GOLDRUSH 2009

2009-08-07T11:20:00.000-07:00

My, it has been a long time. where have we been? what have we done? What haven't we done and where haven't we been would be more appropriate! Well, currently we're jotting this down from just outside of Inuvik, N.W.T., due south, on our way out of the Arctic Circle. Our summer in Dawson City has nearly wrapped up but we just didn't feel right leaving the north while there was still open road above us so we grabbed some friends, bought LeVan some new 'shoes' and took to the notorious, mud slick, pothole riddled nemesis of all that is automotive. Yes, five of us plus two huskies and trusty LeVan would face the 736 kilometer length of the Dempster Highway into the North West Territories to pay a quick visit to Inuvik, the northern most road access point in Canada. But before we divulge all the dirty details let's catch you up on a few other highlights.

Independence Day, July 4th 2009

Where better to celebrate the independence of our neighbours to the south, or, to the west in this case? Chicken, Alaska of course! Apparently sometime soon after the turn of the century the town was formed and was to be named Ptarmigan, but get this, no body in the town could agree on how to spell the name of the bird and so they settled on Chicken! That still makes me chuckle! the 4th of July is easily the biggest event of the year in Chicken when folks from 'all around' gather to drink, blow things up, listen to local bands play 'sweet home alabama' and jimi's 'star spangled banner' repeatedly before the event of the night: the launching of bras and panties from the Chicken Independence Day Canon... yes, canon! A typical event like this might quintuple the local population to a booming 75 people (give or take a few)!! The giftshop, liquor store, bar and diner (all one building... the only building) were bustling with activity, you could barely find a spot in the parking lot!!
'Beautiful downtown Chicken'

'Hooray for Independence!'
'face-melting-harp-solo!'

Day to Day in Dawson City

'i'm-a-eatcha-fishy!'

'all she needed was a little rest'

'Annual Dawson City Motorcycle Skills Competition'

'Draggity-A$$ Thursday @ The Midnight Sun'

'a few goodbyes... bonne chance!'

Grizzly Lake, Tombstone Territorial Park

We quit our jobs and set out to enjoy a few local adventures before our nearing departure back to the south and back to the east. We'd been to Tombstone but we kept hearing stories of more. so off we went in search of Grizzly Lake. constantly hiking over loose rock can be fairly cumbersome at times but we tried our best to look up every once and a while and remind ourselves that we were traversing the spine of a small range of mountains on our way to one of the Yukon's most beautiful locations. Before long we were pushing our way through the brush towards Grizzly Creek and Grizzly Lake. We reached the clearing and in an instant we were struck with awe, our breath and our words were snatched away. This time of year in the Yukon the sun sets for hours and we spent those hours sitting by the creek and sitting by the lake soaking everything in. As we sat there we knew we'd never be able to find the words. Oh ya, Lauren killed her first fish....killed, gutted, scaled, skillet....what a girl!
"i'm sorry, i'm sorry, i'm sorry... AAAHHHH!"

'hike prep'
'holy hike!''so beautiful i just wanna take all my clothes off!'
'Grizzly Creek''Grizzly Lake... sigh...'

The Dempster Highway to Inuvik

'here goes nothing'
'just a touch of mud'
'so... here we are at the arctic circle, learning''just a pinch of fog'
'dun-dun-DUN... polar bears'
'this one's for Warren on his Birthday'
"this is why i come up here... NATURE!!"'nice school buses Inuvik... not!'
'just enough time to cast a line, slam a beer, Mr. Noodles and head back'

So, sorry about the long pause between entries...just 'busy' i guess. Anyways we're on our way home, actually our exact location is once again the Super 8 Motel parking lot, Fort Nelson. Free Wireless! A-MEN!

Hold your breath for further updates. Who knows when we'll be in your neighbourhood....

Muk-Tuk.

There are strange things done in the midnight sun...

2009-06-27T16:55:00.000-07:00

Summer Solstice. A night never to be forgotten once having experienced the true meaning of the 'longest day of the year'. Hundreds of people flock to the top of the local mountain, known to all as the 'Dome', as it soars above Dawson and it's gentle descent seems to wrap itself perfectly around the quiet town below. The view from the top is a 360 degree window to the world, snow-capped mountains in the distance partnered by never-ending green wilderness from the immediate foreground to as far as the eye can see, the sole visible interruption would be the mighty Yukon River dividing the for-mentioned between East and West.

'Midnight'

I feel as though we were always warned never to stare at the sun, however it becomes difficult to look away when the sun is painting magnificent hues of pinks purples and blues across the midnight sky while hovering above the far-off mountains only to dip behind said mountains and turn around and come back up again.

12:47 am; check it.
12:53 am; dazed and amazed.

Now i'll clarify as we too were told that 15 minutes was all it took. I'm not sure how you judge what is sunset and sunrise but it did take a few hours before we could physically see the shape of the sun, in all its glory, come back up again. The beautiful sky on the other hand was consistantly changing and I suppose, though we couldn't see it, the sun was the master behind all the beauty.

1:03 am; max makes music.

Now I know we've all seen a sunset and or sunrise before, but it was the sheer glee that every single person sitting atop the mountain shared. Never in my life have I experienced such positive energy circulating through such a large crowd. Smiles were abundant, hugs were being dished out like day-old bread, and kind words we're spread in what seemed like an old fashioned game of 'pass-it-on'.

12:50 am; happy.

12:51 am; happier!

The tales of the eve are plentiful, and as we load images in attempt to match what's written it is obvious that these photos speak much louder than words. So instead of rambling on about how 'cool' summer solstice in the north has been we'll let you use your imagination while skimming through the rest of these pictures. Book your flights now for next year!

12:50 am; people pod

1:12 am; life is beautiful!
1:31 am; a little bernie on the banjo
2:47am; Hey Don!
2:54 am; claire!
2:56 am; too many wine bottles on Levan, a little spillage.
3:28 am; hangin'.
3:30am; 'Here Comes the Sun'
3:32 am; Stephen
4:25 am; friends.
4:41 am; still smiling.
5:06am; loving.

6:06 am; homeward bound.

Miss you all! Thanks for following our adventure. Without you, what in the heck would we be doing with all of our free time?

Next stop: Chicken, Alaska.
Ari-va-der-che-ba-by.

Arctic Waters. No problem.

2009-06-20T10:58:00.000-07:00

In an extraordinary moment of spontaneity we pulled together a few friends and under the midnight sun drove ourselves a few hours north to the magical land of Tombstone Territorial Park; coincidentally surrounding ourselves by the 'Ogilvie' Mountain range.
We drove through some extremely mystical fog, having not the faintest of idea of what lay beyond. Dodging pot hole after pot hole down the infamous Dempster Highway, the only highway leading to the northern most parts of the Yukon. Oh ya, did I mention the highway is barely 2 lanes and made out of dirt.

The mosquitos were REALLY bad.

Don's reaction to my 'bug jacket'.

Now for the good stuff, come morning (?) we pull ourselves together and scan the horizon for the perfect mountain to tackle, we ponder as there are dozens to choose from. However the one straight south of our campsite and across the Klondike River seemed most appealing to all.

Off we go! Trail? Who said anything about following a trail?

Neil and Dana; Moments of Deliberation.

Scaling the river bank, searching for the perfect place to cross, with sub-zero temperatures and an extreme current we had to choose our course... wisely?! So, as wise as we are, off come the shoes and onwards. You know those ice coolers at the LCBO? Have you ever held your hand in there for ...fun? Well times that by 5zillion and you'll understand the temperatures our little toes were facing.

'Here goes nothing. Is that snow?? SNOW??? What day is it again? June___?'

Now, for the longest portion of the river...

Jan and Lauren. Bare feet n' all!

After losing all feeling in our feet we made it to the base of 'our mountain'. Now for the terrain, imagine climbing straight up hill on a trampoline, or even better, a water bed.

"Who had the Peanut Butter, Jam, Cheese, Hot Sauce and Nutella?" Yummy! Condiment Sandwiches. I know you're all salvating right now!

Beautiful Scenery

'Ok we're just about high enough'. See Don???

From left: Lilly and Buks.
Showing off their incredible mountain climbing skills, running circles around us.

Don and the Mountains

Dr. Seuss?

And, for the last lag of the journey home look what incredible wonder decided to show it's face.
Guess what time it is? Free love to the person with the closest guess!

Now remember how we crossed the river...well believe it or not we had to cross back. However now we felt invincible to the elements for having conquered not only the river but the mountain too, we figured we'd head straight for the campsite, and not back towards the lengthy yet shallow part of the river. Now we don't have this portion of the hike documented as we found ourselves at the edge of the narrows with campsites in clear site on the opposite side. The only problem was the glacial water rushing past us in between. What to do? No problem, linking arms, we shuffled ourselves through waist deep arctic waters all the while Buks sat calmly cradled in Don's arms. What a site we must've been stumbling up onto the campsites of those RV-ing types.
Home sweet home. Weiners and beans for all!

Stay Tuned!
ps. we have a flat tire.

"We wear our sunglasses at night"

2009-06-04T12:53:00.000-07:00

Dawson City, our destination and home for the last 2 weeks. How to describe this place?

Let's see, as i'm walking down the dirt roads watching leash-less dogs chase each other and ravens pick the boardwalks clean of scraps i feel that i should be packing a pair of six shooters on my hip just in case some lousy pilgrim wants to start something at the saloon. It's like being in an old western film, or at least on set during the filming of one but all the lousy pilgrims are friendly faces saying hi and the saloon is, well, a saloon. We have been living quite literally 'in our van, down by the river', just a five minute ferry ride away from town. There is a beautiful camp ground there where we've managed to strike a deal to work for our stay, at least for the time being; our challenge to live rent free for the summer is on track!
The tourist season has definitely started in these parts and it makes for an interesting mix of daily events, just the other day we watched as a shining clean coach bus pack full of German's and telephoto lens' loaded off the ferry next to an old beat up pick-up with an anxious pack of six sled dogs in the back. Speaking of sled dogs it's our pleasure to announce that we are the proud new caretakers of a little black Alaskan Husky named Bukowski (like the author) or "Buks" for short. He adores Lauren and runs away on Don but we're working on that. Our days are starting to fill up with work shifts here and there, between the two of us we're life-guarding, nannying, truck unloading, house-keeping and camp site cleaning. All that keeps us busy when we're not dog walking, campfire cooking, dog chasing, socializing with sweet new friends, lost dog finding and soaking up the suns rays 22 hour a day. From Left: Jan, Dana, Jess, Claire, Rachel, Lauren (small portion of Dawson's Montreal Community).

Introducing Dan Smeby! Our resident soil sampler!

The Eldorado Hotel: Where Lauren plays Maid

Just another sidewalk, that makes for a little extra bounce in every step.

Local watering hole: Our friends who live 'Upstairs'. Spend many-a- day people watching from their windows. From Left: Rachel, Madeline, and Celyn

Lastly these days most popular activity. Finding broken bikes at the 'free store' then fixing them enough to ride around town. From Left: Celyn, and Rachel.

Not afraid to say, we definitely wear our sunglasses at night. We'll be sure to continue to keep you up to date on any adventures, or at least mildly entertained with more silly videos as the days go.

Thanks for reading. Until next time.

New Address: LeVan, Down by the River, Dawson City Yukon 527NFA

2009-05-19T12:43:00.001-07:00

Since we last spoke you've probably been sitting on the edge of your seat wondering whether or not we made it out of Fort Nelson alive. You'll be glad to know that we did! We made it all the way to Dawson City, finally after 8 long treacherous days (not really) we've settled in and are now prepared to release stories of our final days on the road.

Before leaving Fort Nelson we were sure to check up on the "must-dos" while in town. The Liard Hot-Springs immediately tickled our fancy, and as luck would have it they we're on our way 'out of town'- next time they decide to list it as a must-do, Fort Nelson, they should mention it's a whopping 7 hour drive north. It's like visiting Hamilton and being told that Algonquin Park is a must-see while in town. Suffice to say it felt great to lose the hefty sweaters in exchange for a warm pool and bathing suits for a few hours.

So... we saw a Grizzly!! Just as we we're conversing over the fact that a Grizzly Bear would probably be one of the least likely bears to see, who do we see? A Grizzly, playing a solo game of hop-scotch along the side of the highway, showing off the kind of playful movement that made you want to run straight for it in search of one-a-them "bear-hugs". We also had fun getting up close and personal with a whole-lotta buffalo as they munched away at the roadside greenery without a care in the world.

Day 7 rolls around and we wake up in Watson's Lake (middle of nowhere), Yukon and we rolled in late with the gas light on with no money and at least a day from the last cell signal, we weren't sure what to do. I throw a mild hissy fit while Don stays calm, keeping a slight distance from me at all times...just incase. I take a few deep breaths and we decide that the only thing we can do is hope that a few nice people will see us, take pity, and donate a little gas to our cause. All I gotta say is thank god for pay-it-forward, we felt shy and slightly mortified at our money miscalculations prior to departure but there we're a few town-folk who we're instantly reminded of the 'good old days' and didn't think twice about donating a little gas to help us go the distance.

On this day the final of 8, we made our way through every season. Waking up to what felt like an average February morning, terrified that it would only get worse in our final 500kms due North. Throughout the morning the weather turned from bone-chilling snow-storm, to sunny spring skiing weather, eventuall to spring, and finally to an afternoon so warm it nearly felt like summer and at long last we rolled into beautiful Dawson City. Straight out of an old western movie with it's board-walk sidewalks, dirt roads, and amazingly crooked store-fronts, we were here... home for the next 3 months.

Practical and Fashionable: Sleeping bags while you drive!

2009-05-13T07:47:00.000-07:00

So apparently we didn't get the memo; spring has not sprung. It's 40 below!!!!!! Atleast -3 feels like -40 when you were fortunate enough to just taste the beginnings of summer and to then have it brutally ripped from your grasp... but we regress.

We haven't seen internet for 4 days now, so we have a lot of catching up to do. A few sights, some new records, a touch o' wildlife, 1791 kms, and did we mention the extreme weather?

Here's the key points:

Day 1: Mountains just North of Whistler! WoW! Driving a whopping 25km/hr uphill most of the day (mind you we started at 3:45pm).
Overnight #1 Lilloet Dam

Day 2: Moose, deers, tree-planter, stallions, goffer (sp?)
Purchased new starter kit- $2, hammer
Our favourite 'DON-HO' record selfishly excused himself through the crack in the sliding door without any remorse.
Overnight #2 100 Mile Provincial Park

Day 3: ... Kind of uneventful, got stuck in the northern metropolis of Prince George for a couple, back on the road for a few and an early quit for steaks on a fire.
Overnight #3 Tudyah Provincial Park

Day 4: This one was fun! We woke up to snow, Lauren got us the hell out of there while Don stayed in bed.
We pushed 900 kms this day in 13 hours, do the math, we're averaging 69 km/hr.
Lacking a grinder, lauren smashed coffee beans with our new starter kit (hammer) to make a stiff cup a' joe that got us through a short afternoon slump.
Moose x a bunch + deer x a trillion + bald eagle x a few + peregrine falcon x a couple + ducks x a quack + a conspiracy of ravens + wolves x 2, 1 owl, and a black bear... and a patridge - pear tree = "this is why i come up here! GOULET!!"
Overnight #4 IGA parking lot, Fort Nelson

Last but certainly not least we must mention a few records were made. Don and Lauren put in solid numbers this day but the star, without a doubt of day 4 is LeVan! setting two new personal bests and possible world records (waiting to hear back) LeVan pushed the bar in both the Downhill Neutral-Gear Speed event at 126 km/hr as well as in the Warning Gas-Light Distance event with an incredible distance of 76.7 km traveled before 'hitting the wall'. Great job LeVan, you're an inspiration to us all!

Day 5: current status: stealing a wireless signal from Super 8 Motel parking lot, waiting for gas to grow on trees.

one swift tap to the starter and away we go!

2009-05-07T12:37:00.000-07:00

After carefully considering the 'font' we feel prepared to share the inauguration of our adventures with you...

Following countless minutes of deliberation Lauren and I decided to go for the first and only van we'd looked at, call us crazy but she purrrs like a kitten. And so our adventures with LeVan (leH-vAUghan) began. We've worked hard prepping her for the journey ahead; days have been spent at Canadian Tire selecting only the finest of automotive oils, adhesives, and other liquids not to mention matching sporty seat covers... and The Club (but a cheaper knock off of course, that shit's expensive!). We've stocked up on supplies, barely planned our route and we're departing tomorrow at the crack of dawn... right after All You Can Eat Sushi. We're hoping to keep this blog fun and exciting so you don't all have to lie about having read every entry when we get back, let's see how it goes.

Until next time,
さようなら suckers!