Vacation Planner_2018_0

DEMPSTER
HIGHWAY
Regions on this Drive
Northern and Arctic, p.102
Crossing the Arctic Circle
The Dempster Highway #5 is Canada’s only
all-season public road to cross the Arctic
Circle and is among the world’s most unique
driving routes. A drive up this unpaved,
two-lane highway begins with a visit to
Tombstone Territorial Park, a haunting
landscape memorable for its jagged peaks
and colour-stained hills. You’ll find plenty
of pullouts, day hikes and natural diversions
along the Dempster including abundant
wildlife. You’ll cross the Arctic Circle, where
the sun doesn’t set on summer solstice.
With limited services, two river crossings by
ferry, and long stretches across open tundra,
travellers are urged to be prepared.
Dempster Highway Drive
Travel from Dawson City to Canada’s
Arctic across breathtaking mountain
ranges and expansive subarctic tundra.
Distance: 736 km (one-way)
Time recommended: 5 nights (return trip)
Features: Tombstone Territorial Park,
Arctic Circle, Gwich’in culture,
Porcupine caribou herd
Activities: Hiking in Tombstone Park,
wildlife viewing in Blackstone Uplands,
crossing the Arctic Circle, camping at
Tombstone, Engineer Creek and Rock
River territorial campgrounds
Old
Crow
Inuvik, NWT
Trip Planning
Places to visit: Dawson City, Tombstone
Interpretive Centre, Eagle Plains,
Fort McPherson, Inuvik
Distances and approximate driving times:
• Klondike Corner to Eagle Plains:
369 km (6 hrs)
• Eagle Plains to Inuvik, Northwest Territories:
367 km (7 hrs), with Peel and Mackenzie
River ferry crossings (free) (seasonal)
Highways travelled: North Klondike
Highway #2, Dempster Highway #5
Local Attractions
• Tombstone
Interpretive Centre
• Tombstone
Viewpoint
• Two Moose Lake
• Blackstone Uplands
• Arctic Circle
Dawson
City
Stewart
Crossing
Eagle
Plains
Keno
Mayo
Arctic Circle
SILVER
TRAIL
WHITEHORSE
Regions on this Drive
Silver Trail, p.84
Drive the Dempster under the midnight sun – YG, C. Archbould
Silver Trail Drive
Journey from Whitehorse to Stewart
Crossing, then east on the Silver Trail
to the historic frontier mining towns
of Mayo and Keno.
Distance: 470 km
Time recommended: Minimum 2 nights
Features: Stewart River, a century of
mining history, the Peel wilderness
Activities: Historic sites, wildlife viewing,
hiking in the Wernecke Mountains, Keno
and Mayo walking tours, gold panning,
fishing, wilderness river trips in the
backcountry
Trip Planning
Keno Hill – YG, H.-G. Pfaff
Places to visit: Stewart Crossing, Mayo, Keno
Distances and approximate driving times:
• Whitehorse to Stewart Crossing:
354 km (4 hrs)
• Stewart Crossing to Keno (via Mayo):
110 km (2 hrs)
Highways travelled: North Klondike
Highway #2, Silver Trail #11
Local Attractions
Keno
• Keno City Mining
Museum
• Keno City Alpine
Interpretive Centre
• Signpost on
Keno Hill
Mayo
• Binet House
Interpretive
Centre
• Five Mile Lake
Silver and the Stewart
Highway #11, the winding Silver Trail,
passes through moose habitat and offers
scenic views of the Stewart River. A major
tributary of the Yukon River, the Stewart
lured prospectors to the area in the 1880s,
which led to significant mineral discoveries.
Today, Mayo is a thriving regional centre
that serves tourism, outfitting and mining.
Hiking and biking trails abound on the
Silver Trail, often passing by old cabins and
great fishing holes. Take the time to
explore Keno, where the northern mining
experience is still fresh, creating an
authenticity that you won’t soon forget.
Iconic Drives travel yukon.com 27