For the prospectors who lived inland, or wanted to attempt an All-Canadian route to the gold fields, Edmonton, Alberta offered itself as a gateway city. Several trails snaked across Canada's frozen north from Edmonton to Dawson City, each one nearly 2,000 miles long. The trails crossed bog and marsh, trackless uninhabited forests and rivers, and claimed many lives. Nearly 1,500 travelers chose this route, less than 700 completed the trip -- the remainder returned or perished on the way.

   Businessmen in Edmonton were encouraged by the success Seattle was having at promoting itself, and launched a blitz of international advertising, leaning on the northern tradition of trapper and trader routes. Experienced guides were hard to find, but inexperience was often overlooked when coupled with enthusiasm. Many of the aborted journeys turned back for no other reason than they had become completely lost in the wilderness.

   The harsh conditions and the total lack of a major established trail made the going slow. Following riverbanks and the advice of trappers, ill-prepared stampeders took as long as two full years to make it to their destination. By 1899, when most of the Edmonton stampeders arrived, Dawson's gold rush boom had exploded and died, leaving little but stories for the new arrivals.