Standing in front of the “Chilkoot Trailhead” sign for 15 minutes, I didn't take one step. I was afraid of bears. That's what was keeping me from walking the trail alone. I had hiked through black-bear country back home in Colorado, but now I was in Alaska, home to the fierce brown grizzly bear.
Fortunately, a friendly couple arrived and asked me to take their picture. We started talking and soon were walking the trail together. I was relieved. Ron and Carol were from Alaska and they taught me how to stay safe in bear country.
I had finally started my hike along the famous Chilkoot Trail, where more than 115 years ago, thousands of gold miners had walked. I was writing a book about the Klondike Gold Rush, and I wanted to follow in the footsteps of the miners to know what it was really like.
Ron, Carol, and I walked through the forest. As I was looking around at the beautiful scenery in the forest, I tripped (绊倒) over a big tree root and injured my ankle (脚踝). Fortunately, my ankle felt better in the morning, and we followed the trail. We went to bed early that night because the following day would be the toughest hike of all.
At dawn, we started hiking up the steep (陡峭的), green valley. Icy glaciers covered the mountains above. Soon we were as high as the clouds and could see only 20 feet in front of us. Finally, we reached the top of the Chilkoot pass and saw a Canadian flag moving in the heavy wind. Hours later, we arrived at our campground.
The following morning, my ankle was feeling fine, and my fear of bears had mostly disappeared. I said good-bye to Ron and Carol and walked alone for the next two days. Without seeing any bears the entire trip, I finally arrived at Bennett Lake. I rode the old train down to the town of Skagway and checked into my hotel.
While relaxing in my comfortable bed in the hotel, I thought of the miners from the Klondike Gold Rush. When the miners reached Bennett Lake, they had to cut down trees, build boats, and travel 500 miles down dangerous rivers and lakes. Then, when they finally reached the goldfields, they had to start digging.
