In June 1887, Ogilvie's expedition was at the head of Taiya Inlet doing a survey from Pyramid Island up through the Chilkoot Pass.

Among the many Chilkoot Indians hired to carry their supplies up the pass was Skookum Jim Mason, who, with his family, discovered the rich gold deposits in the Klondike.

The crude trail was made into a toll road by George A. Brackett, and the North-West Mounted Police guarded the passes and briefly maintained a post in Skaguay, which Canada claimed.

The White Pass was an easier route to Lake Bennett than the Chilkoot Trail a few kilometers to the west, but it harbored a criminal element that preyed on the cheechakos (newcomers to the Klondike).

The trail ended at Lake Bennett, where the prospectors built or purchased rafts or boats to float down the Yukon River to the Klondike gold fields near Dawson City.

Due to the harsh climate, grueling conditions, and length of journey, travelers on both the Chilkoot Trail and White Pass suffered from widespread starvation.

[citation needed] There is a weather station for the Captain William Moore Bridge on the Alaskan side of White Pass, located near the summit at an elevation of 2250 ft (686 m).