The Yellowknife experience…
Walking across the ice towards the middle of the top of a huge frozen lake I paused and looked around, suddenly aware of exactly where I was standing. A quick look at where that little blue dot was on Google Maps - me - showed I really was miles from the middle of this very top part of Great Slave Lake. However it still felt like I was clearly far from the shore and from the shallows.
It was a long way to yell if I had to.
Looking around I noticed a few cracks in the snowy layers, and wondered just how deep those cracks ran. I thought back to a lady who had called out to me while walking near the houseboats earlier, ‘Be careful where you walk and come away from there, the ice is getting thinner.’
This is quite far enough I decided, and reminded myself that there’s likely always someone who falls through the ice first each spring, right? I really didn’t want to be that person especially being quite warm and toasty as I was thanks.
I had arrived in Yellowknife the day before, and stayed up late to see if the Aurora Borealis would come out to play, and she did. So I was clearly a little sleep deprived.
Staying at the Aurora Bayside Inn, located in an area called Old Town, the owner had told me the lake was frozen right across and that the ice was at least 3-4 meters thick. That had felt to me to be safe enough to go exploring. There was a whole city to explore but where did I choose to go? Over the ice of course.
On my first night I was a little leery of walking on the ice, but after being told how thick it was, I felt comfortable to wander across the ice a little more in order to get further from the lights of the town when shooting the aurora.
The houseboats lining the far side of the inlet were fascinating, and I had gone wandering over that way. Some of the houseboats were on a lean, and I figured that lean would make cooking and walking within the houseboats a little interesting - another quirk of living in a houseboat.
A woman was walking a rather large but friendly dog across towards the houseboats, while pushing a stroller with large wheels and pretty hefty tyres and we stopped to say hello. Sarah and I introduced ourselves and I was invited to visit the houseboat that she shares with her partner and their baby. What a generous offer and an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.
Sarah’s houseboat is located close to the shore of Jolliffe Island, a small island that I was told has recently been handed back to the Yellowknife First Nations Canadians of the area. The houseboats would all need to move away from the island once the lake had thawed.
The houseboat, an old fishing barge built in 1984, was far more spacious inside than it looked from the outside, and fully off grid. It has a fully functional bathroom with a bath for the little one. The mudroom houses the batteries necessary to run the electrical system, while also acting as garage and utility room.
The main floor is where the living areas are located, with the bedrooms being upstairs, with gorgeous views across the lake. Sarah’s partner was adding a small balcony off the top bedroom, so each level would have its own balcony.
During my houseboat tour Sarah explained that when the lake was thawed, the houseboaters kayak across to the town. During the winter months and until the lake thaws, snowmobiles are often used to transport firewood, groceries and other necessities across to the houseboats. The reason for most of the houseboats being unevenly positioned on the ice is because once the ice froze, the water beneath had suddenly dropped, leaving everything slightly crooked.
I could easily see the attraction of living in a houseboat however, and on my way back towards the Inn walked past one that was advertised as being available for rent. Hmmm….. something to think about perhaps.
I found life in Yellowknife really interesting and it reminded me that I need to make plans to get out of my own spaces more, exploring how other communities live and work and adapt to their local environment.
Old Town is a small eclectic neighbourhood at the bottom of town, where many creatives live and work. While I wandered through this location, I’d love to go back and spend a bit more time getting to know the area. Two whole days doesn’t really cut it when there’s such a stunning landscape and completely different region to explore.
Yellowknife is the capital and only city of the Canadian Northwest Territories. It’s the central hub for diamond mining, tourism, transportation and communications.
It sees the aurora borealis approximately 240 nights per year, and I was certainly grateful to see them on each of the three nights I was there.
Even better for me personally, was my mother flying up from Edmonton to stay for my last night up there. It was fantastic to share the experience of seeing the northern lights with her, and a great opportunity to continue to reconnect during the long drive back to Edmonton.
On the road trip back, it was easy to see the wintery landscape thawing pretty quickly. Ponds I’d seen completely iced over were in some parts now almost fully thawed. You’d definitely be less brave about testing the thickness of the ice.
While the roads are lined with signs warning of bison roaming freely, we didn’t spot a single one, nor any bears.
Wildlife count Edmonton to Yellowknife: three deer, one gray wolf, crows/ravens/hawks.
Wildlife count Yellowknife to Edmonton: one white tail deer, one silver wolf, one squirrel running across the highway, loads of ravens/crows.