Everything You Need To Know About Driving The Dempster Highway

What is the Dempster Highway?

The only road in North America that allows you to drive to the Arctic Ocean!

It starts just outside of Dawson City Yukon & ends in Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories (AKA. THE ARCTIC OCEAN!).

Its 886KM (550 MI) from start to finish ONE WAY.

The Details

• Its almost 900KM one way and although Google Maps says the drive will take 14 hours, it doesn't take into consideration that the road is in rough shape so you can’t drive the speed limit. One week is perfect for this road trip!

• The Dempster Highway is a gravel & crushed stone road built on a gravel berm over permafrost. This is not your average gravel road. It is in rough but manageable condition. There is lots of "wash board" sections and a lot of people get tire blow outs due to the loose rock.

• Fuel stops are limited and often far apart. The road stretches 900KM one way. Gas is available at the start of the highway & is the best price on the entire journey!

Other gas stops include:

⛽ Eagle Plains, 368KM’s into the drive (most expensive gas along the route)

⛽ Fort McPherson, an additional 182KM from Eagle Plains

⛽ Inuvik, 186KM from Fort McPherson

• You can pull over and sleep almost anywhere along the route. One exception to this is in Tombstone Territorial Park.

• Weather conditions can change in an instant, you might start the day in sunshine and end up in snow, even in the middle of summer. We saw ice at the start of August!!

• There are no cell service towers along most of the highway, so be prepared to disconnect completely once you leave Dawson City.

We would suggest getting the following things if you plan on doing this drive

• Bring spare tires & a tire repair kit (& know how to use them!) - we saw many people with blown out tires! We had 2 flat tires ourselves, but thankfully, with a tire repair kit, we were able to patch them up without needing to change the entire tire.

• Windshield repair kit - lots of rocks flying everywhere when other vehicles go past so its always a good idea to carry one of these!

• Satellite phone - no service the entire drive!

• Gas cans - long stretches of road with no gas, plus you will save money by filling these up before starting the drive!

• Lots of food & water - food is expensive here as its so remote, so stocking up before hand will save you money.

Information for Rv'ers

There are no dump stations on this road until the end. The only dump station is located at Happy Valley Territorial Park in Inuvik. This dump station is free to use. We would not recommend staying here as they have a lot of issues with crime.

If you want to camp in Inuvik, we recommend camping at Jàk Territorial Park, which is just outside of Inuvik (less than 10 mins).

You can fill up water for free in Fort McPherson, but we would not recommend staying here. It is $60 per night and did not look very nice. You can camp for free along the highway.

Make sure to bring extra tires for your RV/trailer.

Give yourself plenty of time for this drive. You cannot drive very fast on this road and even slower if you are towing/are a big vehicle.

Someone at our campground was towing a 5th wheel trailer on this drive and blew 8 tires. We think this was because he was likely driving to fast and was to overloaded.

Sample 7 Day Itinerary

Day 1:

• Leave from Dawson City, Yukon

• Stop for gas at the Dempster Highway Corner

• Get a video of the Dempster Highway Sign

• Arrive in Tombstone Territorial Park

Day 2:

• Explore Tombstone park, hike Grizzly Lake to Monolith Viewpoint 6KM, Moderate

Day 3:

• Hike Goldensides Mountain 6KM, Moderate in the morning before hitting the road.

• Gas up at Eagle Plains if needed

Stop at the Arctic Circle sign

• First ferry crossing - ferry runs daily from 9:15 am - 12:45 am from early June to mid-October

• Gas at Fort McPherson if needed

Day 4

• Second ferry crossing - ferry runs 8:15 am to 11:15 pm

• Stop at Tithegeh Chii Vitaii Lookout

• Arrive in Inuvik - we would recommend staying at Jak Territorial Park if you’re camping.

• Spend the day exploring Inuvik - try to be in • Inuvik on a Saturday if you can to experience their “Arctic Market”

• See the “Igloo church”

• Visit the Inuvik Welcome Centre to get your free Arctic Circle certificate

Day 5:

• Drive to Tuktoyaktuk

• Touch the Arctic Ocean!!

• Visit Pingo Landmark

• See the sod house

• Explore the town

• Back to Inuvik

Day 6:

• Inuvik to Engineer Creek

Day 7:

• Engineer Creek to start!