Dempster Highway

[pyrosecur]

Hi All!

In the planning stage of a summer roadtrip from Montreal to Alaska.
We will be driving a 32' Class A gas V10 motorhome. Our plan is not to bring the toad as we would only be staying a maximum of 2 or 3 nights in any ome place.

I have been reading about the gravel Dempster Highway from Dawson to Inuvik. It sounds like the type of detour I would like to make, but it also sounds a little rough for our vehicule. If you have made the trip I would like to hear from you to know what to expect and how much time it would take.

Thank you

[Tripalot]

explorenorth wrote:

Tripalot wrote:
Thanks for this information. I was definitely out of date. A traveller I was gabbing with a couple of years ago told me there were no more ferries. It has now been about 8 years since we did the Dempster. Would love to do it again and drive on to Tuk

The person you were talking to was confused about the bridge(s) - there's a bridge across the Mackenzie on the road to Yellowknife, and that ferry is now history.

That is probably what happened. Thanks for the clarification.

[explorenorth]

Tripalot wrote:
Thanks for this information. I was definitely out of date. A traveller I was gabbing with a couple of years ago told me there were no more ferries. It has now been about 8 years since we did the Dempster. Would love to do it again and drive on to Tuk

The person you were talking to was confused about the bridge(s) - there's a bridge across the Mackenzie on the road to Yellowknife, and that ferry is now history.

[Tripalot]

sue.t wrote:
There aren't bridges - still ferries. Usually start running in early June and stop in late October. http://www.dot.gov.nt.ca/Highways/Highway_System/NWTHwy8

In winter, highway travellers need to wait for the river to freeze and ice bridges to open.

Thanks for this information. I was definitely out of date. A traveller I was gabbing with a couple of years ago told me there were no more ferries. It has now been about 8 years since we did the Dempster. Would love to do it again and drive on to Tuk

[sue_t]

There aren't bridges - still ferries. Usually start running in early June and stop in late October. http://www.dot.gov.nt.ca/Highways/Highway_System/NWTHwy8

In winter, highway travellers need to wait for the river to freeze and ice bridges to open.

[Yeti_plus]

When we went in 2016, the ferries were still running and the locals said there were no plans to build bridges at that time.

[Tripalot]

lizzie wrote:
I agree with Tripalot but wonder about the comment about bridges across the rivers. We made the trip in 2016 and did not see any signs of bridges being built.This is a beautiful trip and was, for us, a peak experience. We also took our time. We flew to Tuk and came back to Inuvik by boat. lizzie

You used to have to take a ferry to get across the Peel River near Fort McPherson and another one across the Mackenzie River at Arctic Red River. There are now bridges so there is year round road service to Inuvik. Years ago, it was necessary to wait for it to freeze up in the fall creating the ice road and when it started to melt residents needed to wait for the river to open up and the ferries to run.

Taking the ferries was another experience and gave you a break from driving depending on how many cars were ahead of you.

[tony_lee]

c.traveler2 wrote:
Do any of you guys have plans to drive clear up to Tuktoyaktuk on the new road ?

Yes we will head up there this coming season. Dallas leaving early March to Niagra to western Canada and then up all the way

[sue_t]

Our last trip to the Arctic Circle was in 2015.
http://yukonsights.ca/DempsterHwy.html

[Filterman]

SidecarFlip wrote:
You'll get a sandblast job on your lower body and chassis. Windshields don't fare well either.

Yes , you could get a cracked windshield but the odds are low because there isn't much traffic. To avoid road rash, I covered the front of our trailer the first 4' up with mattress carton and duct tape. No damage and just peel it off and scrap it when you get back to civilization.

[Filterman]

c.traveler2 wrote:
Do any of you guys have plans to drive clear up to Tuktoyaktuk on the new road ?

Our plans are for 2020. I'm thinking it will give it time to settle down a bit.

[Filterman]

c.traveler2 wrote:
Do any of you guys have plans to drive clear up to Tuktoyaktuk on the new road ?

Our plans are for 2020. I'm thinking it will give it time to settle down a bit.

[Filterman]

SidecarFlip wrote:
You'll get a sandblast job on your lower body and chassis. Windshields don't fare well either.

Yes , you could get a cracked windshield but the odds are low because there isn't much traffic. To avoid road rash, I covered the front of our trailer the first 4' up with mattress carton and duct tape. No damage and just peel it off and scrap it when you get back to civilization.

[c_traveler2]

Do any of you guys have plans to drive clear up to Tuktoyaktuk on the new road ?

[Filterman]

Spent many years living in the Yukon where there was virtually no pavement other than in Whitehorse. We have done the Dempster couple of times and love it. SLOW is the key. Take lots of time. As others have stated the northern gravel roads are 100% dependent on weather. We have been lucky both trips. If you get several days of heavy rain Ina row , it can mess with the road surface but as a rule it's pretty well maintained. Two ferry crossings but both operate pretty well. I'd plan on Six days travel time ( return) and probably a night or two in Inuvik. Inuvik is completely unique to any place else you will visit and worth a couple of days of poking around and walking.
We are planning a summer 2020 trip all the way to Tuktoyaktuk. As others have mentioned, a new all weather road opened in November of 2017. I'd like to give it a couple of years to settle in before we do it. There's fuel, commercial camping and services at Eagle Plains and pretty good services in Inuvik. There is also fuel at Ft MacPherson (when it's open ??). The scenery at both ends is kind of hohum but the high plains and mountain passes in the center are spectacular.
Happy travelling.