Yellowknife to Fort Simpson

We picked up the van in Yellowknife and as all the campgrounds were closed 'two weeks ago' we decided to 'boondock' (in sailing we'd call it 'gunkholing', in RV-speak it's called 'boondocking') for the first night. We drove out about twenty-five miles along the Ingraham Trail and found a quiet spot overlooking a lake. All was well and we enjoyed this beautiful sunset.

Boondocking along the Ingraham Trail - Yellowknife, NT

After the sun set, it then got very dark and we were surprised when a van pulled into the lot in front of us and quickly switched off their headlights. A few people got out, they lit up cigarettes and hung around beside the van. We couldn't figure out why they would be here and were getting a little nervous when they kept hanging around. It got more mysterious when suddenly a few of them tiptoed by our van and headed down to the beach. As they went by we heard whispering, in Japanese! It was a tour group looking for the Aurora Borealis and they'd been driven out to this remote spot for a prime view. Guess they were as surprised as us to find the spot occupied. They spent an hour or two by the water, we identified their location by the little red lights shining brightly from each camera phone. It was a fairly cloudy evening and I doubt they saw anything and they left after a few hours. Yellowknife and environs really push Aurora tours. We often wonder how many tourists actually get to see the Aurora as it's really a matter of luck and being in the right place at the right time.

Next day we headed out on the highway towards Fort Simpson. We were really hoping we weren't 'two weeks too late' to miss an opportunity to visit Nahanni National Park, another dream destination for us. Fort Simpson is located on an island at the junction of the Mackenzie and Liard Rivers. It was fun taking the car ferry across the Liard and watching the skill of the captain as he docked against the fierce current. 'Docking' isn't really the right word as there is no dock. He basically lined the ferry up sideways to a gravel/sand beach area, slammed sideways into the shore and then pivoted around. Once perpendicular to the shore the engine was revved to hold us in place long enough so that they could drop the ramp and we could drive off.

We made our way directly to Simpson Air to enquire about a floatplane trip into the park. The only access to the South Nahanni is by airplane. They were still open and available and the weather looked great for the next day. With just the two of us, we opted for the cheapest option which was the flyover of Virginia Falls. After we'd booked and settled into our van for the evening, the owner of Simpson Air came by (it's not a big place). He had a third person for tomorrow and would we be interested in the longer trip option where we could land above the falls and do a walking tour for the same price? Would we be interested? Of course!

Virginia Falls, Nahanni National Park. Our floatplane landed on the river above the falls, look closely and you can see the dock at the upper left.

A closer view, the rock in the middle has been named Mason's Rock after Bill Mason (the canoeing icon) who worked for the establishment of the park.

The trusty little Cessna that got us there, note the snow patch. It was a beautiful clear, cold day with fresh snow on the walking trail to the falls.

On the way back.

We also landed on Little Doctor Lake in the park. Our descent took us very low and we flew right through that notch in the cliffs which was exciting. We met up with another Simpson Air plane already there.