#29 The DEMPSTER HIGHWAY to INUVIK

Grreetings from the only highway in Canada that crosses the Arctic Circle. Inuvik is on the edge of the MacKenzie Delta just 140 km from the Arctic Ocean.


We fill up all tanks in Dawson City and head north on the Dempster Hwy, a 740km (460mile) highway through some of the most beautiful wilderness scenery in the world. It is a unique all gravel year round road that winds over two mountains ranges, crosses the continental divide three times, passes through three different natural geological regions and crosses the Arctic Circle on its way to the massive MacKenzie Delta and the Arctic Ocean.


The first 50 miles follows the north Klondike River , black and white spruce, balsam, poplar and trembling aspen cover the valley and slopes of the hills. Numerous mining roads snake off into the distance up into the mountains where plenty of prospectors still look for gold today. We climb through the Ogilve Mountains, the Tombstone range and the Snowy Range, never getting tired of the ever changing scenery.


The Tombstone Territorial Park Interperative centre is a nearly new building built from huge pine logs 3-4 feet in diamater and 40 plus feet long. the building is completely self contained, with solar panels, rainwater collection system, and wood burning heating. Keith marvelled at the building construction while Diane gathered information on the road ahead.


Through the Taiga Mts range and Taiga plateau we go and find a real nice little spot with mountian view beside a creek to spend the night.


In the morning we drive along Engineer Creek, a orange colored river that flows through porous rock formations higher in the hills and picks up various minerals and as a result the water is highly acidic, orange in colour and has a strong sulphur smell, there is plenty of warning not to drink the water. as if.


We pass the drunken forest. Here tree point all different directions, they grow on the thin layer of earth over the permafrost and therefore have a very shallow root system and the trees tip in different directions during the freeze/thaw cycle.


The prema frost is a premanent frozen layer of ground ranging from a few feet here to over 6000 feet deep further north. The average year round temperature here is -10c or about 20 F Average January temp is -42, Either C or F it is real cold.


The many and varied rock formations we see continue to keep our camera busy, and we find a elephant in the rocks. Elephants once roamed this land in the form of Wooly Mammoth and we see skeleton and tusk in several places we visit.


Climbing out of the river valley we drive up seven mile hill (yup uphill for 7 miles) onto the Eagle Plains plateau, the view of the valley from here is incredible, the valley runs over 120 km separating the mountians ranges. We find a nice parking spot with a 360 panoramic view and enjoy a leisurely lunch. All too soon we must get back on the road and soon arrive at the Eagle Plains Complex . This is the half way point to Inuvik and was build with the highway to service the brave travellers. It has a motel, restaurant, shops, gas, tire repair, garage etc. Many people spend the night at this place.


We fill up at $1.65 litre about $6.25 a gallon and continue on travelling north east, we soon stop and the marker for the Arctic Circle, the land of the midnight sun. What a magnificent view we enjoy at this spot. We travel for the next 100km through high open tundra and cross back into NWT. We leave the high ground of Eagle Plains and desend nearly 3000 feet through the Richardson Mts into the valley and towards the Peel river. It is a spectacular view.


It was bound to happen and was past due. A flat tire. After all the rough gravel and hills a rock tore the sidewall out and instant flat. Our spare is mounted outside but the tools are under the bed so it took about a hour to tear things apart, change the wheel and get ready to go. The roads in this area are under constant 24/7 maintenance and we were right in the middle of a repair area with dump trucks and water trucks passing as we worked. We were glad to get it changed and get moving.
We are told by a fellow traveller the there is a tire shop at Fort MacPherson about 60 km ahead so we breath a little prayer and keep going. We take the ferry across the Peel river and stop at Fort MacPerson, They have tires, hundreds of them, all for trucks, nothing smaller than 24 inches. Try Inuvik the man says, its only 200km away on a rough gravel road with no spare.!
We travel on, the road drops to near sea level, we cross the mighty MacKenzie River by ferry, this becomes a ice road in Sept until late April. The vegatation changes fron treeless tunrda to the stunted forest of spruce birch and tamerack. The mountians disapear and we parellel the Vast MacKenzie Delta to INuvik.