With another winter season upon us and everyone getting the sleds ready for some fun, I looked back at some of the snowmobile magazines that I have laying around my home. Sadly not one of them have an article about the Northwest Territories, and all the fun that can be had there.
If you have ever seen the history channel, you will know that there are a few shows about the north and more specifically Yellowknife, NWT. If not, check out Ice Road Truckers or Ice Pilots NWT—both of these started in Yellowknife.
Now I have been born and raised in Yellowknife for most of the 27 years that I have been around, and I have to say, I have never seen another area of Canada that looks like this. Don’t get me wrong, the mountains are great, the Prairies are fun and the lakes are always nice, but I don’t think they compare to the NWT.
When I was in high school, we had a student parking area. During the snowy months (and there were a number of them each year) you would see maybe a dozen cars or trucks parked out there, and possibly 100 snow machines. My high school was not down a long dirt road, it was downtown, very close to main street.
Easy access by sled
In Yellowknife, and I believe most of the NWT, you can actually drive an ATV or snow machine inside city limits, and down almost any street. Imagine this: you work at the other end of town, (a 20-minute drive in your car during rush hour), it's a beautiful day in March and only -25 C. Why take your car to work? Jump on your sled, let it warm up and off you go. You don’t have to worry about finding a parking spot nearly as much.
In Yellowknife we have a sledding club called the Yellowknife Trail Riders. They tend to go out every weekend that they can, and everyone there is a good person who has no problem showing new sledders around. The club does not maintain any trails, but that is not to say that there are not a lot of trails out there that go on for kilometre after kilometre.
During the winter months in Yellowknife, sled tracks lead everywhere—being right on the shore of Great Slave Lake means that there is great ice fishing all around. If that’s not your idea of fun, there are lots of trails—for both easy scenic riding and more difficult routes—to hit. If you only have an hour or so, why not hit some trails close to home? Sledders can pretty much get anywhere in town without a problem.
For all you folks who want to come up to Yellowknife for a visit and check it out, there are lots of places to stay, great restaurants and events throughout the winter. If the family doesn’t want to go sledding, check out the Caribou Carnival, held on a frozen lake on the last weekend of March. Every winter we have the Snow King build a one-of-a-kind snow castle (people have gotten married in them in the past and even slept in them). If you get out on the land and it is a nice clear night, chances are you will see the Northern Lights. There is nothing like stopping on a lake, looking up and seeing the greens, reds, purples, whites and blues dancing around the sky.
Prime conditions
The weather up here can get cold, with January and February being the coldest at around -45 C; the winds can pick up to about 40 kilometres per hour and the sun rises at about 10 a.m. and sets at about 3 p.m. March and April the ice is still thick enough to land a bush plane on, so there are no worries of going through, and the temperature will usually be about -20 C.
If you are looking for a place to stay, local hotels are more than willing to take you in. Check out the Explorer Hotel, located downtown, and world famous Super 8 or Chateau Nova just to name a few. If you want a smaller more personal experience, might I suggest a B&B? Embleton house B&B has great rooms, and Ken and Faith Embleton (owners/operators) will take excellent care of you and answer any questions you may have. Most of these places you can drive your sled right to and from.
When your stomach tells you it's time to eat, we have the fast food joints here, but a trip to Yellowknife is not a real trip without visiting Bullocks Bistro in old town—or you could check out Fuego’s. Both have great meals with a northern flair. For a French dinner, check out Le Frolic bistro and bar.
If for some reason you have the misfortune of a snowmobile breakdown, you can always stop in at Polar Tech Recreation for all your Ski-Doo Parts, accessories, and service. Force One will take care of your Yamaha and Polaris problems, and if you have an Arctic Cat, stop in at the Dodge dealership and the boys will fix you right up.
So the next time you are looking at a map wondering where your next adventure will be, why not check out the beautiful Northwest Territories? Just remember, they don’t call it the magnetic north for nothing, it will always pull you back.
