Yukon Wildlife Preserve

Take a bus tour around Yukon Wildlife Preserve, or follow the 3-mile (5-kilometer) figure-eight loop on foot, which leads past the large enclosures. The preserve is often visited as part of day trips from Whitehorse, and often these trips follow a visit to the preserve with a soak in the nearby Takhini Hot Springs. The preserve is usually included on both winter and summer tours of the Yukon due to its near guaranteed wildlife sightings.

• The tour bus and most viewing platforms—with the exception of the musk ox lookout—are wheelchair-accessible, though the entrance to the front reception and learning center is slightly raised, meaning assistance may be required.
• While visitors are not allowed to drive their own vehicles through the preserve, feel free to bring bikes, cross-country skis, and other non-motorized modes of personal transport.
• Allow at least 1.5–2.5 hours to properly explore the preserve.
• A vending machine sells soda and water in summer (May through Oct.); outside of these times, bring your own water.

The preserve is about a 25-minute drive from Whitehorse. Follow the Alaska Highway north, then turn off onto Highway 2 (North Klondike Highway). From there, take a left turn onto Takhini Hot Springs Road.

Yukon Wildlife Preserve is open daily. Bus tours generally run daily from mid-May through early Oct., and Friday–Sunday for the rest of the year, though additional tours may run over holiday periods. If you don’t have access to a car, it’s best to come as part of an organized tour, by prearranged shuttle, or taxi.

The preserve is home to 13 different species of wildlife—all native to the Yukon—including Arctic foxes, woodland caribou, and elk. You'll likely see hardy musk ox with shaggy coats; Dall sheep with curving horns; and Canadian lynx, a stealthy bobbed-tail wild cat rarely seen in the wild.