I Made it to the Arctic Circle! Solo Ride through Dempster Highway – EP. 254

I Made it to the Arctic Circle! Solo Ride through Dempster Highway – EP. 254

I look a little bit rough this morning. I went to bed a little bit late, but that’s okay. I regret nothing. Right. So. Now. This is a very important moment of my journey because today, I’ll be traveling to the Arctic Circle. And Arctic Ocean.

So from Dawson City to Tuktoyaktuk is about 900 kilometers through gravel. Which can be very slippery when it’s wet, but that’s okay. We’re gonna take two days to get there, so I’ll camp today somewhere on the way, and tomorrow we’ll get to Tuktoyaktuk. And then we’ll come back to Dawson City.

That’s roughly the plan, but it is a very important sort of moment, you know? Of my Around-the-World Journey because… yeah. I’ll make it to the Arctic Ocean! Chillie will get there with me! I mean… Wow. [Intro Music] So this is Dawson City on Sunday morning. I think everyone is just recovering.

From last night. Absolutely amazing place. So, yeah. Yesterday, we didn’t walk around too much, so that’s why I’ll just drive around. To show you what’s going on. I can’t believe there are so many heritage buildings! And they’re like, really preserved nicely. Ah! What a beautiful day. Right? They have a ship.

This ship – Is it on the river? No, it’s on the land. Super cool. I wonder if it can stay there of it’s just like a… All of that after yesterday’s storm! So many fallen down trees! I was so lucky

That none of them fell on me while I was riding through this road. It was just the craziest storm. Anything – I’ve never experienced anything like it. That’s it! This is the turn-off to the Dempster Highway. Literally to the Arctic Ocean. I like that sign. Arctic Ocean! That way. I mean,

In how many places in the world you can just ride your motorcycle all the way to the ocean? Not many. And we’re on the gravel. 880 to the Arctic Ocean. Woohoo! Right. And this is Tombstone! Terra- National Territory Forest? Something like that. Don’t quote me, but yeah. It’s a big thing here. So… Here, you can hike. Well, I mean there’s a lot of hiking. There’s a lot of like, walk-in campgrounds around the park. But of course, yeah. We’re not hiking.

Uh… We are just going to the main camping. And apparently – that’s what I’ve heard – across the whole… You know, all across Dempster Highway, this Tombstone Campground is the most beautiful. Yup. We’ll see. But that’s what I’ve heard. Okay. That’s it! This is us for tonight. This is the campground.

Tombstone Mountain Campground. There you go. And this is – Uh-huh. Hi, squirrel! Oh, wow. Chillie. Okay, we probably need to get an envelope. Pay twenty bucks. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. We want the one with the shelter, Chillie. Totally. In case it rains again. But I doubt it because

I booked nice weather for us, for this trip. Okay… What about here? I like it here because it’s just like… Maybe we should have the one with… I do like this one… It won’t rain. Let’s go in here. I like the trees. Yeah. This is a gorgeous little one.

How’s that, Chillie? We can look at the mountains, and at the trees, and all of that type of – yeah. Done. That’s us. And… We’re all set for the night. Now it’s time to do the paperwork. So you fill that one out… I’ve been writing with this pen since the start of my trip. Over six years in a row, this pen has been always with me. Like, the Ozzie one. See? Okay. Now, money. So this cost twenty dollars.

Twenty dollars. I got it, I got it, I got it. Uh-huh, uh-huh. Twenty Canadian money. Like Ozzie money, they’re plastic. They don’t tear. Waterproof and all. Okay, and then we put it in a… In here. And then you… Oh, you lick it. Oh well. Eugh. That’s it! And we just put it here.

There you go. Oh! No! Stay! There you go! And then the park ranger will collect it at the end of the night. Welcome to Kinga Cooking Show again. Today’s dinner: lentils, fake meat, stock… That’s it. That’s a mozzie repellent. Right. It’s all happening. Oh! And a potato.

It’s gonna be just like this, you know? Like a soup thing. Quite healthy and nutritious, so it should be good. Yeah. Okay! My meal is ready. Uh-huh, uh-huh. It’s thick. Uh-huh. Okay, let’s try. Well done. So good. So simple. But so good. It’s like a mixture of everything I have. Last task before I go to bed, I need to hang my food, and normally I would hang it on a tree.

Oh my God, it started to rain. Um… But here at the camp, they have a food hanger. I’ll show you. And then what? That’s it! I think that’s it! Zip! Good morning! I’m still alive. Bears didn’t eat me. My food was safe. And now it’s the big drying time. We’re good to go! It’s time to cross to the Arctic Circle. Today is a big day. First stop, five hundred meters away from the campground, uh… Just to check out this ice. Look! There’s like a little… I don’t know, I wouldn’t call it a lake. Maybe like a pond or… Maybe water that’s collected to the river. But there’s still like, really thick ice on it. Interesting. Look at this landscape. So much beauty. You know, it reminds me a little bit of Kyrgyzstan? Tajikistan? You know, in that area? Really. Wow. It’s a beautiful park. So yeah, we’re still in Tombstone. For a while. I think that’s the most scenic part of the road. But we’ll find out. Uh, yeah. I must say, gravel here is in a very good condition. So I call it – That type of gravel, I call it ‘relaxing gravel’. You can just sit on whatever speed you really want to sit on. Really, you’re just like traveling through paved road. Except for maybe a few potholes.

So far. So far. We have some serious traffic going on here. A lot of dust. Okay, we have to overtake this big guy. He’s causing a lot of dust. And we can’t see a thing. What’s in front of him? It would be nice if he could give us signs. He’s not giving signs. That’s okay.

See you later. Good, he was going uphill so he was slow. All right, and now we’re going down! Wow! This is beautiful. I had no idea this route would be so scenic! I was expecting just a boring road up and down. But this is like, the landscape is changing. It’s really beautiful here! Okay, our little break is over. That’s a nice view. But now we have to take over these other trucks again. We still have 110 kilometers? To the next petrol station. So this is the longest stretch between the petrol stations. It’s 370 kilometers, right?

So it’s not too bad. We can do it with Chillie on our two tanks. The main one and a camel tank. Okay. Right! Time to go! Again, I feel like – it just feels like we’re on the top of the world. The road just goes there and there, through the hills.

So here, we’ve got a little bit of… Every now and then, there are these rocks. I’m not sure if that’s what people meant. Apparently this road is uh… Maybe it’s gonna get worse later, but uh… A lot of people have punctured tires here. On the road, yeah.

Fingers crossed, nothing is gonna happen to us, Chillie. Uh… And this year was very fatal. Uh, three bikers died on this road. Three different accidents. And recently, a cyclist was hit by a truck. Uh, so, yeah. This year has been a very sad year.

Here we have a section that hasn’t been graded for a while. And it’s so hard to see because the sun is going – shining so – Anyway, so what I’m trying to say is, yeah. Here and there you’ve got this dust. These patches of dust. We made it to Eagle Plains.

So this is – This is the hub. This is where they get the fuel. This is where the campground is. They have a lodge. They have a restaurant. Okay, we have fuel. Yeah. I’ve got it. All right. So, the restaurant is closed so no lunch here.

I don’t feel like camping here. Well actually, let’s check out the facilities because I might camp here on the way back or I’ll camp in the wild. I don’t know. Let’s see what they have here. Okay. So. That was the petrol station. And this is the hotel.

Lots of bikers. This is pretty much where most of the people stop. The restaurant is closed, but they have a shop. And I need water. And yeah, that sort of stuff. All right. There’s really nothing here. The restaurant is closed. The shop has nothing. And plus, it’s closed, too. So we’re just gonna keep going. Arctic Circle is very close. We’ve got probably, I don’t know, thirty k’s or something like that to the Arctic Circle. And then we’re just gonna keep going

Until we get tired. That’s the plan. What’s the time now? It’s three o’clock. So we still have… I wanna say we still have a little bit of daylight, but like, daylight… It’s always daylight. All right! Let’s go, Chillie! I think this is it! This is it! This is it! Da-na-na-na! Are you ready? Ta-na-na-na. Wow. We made it. That’s it! After six years and four months – Actually, no. No. What is it? June. After six and a half years on the road, I finally made it to the Arctic Circle. That’s it! Ha-ha!

With Chillie, of course, and yeah. There’s not many places on planet Earth that you can ride your bike to the Arctic Circle, and it’s… Yeah. It’s a big achievement I reckon, Chillie. Yeah, we’ve done it! Tick. [off camera] Do you want me to just click or hold it? [Kinga] Okay. You ready?

No, no, no, don’t click anything. It’s recording. Don’t click anything. Just hold it. Okay. Good frame? Good frame. It’s an important moment. Hold on. We made it! Take… 105. Due to harsh conditions and uh, yes. And windy conditions, I had to change the mic twice. But this one seems to be working.

This is Bill and Pattie. We just met here at the… What do you call it? [Bill] Arctic Circle? Car – yes. Parking. These guys are traveling now. You are from Oregon, right? And you’re going like, up and down and everywhere? So, in the van. And uh… Yes. And

As it happens, like, they helped me out with my getting the great footage from this epic place, so. Bill now is gonna record me dancing because it’s a very important moment. So you’d better get it right, Bill. I’ll try. No pressure! No pressure. How’s my dance? And… We made it! All right. Our little photo shoot is done. It was so much fun. Okay! Now it’s time to find… a spot for tonight. I think I will continue for another 130 kilometers. There’s like a campground, apparently. Or maybe sooner. I don’t know. We’ll see how we go.

So yeah! Tonight, we’ll be camping at the Arctic Circle! Yay! Woohoo! See ya! These guys just had a flat tire, and they’re just changing it. Yeah, this road is quite trouble for flat tires. Wow. Cyclists. That has to take a long time to do this. Hello! Wow. Insane! These guys are tough. Hello! Wow. And this is our ferry! And which side is it? Oh! These are the guys. I talked to them at the petrol station. Now we’re going to the same campground, so there you go. Well hello again! How long are you waiting? The ferry is coming back for us! Oh, maybe I should get off the road. Okay, hold on. Okay! It’s us, Chillie. Hello! We’re nearly there! Thank you so much! This is our campground. Yup. Oh, wow! This is flush! You’ll never guess what happened. So. As we picked our sides, a park ranger arrived and said this side is $15.75. Bargain. But we can stay in the set-up tents for the same price. There’s no bed or anything,

But we’re just all moving there because it’s just… Yeah. We’re gonna save some time in the morning to pack up. So, that’s it! We’re glamping today. Okay! Let’s see what’s inside. This is it! Ta-da, ta-da, ta-da! Just the floor. Perfect. That will do. That’s it! We are set for the night. Oh, no. If it’s really, really cold, because you never know. It’s the Arctic Circle. I have a Bivvy. Just in case! You just never know. Right-o. We’re done! Dinner time. That was so much faster. What a great deal. How’s my hair? Okay. Anyhow…

It’s time to cook. My neighbor’s going to have a shower. My shower will have to wait until later because I am starving. I’m so hungry. So, tonight’s dinner… Garlic. Onion. I’m being so creative. Tomatoes and… fancy pasta. That’s already done. I have no idea why I bought it.

I thought it was with a sauce, but it’s not. So I have to make sauce myself. Right! This is it. That’ll be it! That’s Chillie! It’s ready. I’m getting better at this cooking thing, I’m telling you. It’s no more canned fish and bloody instant noodles. Like, the proper stuff. I’m so proud of myself. Well done. So good. It’s really good. Wow. Really good. I am very happy with today’s meal.

On the way, you could not even stop and eat anywhere, so this is perfect. And just like that, more people arrived! So what’s the time now? Uh… Eleven. Eleven. And the sun is like, there. And it will never go down. Apparently. So guys, where are you from? Belgium! Yukon. Yukon.

Perfect! So you’ve done the Tuktoyaktuk and you’re on your way down. That’s right, yeah. Well, welcome to our motocamp. It is a motocamp tonight, because there’s only bikes. Cheers! I need water. It’s only water. To safe travels. Yeah! Good friends, good people, and good mates. That’s right! Hold on! What are you doing?

I don’t know, I tried to drive straight through! But look how deep it gets! All right! We have to push you out, hey? Uh, probably, yes. Well, if it’s gonna make the channel, I guess. [Kinga] I think – Right?

You know what? I think if we lift him – Like, you try to start your bike, and we tried to lift it up, maybe, from here. Yeah, yeah. I had no idea it was gonna get this deep. Okay. All right. That’s it! I gotta go on the other side! I got it!

Go behind me. Yeah, yeah. What an adventure! So, you got it, Jason? Yeah. This is gonna work right here. You ready? No, I gotta start it. Okay, I think we got this. Just give me one second. And he’s out! Good job! [Outro Music]

The Dempster Highway is not just a road – it’s an adventure into the heart of the Canadian wilderness. The remoteness of the Dempster Highway imparts a sense of isolation and freedom, especially when you’re riding solo! It’s a truly legendary road and this is my first episode from the Arctic Circle.

↓↓↓ JOIN ME ON ↓↓↓

🔔 Subscribe to OnHerBike YouTube Channel 👇
➤ http://youtube.com/onherbike

🛍️ SUPPORT BY SHOPPING 👇
SHOP NOW: https://onherbike.com/shop/

🌐 Learn OnHerBike Website Blog 👇
➤ http://onherbike.com

📱 Don’t Forget to Follow Social Media, FOLLOW ME on Your Favourite Social Networks 📱
📸 OnHerBike Instagram Account 👇
➤ http://instagram.com/onherbike

📓 OnHerBike Facebook Account 👇
➤ http://facebook.com/onherbike

📓 OnHerBike Tiktok Account 👇
➤ http://tiktok.com/@onherbike_official

In April 2017 I left Australia for a solo trip around the world on a BMW F800GS. I named it “Are We There Yet” because I don’t know my final destination or the duration of this journey.

Throughout my journey, I’m raising money for a young disabled child in Poland named Franek. Franek was diagnosed with cerebral palsy (weakness of the entire right side of the body) and he will require constant rehabilitation for the rest of his life. All the money raised will go directly to helping Franek and his family lead as normal a life as possible so please donate generously: https://gogetfunding.com/arewethereyet/

None of that would be possible without my official sponsors:
Motorcycle Diaries
https://motorcycle-diaries.com/en
Rev’it
https://www.revitsport.com/us_en/
Bridgestone
https://www.bridgestonemotorcycletires.com/en-us/index
Forma
https://www.formaboots.com/
Outback Motortek

Home

Lone Rider
 https://www.lonerider-motorcycle.com/?rfsn=1971717.0a0e381
Quad Lock
https://www.quadlockcase.com/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=influencer&utm_campaign=onherbike&influencerId=onherbike-youtube
Leatt
https://leatt.com/

VIDEO RECORDING DATE: JUNE 2023

#canada #advrider #motovlog