Ice Road Rallying
Jul
2008
".. I thought I would sail about a little and see the watery part of the world. It is a way I have of driving off the spleen and regulating the circulation." -Melville Today our Pequod is a fabulious black BMW 325ix and our sails are full with a rowdy Beaufort Sea blow. But this is no excursion to harvest from the seas instead, a voyage of exploration. The last sign you see before getting onto the winter road to Tuk prohibits you from swimming in the area around the boat ramp. Another day in tourist mode is taking us on a roud trip from Inuvik to Tuktoyuktuk (Tuk) then halfway back down the Dempster highway to Eagle Plains. We launched down the ramp and made a right on the Makenzie river headed to the sea. The Mackenzie drains a big chunk of northern Canada west of the Rockies. Today it deposits us out on the Beaufort Sea where we follow a wide plowed path skirting the coast to Tuk (pop. 930) For safety all of the cars hav radios and the chater helps pass the time. Renee and her Florida accent was very quotable on the radio today. After lunch we’ll be heading back to Eagle Plains where we won’t hav Internet so the site will be quiet for a day or so.
February 23rd, 2008 at 7:15 am
On the way back south Ron and I were talking about pitching Discovery Channel an idea for mini-series based on Winter Alcan. Surely they can find ways to make it dramatic if they make trucks driving on ice at 25mph dramatic. Hans’ tripple axel pirouette on Blackwater is worth a segment alone.
February 23rd, 2008 at 9:24 am
Iron Chef Alcan! Secret ingredient: moose!