Dempster Highway - North to Inuvik?
Trip Start
Dec 28, 2008
1
61
187
Trip End
Ongoing
Fort McPherson,
Northwest Territories,
Canada
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
"This morning was indeed different for I was going to the Arctic Circle come hell or high water" is how I started the last bog.
As you know, if you read the last blog, there was neither hell nor high water on our way to the Arctic Circle. It was smooth sailing.
However, there was at least one photo with dark clouds on the northern horizon which an astute person may have found ominous and foreboding.
Nevertheless, "the rite of passage across the Arctic Circle was a great affair and if I had to do it again, I would come supplied with a bottle of Henkel Trocken to drink to the occasion
- heading north
. Even in paper cups, it would have been a nice touch"."It was at this point that we parted ways with Gert and Connie as they were heading south. John and I continued north on the Dempster Highway for the ultimate, much anticipated, destination of Inuvik, now only 327 kilometers away".
Within a half hour of parting ways, it started to "rain on our parade" in the form of snow flakes. Since the three-day weather forecast had called for no snow, it was certainly nothing to worry about. This was surely a passing snow flurry which would be followed by brilliant sunshine. On the other hand, it was starting to look pretty white out there and the wind was picking up significantly.
The thoughts of passing flurries soon gave way to the reality of a major snow storm.
Wind gusts were driving the snow across the road in a scene reminiscent of mid-winter. I no longer had the benefit of having the tail lights of John's Honda Civic within my sights as they were replaced by a general whiteout.
- clouds on the horizon
In assessing the immediate situation of being in a snow storm, driving on summer tires with no tire chains, now 60 km north of the Arctic Circle, close to the border with the Northwest Territories but still 95 km south of Fort McPherson, the conclusion was not pretty.
Had I not been driving in tandem with John, I would probably have turned around at this point.
That was not an option since we were in this together and furthermore, turning around in these conditions on the narrow Dempster Highway with near zero visibility, was an accident waiting to happen.
At this point in time, unknown to me, we were driving over Al Wright Pass through the Richardson Mountains which may have explained the tempestuous weather.
Driving carefully, I suddenly came upon the looming outline of a semi trailer truck parked on the left side of the road. On the right side, in a rest area, I could pick out the headlights of John's car, parked facing in a southerly direction
- where is the road going?
.My immediate reaction upon seeing John was to make a right turn into the rest area. I averted misfortune at the last second by realizing that there was a snow filled ditch separating the rest area from the road. That was a timely discovery since my front wheel drive car would have been ended up with its nose buried deep in the snow.
I was glad to hear that John had come to the same conclusion that we had perhaps pushed our trip as far north as the weather would permit.
The last act was a short conference with the parked truck driver to enquire about driving conditions from the north. There were no encouraging words coming from him.
Through the swirling snow, I did notice the outline of a relatively small sign which turned out to be a welcome sign for the Northwest Territories.
Now that was a frame of reference, this was kilometer 465, the border between the Yukon and the Northwest Territories and for a moment I got out of the car and stepped into the NWT for the second time within four months
- wind is starting to pick up
.It all happened so fast, I hardly had time to appreciate having been here. The only concern was being able to drive out without getting stuck in the rapidly accumulating snow.
While there was a deep sense of disappointment at not being able to drive to Inuvik, this was surpassed by a feeling of getting out while the getting was good.
In a situation like this there is lots of opportunity for second guessing.
A tendency to be overtaken by my eagerness to reach a destination without really taking a close look at the map sometimes has its limits.
Had I taken a few moments to study the route, I would have realized that between Eagle Plains and the destination of Inuvik, there was one major obstacle and that was Al Wright Pass through the Richardson Mountains.
Considering how we had reached the summit of the pass under adverse circumstances, I might have been inclined to rationalize that from here to the Peel River and then Fort McPherson would have been mostly downhill
- it's getting interesting
.From there, we would have been at lower elevations crossing the McKenzie River at Tsiigehtchic and then driving along the McKenzie River Delta to Inuvik. The geography would have been on our side.
Lack of knowledge of the surroundings may have led to giving in too easily to a perceived threat resulting in actions induced by fear rather than rationale.
Once again, upon reflection, I come to a familiar conclusion. Of course, I wish that we would have pushed through to Inuvik - come hell or a lot of snow!
That was a wish I expressed after deciding not to drive the "Dalton Highway" to the Beaufort Sea in Alaska. The Dempster replaced this wish.
I also regretted not driving the "Top of the World Highway" from Dawson Creek to the Alaska border when I first had an opportunity to do so. My subsequent route change allowed me to make this fantastic drive in the opposite direction which is not to be missed
- despite the photo, that's not blue sky
.Now for the third time, I express the same thought "of course, I wish I would have done it". Only this time, I am sorry to say, there will be no second chance.
That was the end of the drive north on the Dempster Highway.
It was, despite the ultimate failure, "The Last of North America's Great Road Trips".
Along with the "Top of the World Highway" and "Wrangell - Saint Elias National Park", the "Dempster Highway" ranks among the top three memories of my Alaska/Yukon.
Link to entry 54
Within about 30 minutes of turning around and heading back south, the snow storm became less intense and within an hour the sun made an appearance.
We had decided that we would drive today the 465 km back to Dawson City
- the Honda Civic was slowly disappearing
.The drive south could not have been more different than the drive north for I was now following John and barely keeping up.
It became obvious to me that a Honda Civic has better grip on a gravel road than a Volvo 850 or maybe it was more a difference in the age of the drivers.
I could often spot the Honda Civic already heading up the next ridgeline off in the distance as I was scrambling to keep up.
Considering the distance to be driven, there was almost no time to stop to take photos and the photos which I did take were mostly taken through the windshield of the moving car. Surprisingly, for the most part, it does not seem to make much of a difference.
Our first stop was one more time the Arctic Circle. Most of the detailed photos of the information panels were taken on the way back south.
That was followed by a stop and a quick coffee at Eagle Plains
- zero visiblity
.One more time I fueled up the Volvo for the long drive back.
When I told the wise old "Gwich'In" gentleman who was pumping the gas about our experience of turning around due to the snow storm, his comment was "you have to follow that little voice inside". He also spoke of the trucker that lost his life only days earlier in a similar snow storm and the RV which went off the road with the loss of four lives during the summer.
Many kilometers later we stopped one more time at spectacular Ogilvie Ridge rest area for a few photos.
Hours later we saw Gert and Connie parked in a rest area. Any regrets that they may have had about not being able to join us for the drive north must have been removed when they saw us, although they may not have turned around at the top of Al Wright Pass in a camper pick up truck equipped with rugged tires.
Our final stop was for photos at Peter's Point Rest Area (kilometer 74) which affords a spectacular view of Tombstone Mountain, a peak similar to the Matterhorn
- we had reached the border with the NWT
.We reached Dempster Corner around 19:00 and I was surprised to see John speaking to a hitchhiker standing by the Dempster Highway sign.
It turned out to be Jean-Charles, a French citizen, who was given a ride by John a few days earlier many kilometers from the Dempster Highway.
Incredibly, Jean-Charles had been standing at the same spot since 10:00 waiting for someone to give him a ride north on the Dempster. That was 9 hours of waiting. Jean-Charles, who exhibited signs of a "Buddhist like nature" in accepting his circumstances, did not seem the least disturbed about his predicament.
He definitely had non-conventional viewpoints on life, material possessions, allegiance to a job, and modern France, to mention a few.
We ended up giving him a ride back to Dawson City where we went over the events of the day, in French, over a Yukon Gold beer and some well deserved nachos.
-- on our way back, stopped again at Arctic Circle
I say "in French" because John, from St.Raphael, California spoke impeccable French as well as Spanish. Very guarded about any personal information, he nevertheless showed himself to be an extremely well traveled, cosmopolitan individual who was incredibly knowledgeable.
All that remains now of the Dempster Highway are the words of my blog, great memories, beautiful photos, and two rocks on the fireplace mantel as a lasting tribute to a memorable addition to "On the Road Again".
I don't know the literary term for hanging around too long before ending a story. That is how I feel about the Dempster Highway. I hate to leave it - unfinished.
Epilogue:
(I did say that I had difficulty leaving this blog)
Had we made it to Inuvik, the possibility would have existed to take a short flight to Tuktoyaktuk, a small Inuvaluit village on the Beaufort Sea
- on our way back
.During the summer, it is accessible by air or water whereas in the winter an ice road along the Mackenzie River is an option.
The village was recently featured in a CBC News report. It focused on the efforts of local high school students to produce a play and a campaign in support of a referendum on partial alcohol prohibition in the village.
Alcohol consumption and substance abuse in Tuktoyaktuk, as in much of the north, are the cause of an inordinate number of social problems including disorderly conduct, familial abuse, and suicide.
Many of the students featured in the report had experienced the fallout of anti-social behaviour unleashed on their families by alcohol abuse. It was for that reason, that they implicated themselves in this campaign to encourage the prohibition side of the referendum.
As it turned out, the prohibition was approved by a narrow margin.
At the very least, this is a step in the right direction but bootleg alcohol and general substance abuse are still major threats.
On a brighter note, Tuktoyaktuk is also the gateway to the famous pingos.
http://www.cbc.ca/sevenwonders/wonder_tuktoyaktuk_pingos.htm l
Coming Soon: Dempster Highway - Inspector Dempster, One of Canada's Heroes
