In
all of North America, across the vast wilderness which
makes up northern Canada and Alaska, only one year-round
public highway crosses the Arctic Circle. Today, the
trail has become a well-maintained gravel roadway,
leading to an unparalleled scenic wilderness.
Surprisingly, at the northern end of the highway there is
civilization - in Inuvik, the modern Arctic service
centrer founded in the mid-1950s. Inuvik offers a
startling contrast to the virgin wilderness of the
Dempster Highway.
Government
campgrounds and a most unusual hotel "oasis" at Eagle
Plains provide overnight accommodation, allowing visitors
as much time as is needed to explore this great
wilderness route. The Dempster Highway (747 km (450
miles) of gravel roadway) provides road-explorers of the
Canadian northland with the ultimate northern
adventure.
The
highway is open year 'round except for short periods
during spring thaw and fall freeze-up. Ferries at the
Peel and Mackenzie rivers will take you across free of
charge from June to October. In winter, ice bridges allow
traffic to cross.
Well
maintained campsites and roadside services are located
along the road. The Eagle Plains Hotel provides food,
accommodation and a service station for truckers and
tourists. The communities of Fort McPherson and Arctic
Red River also offer a number of essential
services.
The
Dempster drive is unforgettable, for its crossing of the
mountain ranges, for the alpine tundra on Eagle Plains,
the wildlife-filled marshes of the Mackenzie Delta, and
the crossing of the Arctic Circle.
Before
the arrival of European fur traders and explorers, the
Dempster Highway region north of Dawson City was
inhabited by Kutchin people, part of the Athabaskan
family. There were about 1500 Kutchin, spread throughout
the Porcupine, Arctic Red, and Peel river valleys. They
hunted caribou and moose and fished in the rivers to
provide their winter food. Europeans came to this harsh
country with the fur trade and established Fort McPherson
as a Hudson's Bay Company outpost. With the traders came
the North West Mounted Police.
The
Mounties sent a yearly dog-sled patrol along the trail
between Dawson and Fort McPherson. In 1911, four men and
fifteen dogs set out for the winter patrol from Fort
McPherson, to be swallowed up by the bitter cold, deep
snow, and raging winds. The members of the "Lost Patrol"
were found dead, after enduring 53 days of hardship on
the trail, located only 40 kilometers from their starting
point.
After
the Klondike Gold Rush, prospectors looked for paydirt in
the Ogilvie Mountains, but weather and travel
difficulties hampered prospecting. In the 1950s a
potential for oil was discovered on the Eagle Plains and
the first exploration well was dug in 1954. Prime
Minister John Diefenbaker's government (1957) developed a
policy of "roads to resources" as part of its northern
vision. Surveying of the road through the Ogilvies to the
Eagle Plains was begun in 1958. By 1961, 116 kilometers
(72 miles) of roadway had been constructed, but work was
halted because of a poor showing in the oil exploration.
Construction did not resume for ten years until oil was
discovered in the Beaufort Sea and an all-weather road
was required to service exploration there. The Dempster
Highway was opened to the public in 1979.
The
Dempster drive is unforgettable, for its crossing of the
mountain ranges, for the alpine tundra on Eagle Plains,
the wildlife-filled marshes of the Mackenzie Delta, and
the crossing of the Arctic Circle.
North
to Eagle Plains
The
southern part of the region is the valley of the North
Klondike River, which flows out of the Ogilvie Range.
Within a few miles, the road meets the treeline, and
Arctic tundra landscape is seen from here to the end of
the highway, with a few exceptions when the road dips
into a few valleys.
The
highway crosses the Southern Ogilvies, and then the
Northern Ogilvies, reaching black spruce tundra with the
stunted spruce clinging drunkenly to the surface of the
tundra.
Eagle
Plains and Richardson Mountains
Eagle
Plains is the hilly region which rolls between the
Ogilvie and Richardson mountain ranges. The Dempster
follows the high ridges of the land, with dramatic views
of the expanse of subalpine tundra. In several places
along the road, the scrubby trees lean in all directions,
caused by frost heaving in the permafrost tundra. The
Eagle Plains Hotel at KM 364 (mile 226) is a unique,
self-contained oasis on a high ridge just 39 KM (24
miles) south of the Arctic Circle. From Eagle Plains, the
Richardson Mountains provide an incredibly beautiful
sight, forming a narrow north-south line of
softly-sculptured ridges. They are thought to be the most
northerly range of the Rockies. The Arctic Circle is
located at KM 403 (mile 250.4).
Peel-Mackenzie
Lowlands
The
Dempster descends from the Richardsons into the Peel
River plateau. This is a broad upland leading to the Peel
River, the edge of the area covered by glaciers during
the most recent ice age. There are many lakes and ponds
on the plateau, with tundra and scattered areas of
tamarack and black spruce. Ducks and other waterbirds
nest here during the summer.
After
crossing the Peel River by ferry, you'll come to Fort
McPherson, an early Hudson's Bay Company post and now a
Kutchin community of 800 people. The wide Mackenzie River
is crossed by ferry at KM 613 (mile 381). You have the
option of stopping at the small Native community of
Arctic Red River. The Dempster leads on through the
Mackenzie delta, arriving in the town of Inuvik at KM 740
(mile 460).
Hiking
Possibilities
For
mountain hikers, the three southern Dempster regions
provide a hiking paradise. Several routes lead hikers
into the Tombstone Range in the Northern Klondike region.
Hikers may spend as little as four hours or as long as 8
to 10 days hiking through this range.
The
Southern Ogilvies provide several ridges for easy or
strenuous hiking in the area of the Blackstone River
valley, following creeks or walking across the brush
and/or tundra, taking between three and eight hours. The
Northern Ogilvie ridges provide many opportunities for
hiking from the Dempster roadside.
Canoeing
down the Blackstone River provides hikers with access to
more remote wilderness. The Richardson Mountains offer
several hikes which are even more exciting during the
midnight sun period. For the best listing of Dempster
hikes, read Along the Dempster by Walter Lanz, published
by Oak House Publishing, available at bookstores in the
Yukon and in some major centers, including Vancouver,
B.C.
Dempster
Wildlife
One
of the largest herds of barren-ground caribou, the
Porcupine herd, lives in the northern part of the Yukon.
This herd of more than 130,000 lives in a
100,000-square-mile range, some of it crossed by the
Dempster Highway. The migration routes of the caribou
cross the Dempster in the Ogilvie ranges and in the
Richardsons. By early July the entire herd moves into the
northeastern Richardson Mountains. The fall migration
begins after the first snowfall. Some years see no
caribou along the Dempster. In other years caribou winter
near the highway in the Southern Ogilvies. Some caribou
of the Hart River herd stay in Dempster country
year-round, moving up and down the mountains as the
seasons change near the West Hart River.
Two
types of bears, grizzly and black, live along the
Dempster Highway route. The black bear is found in the
forests along the Klondike, Ogilvie and Eagle rivers.
These are smaller than grizzlies and may be black or a
cinnamon-brown color. Grizzly bears range over a wide
area, mainly in the Ogilvies. A few grizzlies live in the
Richardson range. Moose are seen at the lower
levels.
Dall
sheep are the white mountain sheep of Alaska and the
Yukon. They may be seen along the Dempster as white spots
moving along the mountain slopes. Lambs are born in
late-May and the sheep stay in family groups during the
summer months. Although Dall sheep are prized as hunting
trophies, no hunting is permitted within five miles of
the Dempster Highway.
The
southern stretches of the Dempster route are not known
for fish, although Arctic grayling are found in the
Blackstone and Ogilvie rivers. However, the Peel and
Mackenzie areas make up for the lack of fish elsewhere.
An important resource for the Native population of the
Western Arctic, there are whitefish, Arctic char, trout
and burbot (freshwater ling).
Over
160 species of sub-Arctic birds have been sighted within
five miles of the Dempster. The Southern Ogilvies and the
Blackstone uplands are prime birding areas. The Ogilvie
Mountains provide a home for several birds of prey,
including species of eagles, falcons and owls. Ptarmigan
are also seen here. Loons and many types of shorebirds
inhabit the Peel plateau and the Mackenzie delta.
The
various habitats along the Dempster provide visitors with
an ever-changing view of wildflowers. From alpine
flowers, including saxifrage, heather, and moss campion
at the higher levels, to fireweed and forest plants
below, there is a rich diversity of plant life. Two rare
types of orchids grow in the Northern Ogilvies. In July,
the alpine meadows provide a carpet of many colors, 24
hours a day. By early September the color of the Arctic
tundra has turned to a light brown.
In
Eagle Plains
Eagle
Plains Hotel
Bag Service 1735, Whitehorse YT Y1A 3V5
(867) 979-4187
This unique oasis, on the Arctic tundra of the Yukon's
Eagle Plains, is a logical place to stay overnight during
your Dempster Highway trip. It is almost exactly halfway
between Dawson City and Inuvik. Located just 21 miles
south of the Arctic Circle, this is a completely
self-contained complex, with electrical generator, and
water hauled by tanker truck from the Eagle River. The
complex includes a gas station, government office, staff
quarters, and a campground with showers and laundry. The
industrial-style (but comfortable) modular motel has a
dining room and lounge. The hotel is open year-round.
($$)
In
Inuvik
Finto's
Motor Inn
P.O. Box 1925, Inuvik NWT X0E 0T0
(867) 979-2647
Located next to the Western Arctic Visitor Centre at the
edge of town, this modern hotel offers large rooms, a few
suites, some with kitchenettes, cable TV, guest laundry,
and an excellent dining room with a sophisticated
cocktail lounge. Reservations are advised. ($$ to
$$$)
Mackenzie
Hotel
P.O. Box 1618, Inuvik NWT X0E 0T0
(867) 979-2861
This is Inuvik's original hotel, renovated over the
years, with a dining room, coffee shop, pub, and lounge
(with nightly entertainment). Units include standard
rooms and suites. ($ to $$)
