"One to two hours, my ass!" I grumbled about the young Parks Canada ranger who had told me that Thechàl Dhâl (Sheep Mountain) Route was just an hour or two additional hike from the end of the Sheep Creek Trail.  I huffed and puffed as I had to stop every 20 steps or so up the mountain in order to catch my breath.  "I better see some freakin' Dall sheep on this mountain," I angrily muttered to myself as I slowly made myself upward.

Getting to Kluane National Park, Yukon, Canada

Located in the vast wilderness of Yukon, Kluane is a massive 22,013 km².  Its grand landscape is jaw-droppingly stunning with intimidating mountains, spectacular glaciers, raging rivers, and impressive wildlife.  Parks Canada manages the park with Champagne and Aishihik First Nations. 

Most of Kluane is either inaccessible or can only be explored through backcountry adventures.  Although a smaller portion, it is thankfully also possible to experience the wonders of Kluane through the "front-country", i.e., either by the Haines Road (Highway 3) or the Alaska Highway.  

I travelled to Kluane by first flying into Yukon Territory's sleepy capital Whitehorse (population 28,000).  After couple of days in Whitehorse, I drove to a small village of Haines Junction (population 688), where there are a few motels.  Haines Junction would be my base for exploring Kluane.  During my time in Kluane, I went on three hikes: (1) Auriol Trail, (2) King's Throne Trail and Route, and (3) Sheep Creek Trail and Thechàl Dhâl Route.  Please note that Parks Canada uses the term "trail" to denote a path that are well-marked and maintained and "route" to denote a path that are neither marked with signs nor maintained in any manner.  Routes, according to Parks Canada, are merely "suggestions".  

Auriol Trail

One of the easier hikes in Kluane, this 15 kms loop trail goes through a boreal forest and then into the subalpine.  A "You are in bear country" sign welcomed me early in the hike.  Although there was very little elevation gain, I had very good views of the Auriol Range.

King's Throne Trail and Route

This hike remains one of the few hikes in my life that I decided to stop short of my initial goal. 

The first 2 kms of the hike was fairly flat with very gradual elevation gain.  The trail then more steeply progressed up the mountain until I hit an amphitheatre of rocky ridges.  The King's Throne Trail ended at this point (elevation 1,280 metres), but the King's Throne Route continued upwards to the mountain's summit (elevation 1,990 metres). 

The route was rocky and often loose.  As I got closer and closer to the summit, the route also hugged the edge of the mountain, which meant that I needed to focus on each step.  The elevation gain was fairly steep for the lungs of this office worker.  The views though!  As far as my eyes can see were other snowy mountain peaks and pristine lakes below. 

As I climbed higher, the ridge became narrower and narrower, and the wind became fiercer and fiercer.  With such strong winds, my cautious self felt inclined to hike certain parts of it on my fours, as I used my hands to support myself on this loose rocky route.  As I looked ahead, it was not clear to me how much further I had to go to get to the summit and the already narrow ridge appeared to be even thinner further up.  I decided to turn back.  Down the same rocky route, rather than my lungs, my knees gasped.

Sheep Creek Trail and Thechàl Dhâl Route

Kluane is home to high densities of white Dall sheep, and the uncreatively named Sheep Mountain is your best chance to see them.  For this hike, I first stopped at the Thechàl Dhâl Visitor Centre for information.  My plan was as follows: First, hike the Sheep Creek Trail and then switch over to the Thechàl Dhâl Route.  Finally, enjoy the Dall sheep, which I hoped would not be Dull sheep.

A young Parks Canada ranger told me that the Sheep Creek Trail is an one-hour hike.  The Thechàl Dhâl Route would be a mere additional hour or two from the Sheep Creek trail end.  I was pleasantly surprised to learn that the hike would take less time than I thought (not that I was particularly worried about the time considering that Yukon has 19 hours of daylight in the summer).

The Sheep Creek Trail portion of the hike was taking me longer than what the Parks Canada ranger had told me, but I gave her the benefit of the doubt as most people recollect the difficulty of an endeavour as less than what it was actually, once they complete it. 

Similar to the other Kluane trails, the scenery on this hike was fantastic, especially as the fluffy clouds sat almost impossibly low to the ground, perhaps trapped by the moutains.

The Sheep Creek Trail ended abruptly and fairly unceremoniously at around the 5 kms mark and every hiker who were also on the trail turned around at this point.  I, on the other hand, started to look for the Thechàl Dhâl Route because an hour or two more of hiking to see the Dall sheep seemed like a small investment.

I struggled on this Sheep Mountain.  Firstly, this was a route, which meant that I either followed faint paths of previous hikers or just made my own.  Secondly, the clouds that so prettily sat low were now interfering with the visibility as I climbed up the mountain.  At some points, I could only see few metres ahead of me.  Thirdly, it was steep.  I had to break down my hike into small goals (“Just make it to that pile of stones”) to make it psychologically manageable. 

This was not an hour or two hike.  As I hiked for hours - with no other soul in sight - I vowed to never, ever, believe a Parks Canada ranger ever again.

But then, the clouds cleared.  And with a ray of sun, a Dall sheep also appeared.  Then two more appeared in view.  One was laying down, relaxed but alert.  He then serenely rose up and majestically urinated.

After taking few photos of the creatures, I headed back down the mountain, but not before the low clouds made me take the wrong way.  Finally, back on the well-marked Sheep Creek Trail, I was happily walking downslope, thinking that the hike was worth it and ultimately not too strenuous. 

I then encountered two hikers going towards the Sheep Mountain.  They were debating whether to hike the Thechàl Dhâl Route once they got to the end of the Trail.  They asked me as to how long is the hike to the Dall sheep.  "Oh, just an hour more," I heard myself replying.