Day 12 – Tuktoyaktuk


Tuktoyaktuk may be at the end of the road, the farthest north you can drive on a public highway in North America, but it is one of the friendliest places we have ever visited. This tiny fishing hamlet sits on a peninsula that juts into the Arctic Ocean, also called the Beaufort Sea.

 

It is surrounded by tundra and water, both sea and freshwater in the form of ponds and lakes. The permafrost is year-round and can occasionally be seen in cracks that heave up parts of the frozen ground which exposes the ice sheet (that is what the picture shows). And maybe most interesting of all, the sun does not set for over 50 days a year. It was interesting to watch the sun travel in an elliptical circle around the peninsula where we were camped.

These photos taken at 




4:30 PM










7:30 PM




12:30 AM





The highway to Tuk was just completed in 2017, before then the only access to the small village was by boat, by plane, or by ice road in the winter. That being said the local Inuviantians have primarily lived off the land like their ancestors. They are friendly and welcoming to those who are coming to visit their hamlet and seem surprised that someone would drive a long distance to get here. As we walked around the town there were smiles, waves, and “Welcome to Tuktoyaktuk!” from locals both young and old. Off and on during the day, the residents would stop into our campsite to visit, sell their crafts, or tell of us about something that was happening.
 
For example, there was a lot of excitement the day a hunter towed in a beluga whale!

The lifestyle is more laid back here and revolves around the sea, the weather, and the seasons. Snowmobiles and work sleds were littered on the tundra for miles on the way to Tuk… waiting for next winter’s snows and the ice road. ATV’s cruised through town, checking on the fish smoking shacks, nets, or neighbors until well after midnight. Stores don’t open until 10 and the visitor center doesn’t open until noon. However, it is open until midnight! 

The campground is still being set up 6 years after the road was completed (Covid didn’t help). They may get to numbering the campsites at some time, but for now you just pull in somewhere. Oh yes, and the attendant at the visitor center where you check in may have already cut out the hangtag with a site number (which is irrelevant), or he may do that while you are standing there. This outlook caused a few of the tourists we met to be a bit grumpy, but we really enjoyed the slower speed of life that encourages cheerfulness and laughter. 








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