The Road to Tuktoyaktuk

Whitehorse to the Arctic Ocean

We’ve visited the Yukon many times in the past, and our visits have been timed to showcase this magnificent wilderness region during the long days of the northern midsummer, when wildflowers begin to carpet the alpine slopes, glacier-fed turquoise lakes gleam in deep valleys and snow-covered peaks of imposing mountains loom on the horizon. On this revamped tour, we take our discoveries one step further: to the Arctic Ocean and legendary Tuktoyaktuk, atop the recently completed Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk Highway!

Our tour begins in the Whitehorse region in the Yukon’s deep south. We’ll explore Canada’s smallest “desert” at Carcross, view fantastic canyon formations and become acquainted with the region’s Gold Rush history. We’ll visit Kluane National Park in the southwest corner of the Yukon. This land of superlatives has the highest mountain in Canada and the most extensive non-polar ice fields in the world. As we explore the wilderness fringes of northern highways, with fabled names such as Dempster, Klondike and Alaska, we’ll look for Moose and Elk browsing in the dense willow thickets, snow-white Dall Sheep feeding on alpine grasses high among mountain peaks and Gyrfalcons atop steep faces of the front ranges.

As we move north from Dawson on the Dempster Highway we’ll enter the tundra and carry on to the mighty Mackenzie River Delta, pock-marked by lakes and dotted with clumps of spruce. The fantastic pingos will greet us as we approach the Arctic Ocean and reach it at long last. This will be the quintessential Canadian North! All along we’ll also be on the lookout for Black and Grizzly Bears as they graze on greens. With some luck, we may even spot Caribou and the elusive Canada Lynx! All throughout, the breeding activities of local birds will be at their peak.