Leaving the Arctic

We had another slow start to the morning, but this time because we had to empty the septic tanks and refill the water before starting back down the Dempster. The first part of the drive was uneventful – long, straight road, trees on either side … The ramps for the ferry crossings must have been re-graded because it was simple to drive on and off the ferry without hitting the back of the RV on the dirt or ramp. I even drove on and off the second ferry! After the second ferry, the trees disappeared and we were able to see huge distances again. We also got to see some wildlife! First up was an arctic fox which ran across the road with some other animal in its mouth, which it then ate at the side of the road. Next were 3 grizzly bears! The first was a bit off the side of the road eating berries, the second was a long way off, and the third was laying on the road when we drove up, quickly got up, moved about 5 meters off the road, and plopped down again. We crossed back into the Yukon, then across the Arctic Circle again. This time, in better weather so we got better pictures. We camped at Eagle Plains. The “campground” was more like a parking lot for RVs and the bathrooms weren’t very clean, but we didn’t want to go any farther, so that’s where we stopped.

Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk

We had a relaxing morning, walking around town and looking at a few stores. We had a late lunch at the campsite, then I uploaded some pictures to facebook. Around 3:15, dad just happened to be walking into the camp office when the tour company for our flight to Tuktoyaktuk called to see where we were – apparently our trip time changed but they never told us! So, we quickly gathered up all our stuff and raced to the airport. The flight to Tuk was in a 9 passenger Caravan, so we each got a window seat. The views of the delta were amazing! The pilot took an indirect route up so as to show us the delta and the pingos around Tuk. Our tour guide met us at the airport and drove us around town in her van. First stop was the Tuktoyaktuk sign were everyone took their pictures to prove that they had made it this far north. We also climbed a pingo in town, walked into the sod house, and climbed down the ladder into the community ice house. The ice house was really interesting – it’s dug into the permafrost so we could see the layers of ice, sand and frozen mud. After climbing back up, we headed down to the ocean. Mom only touched it with her fingers, dad at least stuck in his big toe, but I was the brave one and went up to my ankles in the ice cold water. I think the worst part was actually the rocks that were slippery, hurt to walk on, and left a layer of green muck on the bottom of my feet! The flight back to Inuvik was more direct, but the views were still great. Back at Inuvik, I stopped by the FSS to talk to the guy working there and was able to climb up the tower to see the view. We then headed back to the campground for a late supper and mom and I walked around town looking for a postcard … of course, most places were already closed since it was after 9 pm, but with the sun, it only felt like 6 or 7! We eventually found one, and headed back to the campsite and off to bed.

Dempster Highway - Part 2

I think we were first out of the campground again, and after a few kilometers, drove into the low clouds. The Yukon/NWT border crossing signs were also off according to dad’s GPS, and we took a quick picture in the fog. The road improved as we continued north, but it was pretty foggy for a lot of the morning. Crossing the Peel River by cable pulled ferry was quick, but dad thinks he knocked the trailer hitch on the ramp when he got off – the ferry just sails right into the gravel back and drops the ramp … nothing fancy here! We bypassed Fort McPherson, deciding to see it on the way back. We ate lunch while waiting for the Mackenzie River ferry to pick us up. It looked like he was having a hard time docking on the other side. We finally got on board, with me taking pictures of dad driving the RV up into it, and then I climbed up to the level of the captain to take a few pictures. We docked at Tsiigehtchic and sat there waiting for two more vehicles to board (they were still up at the village, not down by the dock waiting) before heading across and docking after two attempts. The rest of the drive up was a bit boring – perfectly straight road with pine trees on both sides, but at least the road was smooth and I was actually able to get up to the speed limit of 90 km/h! Arriving in Inuvik, our first stop was at Arctic Adventures to book a trip up to Tuktoyaktuk. The weather hasn’t been good up there so there are lot of people trying to get up there, but we were able to book a flight for tomorrow at 5 pm. The trip should take about 4 hours, but since it doesn’t get dark until after 11 pm, it will still be light when we get back. We got a campsite right in the town, and after getting everything sorted, walked into town to find meat for supper and we found dad some arctic char – he’s been talking about getting it since we first mentioned the idea of this trip! We spent the rest of the evening relaxing in the campground and enjoying our first shower in 3 days.