1 (867) 445-8405
tracy@bucketlisttour.com
Welcome to the Adventure of a Lifetime.
We will travel the Northwest Territories in luxury through the North Slave, Deh Cho and South Slave regions in a luxury coach. We will possibly see Bison, wildlife, sample local cuisine, visit some of the most natural wonders the territory has to offer and meet locals in all communities we visit.
Our trip is designed for the traveler looking to explore the unique ruggedness and natural beauties of Canada’s North in total comfort. The coach accommodates 14 guests with all the amenities that include a fridge, a washroom, additional leg room between seats, a full-size video screen, and an extensive northern library.
During the journey we will occasionally dine in outdoor locations to fully enjoy the wonders of our National Parks. The trip is guided by long time Northerners. The day trips require moderate fitness to handle walking trails. There are no extreme adventures. For those unable to travel the hiking tours, there will always be options available on the coach. Northern films, and a guide to stay behind. Our adventure is designed to cover a vast region taking new travel routes every day. There are a few long travel days to prepare for which will offer many stops to stretch and enjoy.
Accommodations are not the highlight of our journey, but we have selected the best the communities have to offer and provide the most convenient breakfast options. Your trip is inclusive of all tours, accommodations, flights and meals with the exception of breakfast. We will be staying in some B & B’s, where a continental will be offered, and/or hotels where breakfast can be purchased. We have experienced some travelers are very early risers where others are not, so this allows that freedom to choose what time to start your day. There is also a full fridge on board, which allows us to provide snacks while travelling.
Our trip begins and ends in Yellowknife. There is a printable version of the Itinerary, here we will provide as much information as possible.
SUNLIGHT SUMMER – July 03 to July 12 – 2019 – 10 DAYS/ 9 NIGHTS (Currently wait-listed, deposits on file to March 30. 2019)
AURORA and DARK SKY TOUR– August 19 – August 28 – 2019 – 10 DAYS / 9 Nights (includes Dark Sky Festival Fort Smith, Wood Buffalo National Park)
Pricing and Packaging – Please contact your Travel Agent or call the Bucketlist Tour Agents.
Connie Moss -CTM
TPI Detail Travel
P- 1780-450-1672 / cmoss@tpi.ca
We encourage you to pack as lightly as possible. We will provide bug jackets and rain gear while travelling with us. We change accommodations frequently, some which do not have elevators, so two smaller bags are preferable. One that could stay on the coach and one that can be taken to the rooms. Our weather can change instantly so you will need summer clothes. Temperatures can reach 30 degrees Celsius/ 90 degrees Fahrenheit, a warm jacket just in case and comfortable walking shoes.
Bug repellent – The proven effective sprays are those that contain DEET. We will have it on board, but if you prefer others you must provide.
Four major airlines fly to Yellowknife with frequent options to connect in one day. Flights may arrive any where from 10AM to 10PM, depending on connections. Day of arrival you will be met at the airport and transferred to the hotel. If you arrive early, that will be free time. Day of arrival we will have a hospitality suite open, to meet and greet and will provide some light snacks. Our choice hotel is the Chateau Nova, Yellowknife’s newest hotel.
We will begin our day enjoying the capital city Yellowknife (Sombak’e, sawm-ba-k-ay in traditional dialect). ( Breakfast at hotel 8AM) We will gather in the hotel lobby at 9AM. Our city tour will include the Giant Mine Site, YKEA, a tour of the Prince of Wales Museum, Legislative Assembly Building where you will learn about our non-partisan, consensus government. We will continue to the home of the popular TV series Ice Pilots, Buffalo Airways. We will take a drive by the home of Ice Road Trucker, meet some local Inuit artists, visit the NWT Diamond Center, and end the day in beautiful, historic Old Town where Yellowknife began. In the evening we will enjoy dinner at our famous Bullocks Bistro, our world-renowned fish restaurant. Tracy, your guide, managed two of the very best local gifts shop during her seven years at the Visitor Center and will invite local artists to meet with you directly if you so wish.
This is one of our long travel days but involves many stops. (Continental Breakfast) Meet hotel lobby 8:30 am, check out and start our adventure. We will head south on the worst known highway stretch in the North. Our first stop is the community of Behchoko (Big Knife). The North’s first self governed community. Home of the Tlicho Government. We will tour the community.
We then make our way to Fort Providence. Along this route we have a good chance of seeing Bison roaming free. We will tour the community and enjoy lunch. Fort Providence is located at the mouth of the mighty Mackenzie River. Here we will cross the Deh Cho Bridge. Opened in 2012, the 1.6 km long span is the first ever built over the Mackenzie River. On the south side of the bridge we will visit McNalley Falls on our way to Hay River. We aim to arrive around 8PM, check into the Ptarmigan Inn and enjoy a late dinner.
Meet in lobby 9AM (Continental Breakfast). We will enjoy the Town of Hay River with visits to the West Channel, Old Town and Katlodeeche, one of only two reserves in the NWT, where Hay River first began. Next is the Hay River Heritage Museum then the wonderful beaches, where we will dip our toes in Great Slave Lake. We will make our way to the spectacular Louise and Alexandra Falls, with a stop in Enterprise and one of the North’s best local craft stores. If weather permits, we will enjoy dinner on the beach and meet some of the amazing locals and over night at the Ptarmigan Inn.
Meet in lobby 8AM (Continental Breakfast). We will now make our way to Fort Smith (Thebacha which means besides the rapids, Chipewyan). The community of Fort Smith and the gateway to Wood Buffalo National Park. We will make stops at one of the North’s largest sink holes and visit the magnificent Salt Plains. We should arrive in the community in late afternoon and check into the Pelican Rapids Inn. We will enjoy dinner and following dinner we will visit the Rapids of the Drown, where the majestic white pelican colony nest, feed, and live on turbulent, white water rapids. It is a unique summer habitat for this species which return to the North in late April.
Meet in the hotel lobby 9AM. We will enjoy a community tour and Wood Buffalo National Park museum followed by a tour into the park, with a Parks Guide. We will attempt to retire early as day seven is a very long travel day.
(Continental Breakfast.) Meet in hotel lobby 8:30AM. Today we spend the entire day on the coach making our way to Fort Simpson. Our meals will be eaten on board. We will have dinner at Sombe Ke Falls and lunch at Lady Evelyn Falls,, located on the Kakisa River. These two sites are on the spectacular Waterfalls Highway which offers no less than a half-dozen falls vistas; a warm-up to the mother of all waterfalls in Nahanni National Park on Day Eight. Our estimated driving time with no delays, will be approximately nine hours plus meal breaks. There are no accommodations in between the two communities. We will offer movies, board games and our extensive library to enjoy on the coach and will check into the Deh Cho Suites and the Mackenzie Rest Inn in Fort Simpson.
Nahanni Tour. We will be flying from Fort Simpson on a twin otter floatplane, taking off from the shore of the Nahanni River. You will soar through First, Second and Third Canyons. Our pilot will share the legends of Deadman Valley, Headless Range, Funeral Range and Death Lake. Keep an eye out for Dall Sheep. You will land on the South Nahanni River at the top of Virginia Falls twice the height of Niagara Falls, white water plunging 92 meters (over 300 feet0 into the Painted Canyon, Nahanni Plateau and Ram River Canyons. We will fly between two mountains with a quick visit to Little Doctor Lake. The tour is approximately six hours.
Today’s adventures will depend if we were successful in enjoying our tour into the Nahanni, the previous day. The tour is very weather dependent. The rules are as follows: if a flight is cancelled the day previous, we get bumped to the next day. We allow this extra day in that case. There are alternative tours we will plan upon arrival. Fort Liard, Nahanni Butte are possible. T here are also a couple of operators who will be on alert to possibly book options.
We still have the option of taking a very early morning tour if we were not successful. We will enjoy the community of Fort Simpson. We then take a return flight to Yellowknife which concludes our adventure.
