Bennett Lake — Chilkoot Trail Southern Terminus Viewpoint

Bennett Lake sits at the end of the historic Chilkoot Trail, where tens of thousands of Klondike stampeders built boats and waited for the ice to break in 1898. The ruins of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church still stand on the lakeshore — one of the few structures left from what was once a city of 10,000. The lake itself is enormous and cold, framed by boreal ridgelines, with nothing between you and the wilderness but wind and history. Parks Canada maintains a small interpretive presence here seasonally.

Access from the Log Cabin junction on the South Klondike Highway (BC-2) is via a rough, unmaintained track — high-clearance 4WD required and conditions change with rainfall. Cell service is nonexistent. No fuel, no services. Confirm road status with Parks Canada’s Chilkoot Trail office in Skagway before committing. Best visited June through September when snow is off the access route.

Gold Rush ghost town at the end of the Chilkoot.