One more off the list

[kumquat]

I have a list of 'things to do before I die'. It includes stuff like:

1) Climb Ayers Rock
2) Barbeque a turkey on a beach at Xmas (where I am Xmas temperature is usually well below 0).
3) Stand under the midnight sun
etc. etc.

Number 3 is at hand. A friend in Whitehorse YT has a business trip to Inuvik NT in June. He has to drive (too much stuff to fly) and is mildly disabled (not physically capable of changing a tire, for instance). I'm going along for emergencies. Here's our route far enough north of the circle to get the midnight sun in mid June. Feels good (or will feel good) to have at least one done.

[REWahoo]

That's great! Should be quite an adventure...

[ls99]

Never mind the polar bears, the Ice Worms will get ya, cheechako..
And, don't go where the huskies go, never eat the yellow snow.

Good luck and happy trails.

Hope you get to see the Aurora Borealis as well. They are spectacular. My first view was in the North Atlantic, up by Jan Mayen. Later, just north of Fairbanks.

[DangerMouse]

Not sure if you know, but the Australian Aborigines ask that you don't climb Ayers Rock as it is sacred to them. Many people choose to ignore the request and do so. However, you could probably get a better view by taking a helicopter ride, though that is unlikely to give you the same sense of satisfaction.

[dessert]

I'm jealous! You are going to really enjoy that trip. I wouldn't mind doing that some day myself. Glad to see you take another off the list.

[youbet]

Very, very good Kumquat! I would do that without hesitation given that same opportunity. Enjoy!

[FIREdreamer]

Awesome trip!

[azauthor]

you've raised an interesting topic. I'm sure we all have a "list". One thing on my list is to be in Bethlehem on Christmas Eve someday. Anybody else want to share what's on their list?

[kumquat]

I'm back! Quite a trip. I have a lot of pictures but you can get better ones by googling "Dempster Highway". Unbelievable scenery.

Parts of the road are not as good as what you'll see from google. Here's the worst stretch


It is the ultimate devil of a road, built of crushed rock (not gravel) on top of permafrost. Destroyed 2 tires, had 1 fixed and came out on 2 that were leaking. 5 tire problems in 1000 miles! We carried 'only' 2 spares, others carry as many as 4.

Very popular with German tourists. We stopped several times to help others stopped along the road (and others stopped to help us with tire trouble). 50% had German accents. Here's a sign from the gas station where the Dempster starts:

Other threads complain about the price of gas. At the same station as the German sign you have gas at $1.69/litre. Translated with the C$ at par thats 1.69 * 3.78 = 6.38 per US gallon. This is in an area with as much oil and gas as the Alaskan North Slope. No wonder the natives are restless.

The dust was unbelievable. I grew up driving tractors in the 60's and our trusty vehicle had more dust in it than a tractor after a day in the field. Here it is at the end of the road.

[playaman]

What a "cool" albeit dusty trip.

Thanks for sharing.