway west from Whitehorse is a scenic and historic drive. Haines Junction is located on the edge of Kluane National Park. Kluane National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site and contains the highest mountains in Canada, the largest non-polar ice field in the world, , and a rich variety of bird, plant, and animal life. Kluane has some of the largest populations of grizzly bears and Dall sheep in the world, as well as recorded sightings of nearly 200 bird species. The park is a major tectonic zone with the highest and fastest growing mountains in Canada. Glaciation is the major agent in landscape formation. The park contains valley, alpine and rock glaciers - over 2,000 in all.

South of Haines Junction, the Haines Road will take you through thick forests of hemlock and Sitka spruce before the steep descent into the wide Valley of the Chilkat River and the arrival into Haines Alaska. Haines is a quaint, picturesque fishing village situated on a finger of land between Chilkat and Chilkoot inlets in the Lynn Canal.

Across the Lynn Canal from Haines is Skagway Alaska, a one-hour ride by water taxi or ferry. Skagway is nestled in a narrow coastal fjord, and it is a picturesque town that caters to tourists. The painted graffiti on the rocks above the cruise ship dock in Skagway harbour is commemorates the maiden voyages of ships arriving in port.

The only road access to Skagway is through Canada, on a winding road that ascends from sea level in Skagway into the rugged coastal mountains over a short distance. This route offers spectacular views of mountains, valleys, and the Lynn Canal. Continuing north, the road borders long, beautiful lakes, and some areas of stark rock outcrops cupping delicate pools of turquoise water.

Billed as the world’s smallest desert, the sand dunes near Carcross, Yukon provide an intriguing example of the unexpected diversity of the eco-systems in Yukon.

Long before they were highways, the White Pass (on the South Klondike Highway) and Chilkat Pass (on the Haines Road) were trade routes used by Tlingit and Southern Tutchone First Nations. In these areas you can experience First Nation culture and lifestyle by visiting local museums and traditional fishing villages. Both the White Pass and Chilkat pass were used during the Klondike Gold Rush and the towns of Carcross and Skagway still retain the character of those times.