From Vancouver, heading north to the Arctic Ocean in the winter is a great and unforgettable journey. You'll pass through the historic Alaska Highway and the Dempster Highway, the only unpaved highway in North America that crosses the Arctic Circle. You'll visit small towns with a lot of local flavour and eventually arrive in Tuktoyaktuk, a small town near the Arctic Ocean.
In the winter of 2024, my friends and I made this journey twice. Below, I'll share our experience in more detail and hopefully help anyone who might need it.
Vancouver - Dawson Creek
Network Coverage: 4/5
Road Conditions: 3.5/5
Fuel resupply: 5/5
This part of the journey is not different from other Highways in North America. If you have general non-urban driving experience, such as skiing to whistler from Vancouver, then this is a very safe ride for you. Traffic on this stretch is 24*7*365 and all snow is cleared quickly in case of snow conditions. If you get into any trouble, the passing vehicles are immediately available to help you.
Since almost all roads have signal coverage, you are able to call for assistance or a tow truck immediately. Since you will pass through many cities along the way that have a large number of people living in them, you don't need to worry about finding a gas station. There may be occasional ice and snow on the roads.
The scenery along this stretch is beautiful, so if you wish to record the scenery with your drone and camera, be ready and keep your battery charged.
Dawson Creek - Fort Nelson
Network Coverage: 3/5
Road Conditions: 4/5
Fuel resupply: 4/5
After leaving Dawson Creek, you will begin your journey on the Alaska Highway. Don't forget to take a picture with the Mile 0 sign and building in Dawson Creek.
This is an area without much residential life.
If you find yourself on the road without enough food, water, or gear for your car, you should buy it immediately at Dawson Creek, which has a Canadian Tire and Walmart.
The good news is that the scenery along the way is beautiful and the roads are in very good condition, with straight, wide lanes and no snow or ice coverage.
The gas stations on the road are mainly operated by Motels, and all gasoline prices are slightly expensive. It is important to note that there is a good chance that you will not be able to refuel at night. So make sure you fill up your car's gas tank as well as your spare gas can at Dawson Creek.
Since the roads are in very good condition, it will be easy for everyone to drive very fast. This is the road where I saw the most accidents. Please be aware that there will be RCMP hiding near Fort Nelson by the snowbanks waiting to give you a ticket.
Fort Nelson - Watson Lake
Network Coverage: 1/5
Road conditions: 2/5
Fuel resupply: 2/5
The real challenge began. After leaving Fort Nelson, most of the journey is over one and another mountain. The tarmac will be covered in ice and the cars will start to lose traction. Due to the mountainous terrain, gas mileage for all cars will become worse and you should stop at all gas stations to refuel your car whenever possible. As mentioned above, the gas stations on the road are mainly run by Motels and gas is slightly more expensive. It is important to note that refuelling will most likely not be available at night.
From here on, it will be obvious that the daylight hours are very short, with the sky starting to lighten up at 9am each morning, but it is almost completely dark by 5pm.
Interestingly, there is a lot of wildlife there and you will encounter bisons crossing the road, elks, etc. So you need to be very aware of the wildlife as you drive when it's dark so you don't hit them.
There is no network service coverage on this stretch of road and traffic flow will be very low. So in the event of an accident, you will have a hard time finding help right away.
Watson Lake - Whitehorse - Dawson City
Network Coverage: 1/5
Road Conditions: 3/5
Fuel resupply: 2/5
Similar to what was mentioned above, but road conditions will be slightly better.
Whitehorse is the capital of Yukon and the city is well-served with retail chains such as Canadian Tire and Walmart. This will be your last chance to shop in bulk.
Dawson City is a small town where you can find small supermarkets and restaurants. The most famous thing here is the Sour Toe cocktail at the Downtown Hotel. You can drink it from 4PM-10PM, but it is recommended that you don't arrive too late because the OLD CAPTAIN might go to bed early. If he is sleeping, there's no way to give you a certificate.
When you leave Dawson City, the challenge will begin.
The Dempster
Network Coverage: 0/5
Road Conditions: 1/5
Fuel resupply: 1/5
The Dempster is an unpaved highway through the Arctic Circle. Aside from the Eagle Plains service area near the Arctic Circle, there are only a few gas stations at the entrance and close to Inuvik the entire way.
This means that you will encounter a full 370 kilometers without the ability to replenish supplies, rest in a warm house, or refuel.
There is no signal the entire time, so you have little way to get in touch with the outside world other than a satellite phone or with other vehicles passing by.
Before entering the Dempster highway, you need to be prepared for the following:
Remember the information for Dawson City and Inuvik repair shops
Make sure your tire pressure is normal (can be slightly lower than recommended)
Make sure you have enough food and water
Make sure the satellite phone is working
Fill up all gas cans
Finally, you need to check the road condition at https://511yukon.ca/
If this is your first time embarking on the Dempster Hwy, I would recommend that you make sure to rest until dawn at the Eagle Plains service area. There is a hotel in the service area. Be sure not to leave the Eagle Plains service area when it is dark.
Let's get into the Dempster!
Dawson City to Eagle Plains is about 400 kilometers. This section can be considered an enhanced version of the Alaska Highway, where you'll encounter more icy roads, and more abundant wildlife. The road is covered in ice in the winter and rarely collapses. If you complete this section of the road in daylight, you will see very beautiful scenery.
Road conditions after leaving Eagle Plains are very, very treacherous, especially near the Yukon-NT border. Some of the hazards you may encounter are:
Uneven snow on the road. When the tires on both sides of the car do not have the same traction, there is a high probability that a car traveling at high speed will lose control. Inability to distinguish the boundaries of the road. This is because there is no difference between the color of the road and the snow. You are likely to drive your car off the road while turning.
Visual fatigue. You will be driving in pure white for about an hour. You won't be able to protect your eyes through sunglasses due to the lack of daylight in winter.
Lack of vision. When there is snow in the winter, often snow plows clear a very narrow lane needed for two-way traffic. If you're going uphill and you come across a truck that's going downhill, don't hesitate to drive into a snowbank for cover is often the best option.
How to choose the right clothes:
The sandwich dressing method is the best choice:
wear sweat-absorbent, breathable thermal underwear for the innermost layer
A down jacket with very good warmth for the middle layer
A windproof, waterproof softshell or rushing jacket for the outermost layer.
Finally, don't forget to bring a heavy-duty down jacket. Once you are very cold or trapped in the field, a heavy-duty down jacket will directly save your life.
Don't forget to keep your limbs warm: many people forget to keep their limbs warm, which means remembering to wear very warm gloves and snow boots. While this won't endanger your life, it will very much affect your traveling experience. Because the ground temperature is so low, your feet are the most vulnerable part of your body to frostbite!
Also, remember to choose snow boots that are waterproof, as snow melts into water on the uppers and takes away heat.
My advice:
A/T(All-Terrain) Tires or Snow Tires?
This is a very difficult decision to make. You will encounter many ice- covered roads on this route, and A/T Tires will harden in cold temperatures and have far less traction on icy roads than Snow Tires.
But once your car gets stuck in the snow, or if you're going to be driving on slushy roads, then A/T Tires may be more appropriate.
Pack a satellite phone (don't rely on your iPhone)
You can opt for something like an Iridium phone or a GPS Messenger, gear that's designed for outdoor adventures. Any device that can send out an SOS where there is no cell phone service or network coverage is fine. the biggest problem with iPhones is that there is a chance that they will face cold temperature shutdowns, and unstable SOS signal coverage.
Download a good offline map on Google Maps in advance.
Advice from locals:
Don't stop for anyone on the road, they are very likely to take your car or money
My gear list:
I am a skier and I used my own ski gear
Body:
Base-layer: Uniqlo Heattech Ultra Warm Crew Neck T-Shirt (low cost, wicks away sweat and keeps you warm)
Mid-layer: Arc'teryx Cerium Jacket (very comfortable and warm).
Outer-layer: Burton ak Cyclic GORE-TEX 2L Jacket (I think it looks great and has a lot of pockets for stuff)
Heavy-duty down jacket: Canada Goose Expedition Parka (very, very warm, GOAT)
Legs:
Base-layer 01: Uniqlo Heattech Ultra Warm Crew Tights (-20) (low cost, wicks sweat and is warm)
Base-layer 02: Guanjiao Ultra Warm (-35) (Very, very, very good value for money, only CAD25 from Taobao.com, very very very warm)
Mid-layer: Just pick any random winter pants
Outer-layer: Rossignol Evader Ski Pants
Others:
Base-layer Gloves: Decathlon Touchscreen Running Gloves-Warm+ V2 (This is a very practical piece of gear. Provides some warmth when you are operating a camera, drone, or cell phone)
The route
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