Most of the tourists are gone in mid-October and the Klondike is settling into its off-season routine.
Across the river in West Dawson and Sunnydale, people are getting ready for the weeks of isolation from town, which may have begun by press-time. However, at this writing, the ferry is still running, though no longer a 24/7, and if you don’t make the 10:40 p.m. sailing from town-side, you’ll need to find somewhere to spend the night.
September graced us with three major conference events and the Yukon Heritage Symposium occurred on Oct. 20-24, but that part of our life is slowing down
Everything doesn’t go to sleep after September though.
The monthly coffee houses began again in the Odd Fellows Hall ballroom on Oct. 11. They would have begun in September,but the venue was booked for every Saturday night that month.
The plan is to hold these on the first Saturday of every month. They would have continued throughout last summer at the Front Street Gazebo, but for the constant rain.
The Home Routes concert series has started, with the unscheduled addition of Queenie (Barb Chamberlin) and One Bee (Terry Robb), bumping the number of events up to seven between September and April. Indications are that there may be several more such events spread around town, perhaps even upgraded to concert-hall-size at one of several venues.
Regarding physical activities, October 9 was Clubs and Info Night at the Robert Service School’s ancillary room. Posters for the Recreation Department’s dozen activities from toddlers to 55 plusers filled a white board at one end of the room.
Other programs occupied other tables around the perimeter.
Minor soccer seemed one of the busiest tables, but the jigging club wasn’t far behind. Zumba offered more exercise, as did the KATTS (Klondike Active Transport and Trails Society) and the curling club.
Humane Society Dawson looked to recruit members and people to walk the dogs.
Not present at this event, but advertised weekly in KIAC’s newsletter, you can find kids’ dance classes for age groupings between five and 16 years. There are piano lessons with Barnacle Bob, guitar with Nijen, two varieties of yoga several times a week, and drop-in painting on Saturdays.
KIAC also notes that the annual Youth Art Enrichment program will fill the town on the first week in November as four-dozen students from around the territory converge. The long-term success of this intensive workshop-based arts program, now entering its 14th consecutive year, was partially responsible for inspiring the Department of Education, which supports the program, to develop the Rural Experiential Model, which I previously reported on.
So yes, Dawson keeps busy even after the tourists and summerdoughs have moved on.
