Skagway, a place of many names, much history and little rain, is the northern terminus of the Alaska Marine Highway. It was known to thousands of hopeful gold rushers as the gateway to the gold fields. But when the gold yield dwindled in 1900, so did the population of Skagway. Skagway retains the flavor of the gold rush era, especially on Broadway, with its false-front buildings, and in the Trail of '98 Museum, with its outstanding collection of memorabilia.

You can ride the antique White Pass & Yukon narrow-gauge railway up through silvery-purple rock faces, past Deadhorse Gulch, to see what it was like back in the Gold Rush days.

Take your time and poke into every little store from the Trail Bench to Lynch & Kennedy's Dry Goods. The Red Onion Saloon, with its honky-tonk piano and costumed barmaids, is a treasure trove of memorabilia featuring pictures of Klondike Kate, Peahull Annie and other vintage characters. The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park boasts restored buildings and wooden boardwalks that invite you to take a stroll into the past.