The Dempster Deconstructed, Part One

Tombstone Valley, Dempster Highway, Yukon

We truly wondered if this trip was even going to happen.  So many obstacles seemed insurmountable.  Between the nine of us, we had a new dream job (would the new employers allow such an extended vacation after only weeks of employment?), an unexpected family member's death and funeral, an accident that landed one in the hospital, three young people starting school August 27, and, perhaps most fundamental, no available reservations for truck campers in Whitehorse.  Then, miraculously, everything fell into place in mid-July, down to two truck camper rentals becoming available for ten days.  David and I hurriedly prepared the camper, and we were off for the Dempster.  We were so late in leaving this year that we are doing this trip in reverse... we're going to Alaska AFTER the Dempster (which is normally our last hurrah on the road).

After several plane delays, Melanie, Scott, Eric, Morgan, Bailey, Jen, and Craig, arrived in Whitehorse late Thursday evening.  David and I met them at the motel the following morning.  While we were making hugs around, seventeen-year-old Eric announced that he planned to dive into Arctic Ocean.  Wow!  Would he really do it?  He certainly seemed determined.

We shopped for groceries, fishing gear, and licenses before picking up the truck campers from Canadream at three that afternoon.  The checkout was suppose to be 45 minutes to an hour.  We finally had both rigs by eight that evening.  We decided to camp in Whitehorse for the night and get a fresh start in the morning.

Meet the crew... from left to right...
Craig, Jen, Bailey, Morgan, Scott, Melanie, Eric, David, and  me

After a later start than expected, we made Tombstone Valley on the Dempster around seven in the evening... after taking obligatory Dempster Highway photos, of course.  

Just after we set up camp, Melanie and I were standing on a ridge, overlooking our campers when I saw it.  I grabbed Melanie by the shoulders and spun her around to see the most glorious of rainbows.  She and I both look at rainbows as omens that something wonderful is in store.  It was affirmation that the miraculous chain of events that brought us to this exact spot were no accident.

Rainbow on the Dempster

We were still adjusting how this would all work.  First, how would we handle the sleeping arrangements?  The rented truck campers only had one queen bed and a dinette that could be made into a bed, but it was quite short.  Eric is over six foot tall.  We had three young people to consider.  It took us a few nights, but it all worked out.  Thankfully, Eric sleeps curled up and Morgan was quite accustomed to sleeping in the back of our truck as she had done last year.  Each rig ended up with a young one.    

Next, we had to determine how to cook for ten people (we counted Eric twice, considering his age!).  I was quite comfortable cooking my one-pot meals for David and me.  Trying to figure out how to do it for ten, however, was something to consider.  Rather than using our little backpacking cooking gear, thankfully the rigs came with Dutch ovens.  Melanie and Jen helped me to calculate the increased volume needed for each recipe.  And we discovered that what took five minutes to cook for two often took twenty or thirty minutes to warm for ten, but it all worked out.  At least nobody starved!

In a stroke of genius, Scott had brought walkie-talkies for each rig, so we were able to communicate while on the road.  Each rig had their own handle... the Rocket Scientists (yes... they really are!), Crappy Tires (unfortunately, also true), and our rig was dubbed Squad Leader.

In fact, it seemed everyone had their own areas of expertise on this trip.  Craig, for example, brought a drone to photograph overhead.  I had never seen one before.  It had an amazing photographic quality... the sound was definitely something to get use to, but the capabilities were phenomenal.  (If possible, I'll try to upload a few of Craig's drone movies at a later date.)

Our first full day on the Dempster, we were greeted with with a sunny morning.  We retraced our steps to the Tombstone Valley overlook to take photos of the amazing view.

As the day wore on, however, the weather began to deteriorate.  We stopped at the Arctic Circle for a group photo before traveling on to Olgivie Ridge.  

When we reached Eagle Plains, however, we were met with shocking news.  The Peel River crossing had been shut down since Thursday due to an enormous amount of rain the week before.  The Peel crossing is a cable ferry.  The water was just too high and flowing too fast that it made it dangerous to load and off-load vehicles.  Now what?  After all this time, money, and effort, would we only be able to travel less than half the Dempster?  We decided to camp at Eagle River and let the kiddos do some fishing.

It rained hard all night.  Our campsite turned into a mud hole, and everything was covered in the sticky goo.  We drove back to Eagle Plains in the morning for information.  They said the Peel should open at noon.  Then a young man told me there were rumors that they planned to close the ferry again at two.  We decided to rush to make the crossing.

Driving turned treacherous as the road became more and more wet.  We saw a motorhome almost spin out in front of us, going too fast in an area of thick mud.  We slogged along and were so glad we all had four-wheel drive.

When we arrived at the Peel River, the cable ferry was, in fact, in operation.  The landing on both sides had washed away during the storm.  Workers had managed to reinforce what remained.  The landings were soggy and rutted, but they worked.  We had never seen the river this high.  The waves churned and crashed across the bow of the ferry as we went across.  

It continued raining steadily.  We had no idea if the new rainfall would close the Peel crossing again.  It was a concern... we had rental rigs that needed to be returned on a specific date, young people that needed to start school, and folks with jobs awaiting them on their scheduled return.  We took the chance and made the crossing.

Peel Ferry Crossing, Dempster Highway, Yukon

When we arrived in Fort McPherson, we stopped to talk with Robert at the visitor center.  He told us it had been quite exciting when the Peel crossing had closed.  They had 48 cars waiting on one side and over 50 on the other.  The ferry had worked through the night to clear the backlog.  

It was still raining steadily.  We had planned to spend the night at Fort McPherson's campground, but it was only three o'clock in the afternoon.  We could hardly imagine spending the remaining hours until bedtime trapped inside the separate campers.  (They were too small for the group to all fit in one.) We were also trying to make up a day of travel, since we had lost at least half of one due to the delay in getting the rigs.  We decided to continue on to Inuvik.  

The Mackenzie Ferry crossing across the Mackenzie River and Arctic Red River was also high.  But this ferry is motor driven, so we had no problems getting across it.

Mackenzie River Crossing, Dempster Highway, Yukon

We arrived in Jak Campground, just outside of Inuvik about 7:30 that evening.  With the chill and rain, the sight of hot showers and flush toilets delighted everyone.  

We had no idea what awaited us on the rest of this journey.  Tomorrow we planned to drive to Tuk and maybe camp there overnight.  Eric still spoke of diving into the Arctic Ocean.  We were both excited and concerned.  We also had many questions about the overall journey.  If the rain continued, would we be able to make it back over the ferry crossings?  If not, what would we do?

As David and I crawled into bed, we wondered what would happen next... and smiled.  One of the reasons we love the Dempster so much is because each time we travel the road, it is different.  Each time has its own adventure.  What would the Dempster would throw at us this time?