The trip out of Simpson Lake yielded some entertaining construction experiences. The procedure seems to be to stop in advance to be given the lowdown and then sent on your way through the construction zone with a simple bidding of “you should be fine”!?!. It’s somewhat disconcerting to be wished good luck as one enters a construction zone.  Recommendations from the flagwomen included making eye contact with the heavy equipment operators (not sure what one might achieve form said eye contact) and general instructions to avoid the obvious vehicles.

Successful negotiation of some very rough roads along the Campbell Highway found us in the town of Faro (“The Yukon’s Best Kept Secret”). We would have to agree. Faro has a sort of one stop shop in the form of the Studio Apartments, which really contain apartments, a motel, restaurant, laundry facility, lounge, liquor store, and karaoke scene. We utilized the laundry facilities and spent some time with the locals, obtaining information about the history and current conditions of the Anvil Mine which has been closed since 1998 resulting in a sort of ghost town effect. The population of Faro hovers around 350 but the housing facilities are built to accommodate upwards of 2500 to have historically provided housing for mine workers. The mine is currently in the reclamation process, the success of which is dependent upon who tells the story.

Faro is conspicuously lacking any gas station facilities. The only station in town apparently burned down a year ago and all sorts of “red tape” has indefinitely stalled its repair. Zoning restrictions and environmental regulations permeate even the smallest of towns. The kicker with the lack of gas station is town is the fact that the closest fueling opportunities are either Ross River or Carmacks,  which are both long and bumpy drives away.

We camped in Johnson Lake Campground just on the outskirts of town and were the only folks in the facility, which we did find a bit surprising given this was the start of a holiday (Discovery Day) weekend.