After reading experiences of drivers travelling the Yukon’s Demster Highway, I decided it wasn’t for me. The day before I left Inuvik, a tourist had busted his motorbike on the dirt road coming north, so I knew I’d made the right decision to fly in and out of the northern town.
Over the last decade or so, airline security has become vigilant. Even on flights within Canada, security is tight, so the Air North flight to Dawson City was like stepping back into simpler times. It reminded me of when I first landed in Denpasar, Bali and was escorted into a tin shed to get my passport stamped. In Inuvik there was no scanning passengers or handbags for dangerous weapons. Everything was casual and friendly. I climbed the steps into the small aircraft on the runway and was told to sit anywhere.
After we landed, I waited for my bag to be carried into the small waiting room. It was then I discovered there was no bus or taxi into Dawson City. A woman overheard me asking and before I knew it, she offered me a ride into town. As we headed out, we passed piles of tailings—heaps of rocks left by miners in their search for gold from a century earlier. I was dropped right at my hotel’s door and that was not the last of my experience with Dawson City’s friendly vibes.
From here to there 