Top of The World Highway-Between Dawson City & Chicken

I, too, would recommend driving from Tok to Chicken to Dawson on your return trip.

Howdy!

We found most folks travel the TOW hwy going to Alaska which makes for more visitor traffic. We chose to travel it on our way out and only crossed paths with a couple of vehicles doing so. I would do it the same again. But we left the Yukon in earlier June and back in mid September.

"Happy Trails"

Don't worry about the drive. They paved a big chunk of the Top of the World last year and there is less than 20 miles of gravel. Everybody leaves Dawson in the morning going west and in the evening everybody is heading east into Dawson. I was on it 3 times last year and don't recall any scary parts but I have been on the highway dozens of times. I did tow my fiver from Mandan to Selfridge down highway 6 and that was scary because there was no shoulder and steep drop offs on each side. Any mistakes would have been a disaster. That paved road was more technical to me than the Top of the World.
Most oncoming traffic you meet on the Top of the World will be touring like you and have the same concerns for their own safety. Slow down for each other and enjoy the trip.

Maybe that road has gotten a lot worse since I was there, but I don't remember and cliffs or 'industrial size' gravel.


It was a great, and easy drive.

If you drive west to east, the most severe drop will be on the other side of the road. This is the section where we met a wide load hauling a bulldozer, some of the other drivers needed clean underware. ;) Really made us glad to be in the skinny Winnie.

Both directions provide plenty of miles driving on the outside shoulder, as the road weaves in and around both sides of some pretty steep hills.

When I drove the road in June 2014 there was still snow here and there, especially in the shaded areas.

Some of the up hill grades were freshly graveled when I drove it, and creeping along at only 5 mph, I felt I needed 4wd to maintain forward progress. The gravel on this road is not passenger car type gravel, but LARGE sharp chunks of rock; industrial road type gravel.

The scenery was outstanding - plan on spending the good part of a day to drive it despite rather short miles, watch for big mining trucks and enjoy.

East to west in early spring OR west to east in late fall are your best times to have the least opposing traffic. As far as falling off a cliff, it makes NO difference as you have them going either way.