Maple Leaf School TRU. Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada Trip. March 25-28, 2018

Transcription

1 Maple Leaf School TRU Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada Trip March 25-28, 2018

2 Nine students and I set out for Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada on the afternoon of March 24. We soon learned that the airplane we were to leave on had trouble with the front landing gear arriving in Kamloops. This resulted in our flight being cancelled and we finally left the next morning bright and early at 6:05 am. This adjusted itinerary meant that we had an 8 hour layover (!) in Calgary before a late afternoon flight to Yellowknife. Hotel, rental car, and tour schedules were changed accordingly and it was with great relief that we finally touched down in Yellowknife at 7:05 pm on March 25, a full day late. Slave River Delta on Great Slave Lake Yellowknife as seen on the approach In short order, we had our rental van and luggage and headed to our hotel. Check-in went smoothly, and our rented cold weather clothes were waiting for us on one of our rooms. Within 15 minutes of arriving we were following our first guided tour of the trip to an area on the shore of Great Slave Lake, the 10 th largest lake in the world. Here, we were hosted by Guy Erasmus and his son Rainer. They are of Dene and Cree decent and shared with us an amazing amount of culture surrounding fur trapping and drum making. Our tour started by sledding down a hill to a traditional trapper s tent and tipi out on the frozen lake. Inside the tent, Guy explained and demonstrated different ways to trap animals from traditional methods to more modern ones. He had a great selection of furs from animals in the area as well that we could feel and learn about. From there a fire was lit in the adjacent tipi and we were taught about different methods of building tipis and how they work. By then it was dark and we emerged to see the beginnings of the aurora borealis (northern lights) forming in the sky. We were told it would get better at the night went on as we went into Guy s house for some delicious local Whitefish Chowder soup and bannock. After dinner (which was amazing), Guy showed us how to make caribou and elk skin drums in a traditional way. This led to some drumming and singing and eventually to making our own small craft drums to take home with us.

3 Sliding down the hill the set up on Great Slave Lake Guy showing us how traps work fire inside the tipi Drumming working on miniature drum crafts

4 The finished product Some of the drums Guy and Rainer have made By then it was getting late and we went back outside to observe more aurora. Rainer led the way to the ice road out on Great Slave Lake where it is easy to get away from city lights and view the aurora better. There is a major ice road that crosses one of the smaller bays on Great Slave Lake! It is plowed, marked by cones, and even has a speed limit. After some photos, Rainer left us to stay out for a bit and we had some fun with cameras and the aurora borealis. Yellowknife is one of the best locations in the world to see the aurora due to the amount of cloudless nights and being so far inland. To view it was one of the main purposes for coming to Yellowknife. After aurora viewing, we headed back to the hotel, arriving around 1:00am. One of the students with the Aurora Borealis behind

5 The first appointment on the next day was dog sledding and the pick-up time for that was 11:00 am. I woke up quite early and decided to go down the street for breakfast. As I walked past where we had left our vehicle I noticed it wasn t there! I was told by the hotel staff the previous day that I could park along the street until 9:00 am for free. Upon closer inspection I realized that there was a tiny sign where I had parked in the dark that said parking wasn t allowed at that particular spot after 3:00 am. This sign was very small (15 cm x 15 cms) and was on a pole only a few feet off the ground. The much larger sign above it that I saw the night before clearly stated it was legal to park there. Back at the hotel I got the phone numbers for the towing companies in town and soon located our van. $250 dollars later, we had our vehicle. In addition, we had a $50 parking ticket and a $40 cab ride was needed to get to the impound lot. In total, this parking infraction costed $340 and took 1.5 hours to fix. Fortunately, I was up early and had the time to deal with it. I later found out that if one went to city hall, one could get a free parking pass for visitors. From then on we had a nice yellow free parking pass on the passenger side dashboard The dog sledding company (Enodah Kennel) picked us up at 11:00 and we had a 25 minute ride out to where they keep their dog teams. We chose a tour company where visitors can learn to drive the dogs themselves. Four sleds went out on their trails at a time and did a 45 minute ride. The trails go through northern spruce forest and across some lakes. To put is simply, it was an amazing experience. The dogs are born to run and are amazingly strong. This particular company takes excellent care of their dogs and has won awards for doing so. Each student was able to drive their own dog team if they chose to. A fantastic experience in a gorgeous setting. Getting ready to head out on the trails

6 Along the trails

7 We arrived back at the hotel just after 2:00 pm and had some down time before our visit to the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre. This museum documents the life and history of the First Nations people in the area as well as the first Europeans that arrived. The exhibits are done very well and this place is certainly recommended to anyone visiting the area. It is located near the city hall so paying any parking tickets one might have is also very convenient (!) Photos below Learning about where mined metals for computers come from. Learning how the aurora borealis works. One of the exhibits

8 When we arrived on our first night, we noticed a sign for Chinese Hot Pot across the street from our hotel. We made reservations for 7:00 and it didn t disappoint! Each of us had our own individual hot pot and we gorged for the better part of an hour on shaved lamb, local whitefish, noodles, yams, potatoes, etc. etc. Because we were a group, the owner even threw in some complimentary ice cream for desert. After dinner we had some down time for digestion where most students took the opportunity to get some sleep before meeting in the lobby in full winter gear at 11:00pm to leave for aurora viewing. Hot Pot in Yellowknife right across the road from our hotel At 11:00 the display TV in our hotel lobby was predicting good aurora activity with a rating of 7/10. The previous night, which we really enjoyed, was rated at a 5/10 so we were eager to get to an area without city lights. I was tipped off earlier in the day about a place a short drive down the Ingraham Trail to a truck pull out where the aurora could be viewed safely away from fast moving traffic. This turned out to be an excellent location. When we arrived there was nothing in the sky. An hour later, still nothing. Soon it was almost 1:00 am and there still wasn t anything. Students passed the time by throwing each other into the snow banks on either side of the pullout and even foolishly tried to push their teacher once didn t end well for them. As if out of nowhere, there suddenly was aurora along the horizon and we scrambled the get a camera with a slow shutter speed set up. Within a few minutes the sky was alive with colour and then it started dancing in front of us. We watched mesmerized for the next minutes as an incredible show happened above us. I was amazed by how fast it moved and danced. Colours and movement were everywhere, it was difficult to choose the direction to point the camera.

9 The show lasted for minutes and then was finished as fast as it started. We were all thrilled that we had stayed out as long as we did! It was 2:00 am by the time we were in bed at the hotel and the next morning we had another tour starting at 9:00. This picture shows the aurora well but still doesn t do it justice

10 After as much sleep as possible, breakfast was scarfed down in the lobby of our hotel before meeting Rosie Strong from Strong Interpretation at 9:00 am. Rosie is a true Yellowknifer and enjoys taking guests on outings and activities in the area. She was instrumental in helping us organize our entire trip including pointing us in the direction of the other tours we did. Rosie also, through several phone calls in the months leading up to our trip, gave important advice for clothing, food, accommodation, activities, etc. etc. We were to trek to a frozen waterfall with her that morning. In the lobby she passed out ice cleats for students to attach to the bottom of their boots so they would have a little extra traction on the trek. At the trailhead, she also provided hiking poles for everyone and instructed us how to properly prepare for a few hours in the -27 degree weather. At several stops along the trail, Rosie explained to us the ins and outs of spruce forests and other natural phenomena in the Yellowknife area. She oozed local knowledge in everything from local birds to the history of the area. The frozen waterfall was scenic and photogenic and there was a small ice slide in front of it. Out of Great Slave Lake there was a snow quinzee that we all took turns crawling into. I think a few of the students would have liked to take a short nap in it, given all the activity in the last few days. It was difficult to get a few out of it. After the hike she took us for tea and scones at a mining heritage site and explained a bit about the importance of mining history in Yellowknife. The students soon were exploring the old equipment on their own including posing for a few photos. The tea and scones both had local cranberries in it and was delicious and refreshing. Walking along the lakeshore Some interpretation along the trail

11 Group photo at the frozen waterfall Sliding on the frozen overflow Frosted up after a hike in -27⁰

12 snow quinzee inside the quinzee old mining equipment used to haul supplies to Yellowknife across the lake WWII era machine that could travel on water or land tea and snacks are served

13 Rosie provided us with directions to a lookout and we decided to stop there and at the ice road in the daylight before heading back to our hotel. The lookout is home to a bush pilot monument. Looking out over the ice road from the viewpoint view of downtown Yellowknife in the background The ice road across one of the bays of Great Slave Lake

14 By then it was time for the students to get some more rest and warm up at the hotel, so we took it easy for the next couple of hours. We made plans to meet in the hotel lobby later and head to Snowking. Snowking is the name of a large snow and ice complex constructed on Great Slave Lake. Admission was only $5 and the walled complex has ice slides, various other play areas, an ice café, and even an area for concerts. We slid and looked around for the better part of an hour there.

15 That night we decided against aurora viewing given our 6:20 am departure the next morning. We left the hotel by 4:45 the next morning and returned our rental vehicle. The flights all went smoothly and we were in Kamloops by 4:15 that afternoon. Our connections were in Edmonton and Calgary. Further trip Details Flights: purchased through and were cheaper than I would have guessed. We flew Westjet on the way and Air Canada on the way back. Hotel: Quality Inn and Suites Yellowknife. Located right downtown with Tim Hortons and A&W right in the same building. No free breakfast but lots of food options within a couple blocks. A little bit of an older hotel but one of the best deals in Yellowknife. Booked through The online reviews are not the best but it is the best deal in the area in one of the best locations. Vehicle: 15 seat white Ford transit van. Not cheap in the NWT at over $500 for 2.5 days. We rented through National Car Rental in the airport because they were the only company to have large vehicles. Other options available at the airport but I would suggest reserving due to a lack of quantity. Aboriginal Tour: Excellent tour at a fair price. Guy and his son Rainer were very friendly and knowledgeable and enjoyed sharing First Nations culture with us. The craft to take home was a nice touch. Highly recommended. Dogsledding Tour: We looked at several dog sledding tours available in the area and decided on this one. We were trained to drive our own dog teams and the time actually on the trails was 45 minutes or more in a gorgeous setting. This is not a tour where you sit in the sled and take pictures of yourself driving. You get what you pay for and if dog sledding is a big attraction, this is the company to do it with in Yellowknife. Icefall Tour: Rosie Strong comes highly recommended. She was able to adapt the tour to our specific needs and circumstances. She is the kind of person who loves to share their area with visitors. Personable, extremely helpful, and a fantastic source of local knowledge. She is a real deal tour operator. Temperature and clothes rental: We were in Yellowknife in late March (March 25-28). The week before we came, the temperature was as high as zero during the day. The warmest we experienced was -18 and the coldest was just below -30 at night. We rented clothes from My Backyard Tours at the advice and insistence of several of the tour operators we used. This turned out to be well worth our money as the wind chill at night when aurora viewing can be quite low. The clothes we received were name brand extreme winter clothes. Canada Goose jackets, Sorel boots, Kombi mitts etc Clothes packages included a wrap around toque, neck warmer, pants, jackets, boots, and mitts. All were sufficient for the coldest temperatures that Yellowknife has to offer. Packages were dropped off prior to our arrival and picked up after our departure at our hotel. This made our trip comfortable but we also didn t need to pack winter gear on the airplanes. The gear was waiting for us in one of our rooms when we arrived and we dropped it off at the hotel reception when checking out. Aurora viewing: we were only out for two nights but found the best times to be between 11:30pm- 1:00am

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