Life flourishes under the Midnight Sun, the arctic summer phenomenon that transforms the land into a northern nursery. Tens of thousands of barren ground caribou and migratory birds return to northern Yukon to bear young, and the tundra bursts into bloom. Hardy plants compete for space among jagged black spires and weathered hills of lichen encrusted slate. By late summer the landscape is a riot of colour: a changing palette of crimson, orange and gold. The Gwich’in people return to the land for traditional activities like hunting and berry picking, and a setting sun once again consumes the flanks of the Richardson and Ogilvie mountains.

Fortunately, you don't need a backpack to experience this magical land. Just beyond the edge of civilization, a single road punches north across this wild Yukon frontier. The Dempster Highway — Canada's only all-weather road to cross the Arctic Circle — is among the world's most unique driving routes. Starting near Dawson City, this unpaved 736-km two lane highway traverses North Yukon all the way to Inuvik, Northwest Territories.

You'll want to carry extra fuel, spare tires and allow for delays on your journey, because the splendid untouched landscape also brings with it some splendid isolation. With services at both ends—and just one lone outpost in the middle—the journey north and back has its challenges. But don't let the Dempster's reputation as a road less traveled deter you. This all-season gravel highway is well-maintained, and for roadside explorers seeking passage through true northern wilderness, the ease of access and expansive views are unmatched.

25th Anniversary
By most standards the Dempster is a young highway. This year marks the 25th anniversary of its official opening and organizers have a grand celebration planned for June 19th that will reunite highway alumni for tall tales and foot-stompin' tunes. The anniversary festivities will continue June 21 for the Summer Solstice at the Arctic Circle, where the midnight sun will make it easy for revelers to stay up all 'night'.

Built in stages through the 1960s and 1970s, armchair road-builders find the Dempster's design fascinating. To prevent the permafrost from melting and the corridor sinking into the ground, engineers built it on a pad of gravel to insulate the frozen ground beneath. The highway was named for Inspector Dempster of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, an indefatigable Mountie who patrolled the region by dog team along a traditional Gwich'in route.

At the Fork of the Klondike River
A drive up the Dempster begins with a visit to the Tombstone Mountains Interpretative Centre, an hour and a half north of Dawson City.

Here you'll find travel and event information, and naturalists offer interpretative walks, special events and tips on wildlife viewing along the highway. Nestled nearby in a spruce grove along the north fork of the Klondike River is the popular Tombstone Campground. For a hundred kilometres the highway is flanked on both sides by Tombstone Territorial Park, a haunting landscape remembered for its jagged peaks and colourstained hillsides.

Easing up the Dempster in a car or RV, there are plenty of pullouts, day hikes and natural diversions. Hills with alluring names beckon for easy day hikes: Goldensides, Angelcomb, Pilot's Peak and Sapper Hill. Take a few steps from the highway and forge across tussocks and through hip-high thickets of willow, and sink your feet into plush pillows of moss and lichen. The distinctive tundra aroma fills the nostrils—a verdant, earthy mix of Labrador Tea, berry bushes and dwarf birch.

Crossing the Continental Divide
The Dempster Highway traverses the Continental Divide three times, and snakes past glaciated features as well as the distinctive Beringia landscape left untouched by the last Ice Age. Where woolly mammoths and sabre-toothed tigers once roamed, now moose, caribou, grizzly bears and wolves make their home. Migrating swans, geese, ducks and shorebirds join residents like ptarmigans and ravens in thickets and wetlands that dot the tundra.

Distances can be misleading on this journey. Halfway up the highway, drivers pull in at Eagle Plains to refuel and some to stay the night. Though Eagle Plains lies just 369 km from the start of the Dempster, the journey can take an entire day depending on weather, road conditions and explorations along the way. A little further up the highway, a sign marks 66° 33' north latitude, the point where travelers cross the Arctic Circle. On summer solstice, June 21st, the sun doesn't set at the Arctic Circle — the further north you travel, the higher the midnight sun.

Autumn Tundra
As the frosts of late summer touch the tundra in mid August, a crimson parade is ignited in northern Yukon. The abrupt chill turns expanses of green and brown tundra into sheets of gold and scarlet. The show of colour lasts from late August into early September, and travelers have front row seats from the Dempster Highway.

Plan to take a week for your Dempster driving adventure: a few days for the drive north, a couple of nights in Inuvik, and one to two nights on the return trip to Dawson. Twelve campgrounds are located along the highway and accommodation is found at Eagle Plains. After completing your journey, you can retire to the lively heritage town of Dawson City and, in the spirit of Robert Service, sidle up to the bar and spin a few good yarns of your own.