Day 14, 15, 16 Adversity and the Dempster Highway

Sat Aug 25  The Dempster Highway to Inuvik at last

Start of the Dempster Highway to Inuvik.  This is an understatement!

So we're off at last on the Dempster - 739 km of gravel to Inuvik, much of it above the Arctic circle.  Trees give way to tundra, days get ever longer, wildlife abounds.  We hope to see moose, caribou, muskox and bears (in moderation.)

Mud, mud, mud....

But the highway!  After all this rain, the road is in bad shape - thick slippery mud, trains of potholes, slumps the size of refrigerators.  We slalom along, often at 10 kmh, and the first 70 km to Tombstone Territorial Park campground takes us 2 hours.  This doesn't bode well for the next few days.

On the bright side, we've arrived in time for Tombstone on the Rocks, a weekend event hosted by the Yukon Geological Survey and the park naturalists.  What better place to be right now?  We manage a hike up to a viewpoint in late afternoon sunshine before rain begins again.

Sun Aug 26 Tombstone

The temperature has dropped precipitously overnight and it's 0 degrees in the camper this morning.  An ice dam has formed on our skylight and water begins to trickle in, onto our bed.  We scramble for towels, prop up the wet sheets and feel somewhat inadequate to the task before us.

Tombstone Park at it's best.

We discuss options over breakfast.  We can stay here for a while, but if it's below freezing we'll have to empty our water tank.  We've dry camped before, but it's a hassle humping water jugs around.  We can head up the road, but if conditions don't improve, it won't be any fun.  We can wait at the Peel for the ferry, but with more rain in the forecast it may close again.  We could end up stuck on the other side too, for a long time....  For the first time, we contemplate turning back.  No decision is reached, and we go for a hike.

The sun come out as we arrive at the Grizzly Lake trailhead, and we have a perfect fall day in the mountains.  The fall colours are just starting on the tundra and it glows golden in the sun.  The vistas are stunning, and we have three geologists along to explain the peaks and valleys.

Things begin to look brighter - all our wet laundry dries in the sun, the thermometer reaches 15 C and word spreads that the ferry is open again.  We celebrate getting this far by the campfire tonight.  Tomorrow is another day.

Mon Aug 27  Tombstone (km 76) to Engineer Creek Campsite (km 193)

A gloomy start - low cloud obscures the surrounding peaks.  Decision time - we check weather (rain/sun for 7 days), and the two ferries north of us (the Peel is closed again, but the Mackenzie remains open).  We decide to take it one day at a time and head up the highway.  The road is good, surprisingly, and miraculously the clouds break, distant horizons peak through, and the tundra glistens in bright fall foliage.  We putter along, scanning for wildlife, stopping for photos, and fishing in tumbling rivers. Two grayling for dinner!   A perfect day, all the more welcome for being so unexpected.

The Blackstone River side channel full of grayling.  First cast yielded dinner!  I wasn't so successful.