The Klondike Trail or Chalmers Trail was an overland route to the Klondike Gold Rush in the Yukon, Canada. Prospectors were reaching the Klondike via the American route over the Chilkoot Pass, and a northern (water) route via Edmonton and the Athabasca River. Edmonton's merchants, however, promoted an overland route, which appeared shorter on the map,[1] but proved to be arduous, treacherous, and took much longer to travel.
In attempt to improve the most deadly part of the trail between Fort Assiniboine and Lesser Slave Lake, the North-West Territorial government in Regina sent territorial road engineer Thomas W. Chalmers to survey and cut a new trail. Attempting to bypass muskeg and without consulting the local Indigenous people, who may have helped him find a better route, Chalmers set out in September 1897. He surveyed a route which traversed the highest point in the Swan Hills, about 20 kilometres east of the present day town of Swan Hills, nearly paralleling present-day Alberta Highway 33.[2] He returned to Edmonton on November 7.[3]
In the spring and summer of 1898 he and a road-cutting party cut 240 miles (390 km)[1] of what was expected to be a wagon trail out of the heavy bush. The trail started at Pruden's Crossing on the Athabasca River near Fort Assiniboine then headed north to the shore of Lesser Slave Lake near what would become Kinuso. From there it was still another 2,500 kilometres north to the gold fields. Chalmers declared the trail passable in July. It was a very difficult trail, taking some travellers months to cover. Travellers endured great danger and back-breaking labour. An estimated 2,000 horses died due to lack of feed, poor packing techniques and exhaustion.[1] One human death is recorded: that of an unidentified little girl, whose grave is still marked along the trail east of Fort Assiniboine.[3]
The gold rush declined the same year, however, and the last Yukon party to use the trail left Edmonton in August 1898.[3] Use of the trail declined by 1901–02. The trail is mostly grown over now, although in parts near Fort Assiniboine, wagon ruts are still visible.[3]
^ abcLarmour, Judy (2005). Laying down the lines : a history of land surveying in Alberta. [Calgary]: Brindle & Glass Pub. ISBN 9781897142042. OCLC 57528191.
^Edwards, O. C. (1999). On the north trail : the Treaty 8 diary of O.C. Edwards. Leonard, David, 1945-, Whalen, Beverly, 1960-, Alberta Records Publication Board., Historical Society of Alberta. Calgary: Alberta Records Publication. ISBN 1550566571. OCLC 40940366.
^ abcd"Klondike Trail Society - Chalmers Trail". archive.li. 2008-12-21. Archived from the original on 2008-12-21. Retrieved 2017-08-05.
The KlondikeTrail or Chalmers Trail was an overland route to the Klondike Gold Rush in the Yukon, Canada. Prospectors were reaching the Klondike via...
portion of the Chilkoot Trail and Dyea Site were designated a National Historic Landmark in 1978, following creation of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical...
could follow either the Chilkoot or the White Pass trails to the Yukon River, and sail down to the Klondike. The Canadian authorities required each of them...
Columbia, complete the story. In 1998, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park joined with Chilkoot Trail National Historic Site, Dawson Historical...
on the old KlondikeTrail included Riviere Qui Barre, Sion, Lac La Nonne, and Belvedere or McDonald's Crossing. A combination of Klondike gold seekers...
The Klondike Highway is a highway that runs from the Alaska Panhandle through the province of British Columbia and the territory of Yukon in Canada, linking...
which Canada claimed. The White Pass trail was one of the two main passes used by prospectors during the Klondike Gold Rush. The White Pass was an easier...
City, Yukon.: 14 Today, the section of the KlondikeTrail within the park extends north of the KlondikeTrail Staging Area and includes the ruins of a trapper's...
Modern-day visitors can hike the 33-mile (53 km) trail after registering and paying a fee. The Klondike Gold rush had begun on August 16, 1896, on Bonanza...
(MECC), similar to their previous Oregon Trail series but set during the Klondike Gold Rush of the late 19th century. Players start out in Seattle and must...
post by the Hudson's Bay Company and became a stopping point along the KlondikeTrail. It gets its name from the Assiniboine people. The fort itself no longer...
follows the original KlondikeTrail, which was advertised by Edmonton merchants as the shortest route to the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush, from the...
Grease Trail, which prospectors called Dalton's Trail and later the Dalton Trail. During the Klondike Gold Rush many prospectors walked the trail to Fort...
winter camping, the mini-High-Adventure Extreme Klondike! collection of events aims to replicate trail life in the Great Northwest by presenting a wide...
The Chilkoot Trail tramways were aerial tramways that played a significant role in the Klondike Gold Rush and the Chilkoot Trail as a transportation system...
Department of Environment. Retrieved 3 March 2023. Jennifer Voss (2001). KlondikeTrail: The complete hiking and paddling guide. Lost Moose. pp. 107–108. ISBN 1896758061...
"Rocky Mountains Park Act, 1887". Parks Canada History. "Chalmers Trail". KlondikeTrail Society. Archived from the original on 2008-12-21. "CITY OF EDMONTON...
important cities on the trail, Dawson City, gave prospectors access to gold mines. causing the Klondike Gold Rush. The KlondikeTrail was a dangerous place;...
Jack London, published in 1903 and set in Yukon, Canada, during the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, when strong sled dogs were in high demand. The central character...
The Klondike Gold Rush is commemorated through film, literature, historical parks etc. The Tr’ondëk-Klondike World Heritage Site, a UNESCO World Heritage...
Chesapeake National Historic Trail". National Park Service. Retrieved April 11, 2021. "Explore the Chilkoot Trail - Klondike Gold Rush National Historical...
also considered, after T.W. Chalmers, who had surveyed and cut the KlondikeTrail through the area. The New Town of Swan Hills was incorporated on September...
Lake Laberge, Kusawa Lake and Kluane Lake. Bennett Lake on the Klondike Gold Rush trail is a lake flowing into Nares Lake, with the greater part of its...
lying pass to the east of the Chilkoot Trail. This was later developed as an alternative route to the Klondike. Through Carmack, Keish became interested...
Yukon Trail (1994), a video game where the player can meet Soapy Smith and play his shell game featured in "The Wretched Hive". The King of the Klondike (1995)...
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