For the final phrase freeway journey journey, there isn’t a lot that compares to the Dempster Freeway. A Dempster Freeway freeway journey is an outstanding Canadian Journey that just a few have the prospect to do.
This 736 km freeway stretches from the far Arctic in Inuvik, Northwest Territories, to Dawson Metropolis inside the Yukon.
- Observe: Since we drove the Dempster Freeway, it has been extended one different 120 km North from Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk.
Driving the Dempster Freeway
The Dempster Freeway is about as distant as a result of it should get – taking you via mountains, over good rivers, and even crossing the Arctic Circle.
There are usually not any companies on the Dempster Freeway. As quickly as you enable Inuvik you is likely to be by your self until you attain the small outpost metropolis of Fort McPherson.
Inuvik is a sleepy metropolis located inside the Northwest Territories that was booming by the gasoline and oil days nevertheless has simmered down after the Nineties. It holds the extreme honour of being in all probability probably the most northerly metropolis that anyone can drive to.
By means of the summer season months, it is the land of the midnight photo voltaic with 56 days of 24-hour daylight. Inuvik is an outstanding place to start in your freeway journey on the Dempster Freeway.
The Dempster Freeway Avenue Journey Begins
We flew into Inuvik on a one-way ticket from Whitehorse, Yukon. The flight was a protracted one from Whitehorse stopping at three completely totally different communities sooner than landing at our trip spot. The flights actually really feel additional like a neighborhood bus that an airplane.
There are just a few motels, consuming locations, and bars in Inuvik to make your maintain good, and there’s a beautiful division retailer the place you presumably can select up any extra supplies you need for the freeway journey.
Our drive started in Inuvik, NWT
We rented a four-wheel drive truck from Driving Strain in Inuvik. It’s not low-cost to rent, costing about $2000 for one week collectively along with your one-way return in Whitehorse, Yukon. But it surely absolutely offers a great deal of freedom.
For one, you don’t ought to drive all the easiest way to Inuvik! You could fly into the Northwest Territories after which fly out from Whitehorse, Yukon.
Scorching Concepts for Driving the Dempster Freeway
In the event you occur to aren’t renting an SUV from Driving Strain, you’ll want to make sure that your automotive is in superb scenario as there aren’t a great deal of places to stop and get any repairs wished.
Make certain to have a spare tire, a great deal of water, meals, and a full tank of gasoline. In case you’re nervous that your tank is simply too small, ship a further jerrycan full of gasoline to get you via the journey.
We set off to find the Dempster Freeway early inside the morning (although with eternal daylight, it could’ve been any time of the day). When travelling inside the far Canadian North, time isn’t a component. You merely go until you’re drained since you’re inside the land of the Midnight Photo voltaic and you’ll drive all night.
Pondering of Driving to the Arctic or heading out on an unlimited drive? Make certain to acquire these Closing Avenue Journey Songs.
Inuvik to Eagle Plains Resort
The rain started on the first portion of our journey alongside the Dempster Freeway, so we made good time via the Northwest Territories. With moist, foggy, and grey circumstances, we didn’t have a great deal of causes to stop and profit from the sights.
Lucky for us, all people suggested us that the Yukon portion of the Dempster Freeway might be probably the most scenic anyway. Regardless that we had been bummed regarding the local weather, we had been nonetheless optimistic that points would get increased.
River Crossings on the Dempster Freeway
All through our drive down the Dempster Freeway, we crossed two rivers along with Canada’s longest river, the Mackenzie River.
Each of these river crossings was easy and uneventful, nevertheless we found later that we had been certainly one of many last to cross that day due to the damaging local weather.
The rivers had been flooding and they also closed the ferries merely a short time after we crossed. We made it inside the nick of time.
So when planning your Dempster Freeway drive be prepared for delays and ever altering local weather circumstances. You is likely to be caught prepared for hours for circumstances to fluctuate.
Determine up your Lonely Planet Journey Data to Canada.
Fort McPherson
Sooner than doing our second river crossing, we took our time to find town of Fort McPherson.
Fort McPherson started out as a fur-trading outpost for the Hudson Bay Agency and had the first Mounted Police put up inside the Western Arctic. It’s worth testing sooner than hopping on the ferry to cross the Peel River.
We didn’t need to attend prolonged for the ferry and after a quick crossing, we had been on our technique down the Dempster Freeway to our subsequent stop.
The rain refused to let up and driving the shale freeway was slippery and a knuckle wrenching exercise as a result of the fog was dense and the circumstances had been slick.
It isn’t unusual to see a great deal of wildlife on the Dempster Freeway, along with grizzly bears. Nevertheless all through our journey, most of the wildlife was hiding attributable to the local weather.
We did deal with to see a caribou working alongside the freeway as we approached. And we observed our truthful proportion of individuals pedaling bikes down the Dempster.
Crossing the Arctic Circle
It rained our complete first day of the journey down the Dempster, nevertheless that didn’t stop us from getting out to have a great time our crossing of the Arctic Circle.
We’d been above the Arctic sooner than, nevertheless we’d under no circumstances stood on the Arctic Circle.
This was a kind of moments identical to the enjoyment one feels when standing on the Equator in Ecuador, the Greenwich Meridian in Britain or the Tropic of Capricorn in Namibia. It’s solely a rattling cool experience.
The Arctic Circle crossing occurred only a bit earlier the Northwest Territories on the Yukon border. It was humorous to notice the Yukon sign falling apart, seeing little or no love.
There wasn’t an unlimited celebration coming into one different province, it was solely a quick snapshot sooner than transferring on. That’s okay though, the Arctic Circle waited for us and that’s what we had been captivated with.
We took inside the view after which decided to maneuver on sooner than the local weather obtained worse.
Watch our Dempster Freeway Video
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Airplane Strip on Dempster Freeway
An attention-grabbing reality regarding the Dempster Freeway is that airplanes land on the freeway and share the freeway with automobiles.
With such a low ceiling and thick fog, we didn’t concern about coming nostril to nostril with any airplane right now, nevertheless the thought did cross our minds.
Might you concentrate on seeing fog lights ahead, nevertheless as an alternative of them being one different automotive, they’re on a helicopter or airplane?
We saved our eyes peeled for any sights that we would have wanted to backtrack to the following day, nevertheless decided to drive on to our in a single day stop on the Eagle Plains Resort.
The Eagle Plains Resort
We couldn’t inform if the girl who greeted us was merely in a foul mood or if that’s the easiest way she dealt with all the guests.
We had merely accomplished the first day of our epic freeway journey that so many people dream of doing, and he or she was transient and gruff with the two of us.
Our room was ready though, so we hauled in our gear and settled in for a meal on the bar.
The lodge is a major roadside motor inn, nevertheless there’s a great deal of historic previous on the Eagle Plains Resort.
Make sure you go into the bar to peruse the outdated photos hanging on the wall.
It depicts the historic previous of the realm with the highlight being the Mad-Trapper Man hunt that ended inside the accused, Albert Johnson, being killed, nevertheless not sooner than he took out RCMP officer Edgar Millan.
There are moose and deer heads hanging on the partitions and you’re feeling that you’ve stepped once more in time 100 years.
The lodge was full that night as phrase obtained out that the ferry crossings had stopped. People driving up from Dawson Metropolis had been upset that they couldn’t proceed on.
Motorcyclists bought right here in lined in mud and even the bush pilots had been grounded for the night.
Dempster Freeway Conditions
We topped up the gasoline in our truck and stuffed up our water bottles sooner than settling in for the night.
It was a careworn sleep as the enjoyment and anticipation grew for the day ahead. Would we see sunshine on the horizon? It was easy to tell that the local weather was nonetheless harmful exterior with the 24-hour daylight.
We went to sleep inside the gentle, nevertheless the daylight had a extremely grey and foggy hue about it.
We hoped the circumstances would modifications whereas we sleep.
Leg 2 – Eagle Plains to Dawson Metropolis
After we wakened inside the morning, the fog was nonetheless heavy, nevertheless we decided to push forward with the hope that points would change.
To our amazement, as we descended in elevation, the photo voltaic bought right here out and we had been welcomed by an exceptional day!
Points had been wanting up and we had been about to begin out in all probability probably the most gorgeous portion of the journey.
Our truck was lined in mud and mud and we appeared like we had been driving for months fairly than merely the few hours the day sooner than.
We did deal with to scrub off our house home windows so we could ta inside the sunshine and views of the mountain vistas and deep valleys.
Our day was spent climbing and descending via the Eagle Plains, Peel River Plateau, North Ogilvie and Mackenzie Mountains.
Each scene grew additional gorgeous as a result of the day went on.
The Tombstone Mountains
We made sure to stop recurrently, with a highlight being the Tombstone Mountains. We couldn’t contemplate the automobiles that handed this view by.
The beauty of driving the Dempster Freeway was undoubtedly having the freedom to stop the place we most well-liked, as soon as we most well-liked. We made sure to soak up each view and relish the moments.
Our journey took us two days, nevertheless I wish to suggest using a campervan and taking 4 days.
There are campsites alongside the freeway and if you take your time you’ll get to soak up all the sights alongside the easiest way.
Dawson Metropolis
It was late inside the day as soon as we lastly made it to the Klondike metropolis of Dawson Metropolis.
Dawson Metropolis is a stark distinction of the solitude and quiet of the Dempster Highways. Proper right here you’ll uncover showgirls, nightclubs, casinos and an all-around rip-roaring good time.
Nevertheless that is one different story that you will have to attend to hearken to all about.
We nonetheless had a quick drive into Dawson Metropolis, nevertheless our Dempster Freeway freeway journey was over. It was an unimaginable journey and if we had additional time, we’d take on the very least 4 days to find.
There are numerous mountaineering trails, campsites and scenic views nonetheless to see!
Nevertheless we had been excited for Dawson Metropolis. We have dreamed of seeing this metropolis since I auditioned to be a dancer for the saloon current inside the Nineties. It on a regular basis appeared so distinctive to me. Now we lastly had our likelihood to see it.
Dempster Freeway Map – Our Route
Totally different Actually useful scenic stops on the Dempster Freeway
Peel Ogilvie Lookout
Elephant Rock km 221.2
Tortured Rock km 220
Caribou Trails – It wasn’t caribou migration season as soon as we had been on the Dempster Freeway nevertheless you presumably can see the paths etched into the facet of mountains left by the 1000’s of caribou that stroll via these hills yearly.
Our journey to the Yukon was sponsored by Yukon Tourism. For additional knowledge on travelling to the Yukon and driving to the Arctic on the Dempster Freeway, go to TravelYukon. All opinions are our private.
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