The best hikes from bus stations in Yukon

Before the Whitehorse Dam was built, the canyon was home to rapids. Today, its calm waters are an extension of Lake Schwatka. The setting they form with the basalt walls of the gorge is perfect for peaceful hiking.

The Miles Canyon Suspension Bridge spans the emerald-green waters of the Yukon River where it flows through the volcanic rock walls of Miles Canyon. The bridge was built in 1922 to help cross the Yukon River before there were any nearby roads. Today's modern suspension bridge was built in the same spot and is a pedestrian-only bridge that gently sways.

Whitehorse, the capital and largest city of the Yukon Territory in northwestern Canada, sits on the Yukon River, North America's third-longest river. Whitehorse is home to one of the world's longest wooden fish ladders that let salmon bypass the hydroelectric dam. The Kwanlin Dün First Nation and the Ta'an Kwäch’än Council lived here and used this river 10,000 years before settlers arrived.

The bridge offers the opportunity to get to the other side of the canyon and thus to the trails very close to the river.

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Very beautiful suspension bridge over the Yukon River and Canyon!

The Whitehorse Water Aerodrome is a seaplane base on Schwatka Lake, south of Whitehorse. The airport is managed by Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport.

The rocks in Miles Canyon are basalts, formed by lava flows millions of years ago. The canyon was later carved by the flowing waters of the Yukon River. During the Klondike Gold Rush at the end of the 19th century, the White Horse Rapids in the narrow canyon were a dreaded obstacle that gold seekers had to navigate by boat on their way to the goldfields further north. There are conflicting accounts of the number of casualties and property damage during the journey through the rapids. The North West Mounted Police intervened and prohibited passage; only qualified captains were permitted to attempt the voyage. Those on the boats had to bypass the canyon on a footpath located above. At the end of 1897, businessman Norman Macaulay and a team built a streetcar on the east bank of the Yukon River in just three weeks. Rails made of pine and spruce piles were laid on wooden sleepers on a gravel bed. Horses were used to pull streetcars loaded with goods along the wooden rails. Boats could also be transported on the Macaulay Tramway to bypass the rapids. South of the (present-day) suspension bridge, at the point where the tramway began, Canyon City, a small settlement, grew up with a hotel, saloon, restaurant, stables, the mounted police, as well as cabins and tents. https://www.yukon-news.com/letters-opinions/old-tramway-is-now-part-of-whitehorse-history/ With the construction and completion of the White Pass & Yukon Route Railway from Skagway to Whitehorse in 1900, both the tramway and Canyon City lost their purpose. The rapids of Miles Canyon disappeared with the construction of the hydroelectric power station and the creation of Schwatka Lake in 1959. Today, Miles Canyon and the suspension bridge over the Yukon River are popular destinations near Whitehorse. https://yukoninfo.com/whitehorse-info-miles-canyon/