Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk

After spending a day in Inuvik, we broke camp the next morning. We were finally headed to Tuktoyaktuk.

The Inuvik – Tuktoyaktuk Road is about 90 miles of gravel road that goes inland from the Delta and, therefore, winds through an environment of Tundra and willow scrub.

This road is even tougher than the Dempster Highway. Speeds can consistently run lower than 25 miles-per-hour on the brutal washboard, unless you’re willing to float your rig.

Even up on the highlands of this area, the Mackenzie River has an effect and the tundra is not like the Eastern Canadian Arctic. The tundra here was dotted everywhere with willow shrubs up to 8 feet tall and an occasional aspen or spruce tree.

Along the shores of Hudson Bay, near Inukjuak, willows only grow down in ravines where creeks or rivers flow. And trees are non-existent until at least 250 miles to the south.

The Mackenzie River brings the tree line almost to the Arctic Ocean in this region of the circumpolar Arctic.

During the drive we saw countless Willow Ptarmigan and a Red Fox, which is another inhabitant of the area whose range is extended northward by the warming effect of the Mackenzie River.

Unfortunately, we didn’t see a Muskox or Caribou along the route. As soon as you get close to Tuk, you see a Landform very rare in the world which abounds in this area, the Pingos.

These hills are formed when a lake drains and the permafrost, which was melted under the lake, begins to re-freeze. As the permafrost freezes, the remaining water from the lake also freezes and bulges upwards to form a Pingo.

The Ibyuk Pingo pictured here, is the second tallest Pingo in the world at 161 feet. There are 1350 Pingos in the area surrounding Tuk. The Pingos served as navigational aids to the Inuvialuit (The Inuit of this region call themselves Inuvialuit) traveling in the region.

We took a family photo in front of the Welcome to Tuktoyaktuk sign and the girls went exploring down on the beach behind the sign. The Arctic Ocean coast is very convoluted in a maze of bays and channels here.

Petra found a harpoon made of steel and rusted to a beautiful patina. The harpoon was next to the spine and ribcage of what looked like a small Beluga whale.

The Inuvialuit quickly adapted modern materials during the contact period since it meant more efficient hunting, so using welded steel harpoon points just made sense, it was a better, stronger material than whale bone, caribou antler or stone. The modern materials meant less starvation and were, therefore, adapted.

The harpoon could have been a hundred years old or 10 years old, there was just no way to know. Out of respect for the Inuvialuit, and their lands, we left it where we found it, even though it would have made an amazing souvenir.

After arriving in Tuktoyaktuk, we set up camp on the peninsula that juts out in the Arctic Ocean. Then we walked around the village and saw the sights.

Sarah, Olive & Petra dipped their feet in Kittigazuit Bay of the Arctic Ocean. 

Another contrast between the Eastern and Western Canadian Arctic is that, here in Tuktoyaktuk, there is plentiful driftwood. The Eastern Arctic on Hudson Bay gets some driftwood, but not the massive stockpiles we saw around Tuk.

The Liard River pumps massive amounts of driftwood into the Mackenzie River, we had to dodge it for days after Fort Simpson while paddling, and then the Mackenzie brings it North to the Arctic Ocean.

We saw bays around Tuk that literally had tons of driftwood on the beaches. The Inuvialuit of Tuk, would use these massive Timbers and root balls to fashion the interior frames of sod houses.

There was a replica sod house that we were able to tour, although the local tour guides were smoking cigarettes in the enclosed sod house, so we didn’t stay long.

The driftwood timber frames were on the inside creating the walls and ceiling. Then the outside was covered with a thick layer of tundra mosses and peat. It was an amazingly well insulated and water tight abode. Warm in winter and cool in summer.

Peter head boats were a staple of Arctic supply lines from the early 1900’s until well into the 1960’s in some places. Tuk had a preserved Peter head boat dry docked that brought supplies to missions in the Western Arctic.

“Our Lady of Lourdes” was about 60 feet long and plied the waters around Tuk for many years. 

Here are a few links for more details about the checkered history of the schooner:

Our Lady of Lourdes, Tuktoyaktuk,1982caotica.com

Arctic Ground Squirrels had taken up residence under the schooner so it was fun to watch their cavorting and listen to their shrill vocalizations from our campsite a short distance away from the resting place of the ship.

While walking around the village, we made our way to Grandma’s Restaurant out on a beach in Tuk. Grandma’s is YouTube famous for offering Muktuk and a few other Inuvialuit delicacies.

Muktuk is the skin and blubber of a Beluga Whale. I have often heard Inuit speak of Muktuk the way that an American might speak of Pizza, but Muktuk is much healthier, especially when eaten raw! I know many Inuit who say that Muktuk is their favorite, “country food.”

Everyone in our family tried the raw Muktuk. I had eaten it in Inukjuak years ago, but Olive, Sarah and even our fussy eater Petra ate the 1cm X 1cm X 1 cm chunks of skin and blubber.

Olive asked for seconds and Sarah described it as a cross between the texture of octopus with the flavor of tuna sushi. Not surprising, given that Belugas feed on fish.

It was a good day in Tuk and we just so happened to be camping there, the day that the sun set for the first time all summer. The sun dipped below the horizon, but it was bright enough to read in the tent all night.

And it was a good thing too, because this is what I found to read in the tent before drifting off to sleep in Tuk.

The Dempster Highway was closed for fires that had been sparked the day we drove to Tuktoyaktuk. Yukon had seen 50 new fires erupt in a short period of time.

Two of the new fires were on the Dempster Highway to the South.

Our route to drive home after the apogee of our, now, road trip, after the canoe expedition was dashed by fire, was now closed due to fire.

We were DONE with the Canadian wild fires of 2023, but the Canadian wild fires of 2023 were not done with us, not by a long shot!

~ Umingmaq