Date: 13 June 2016
Start: Dawson, Yukon Territory, Canada
End: Eagle Plains, Yukon Territory, Canada
Distance: 250 miles
Total Time: 5.5 hours

The road to heaven is not paved in gold, but rather, is paved in gravel. I know this because I have driven on it.

That road is the Dempster Highway. For the most part, it is as smooth as a gravel road can be, but there are large swathes of it dotted with potholes. It is what surrounds the road, however, that is truly heavenly. Nowhere on earth have I had the pleasure of viewing scenery like that which extends off into the horizon.

The first half of the drive or so was nothing but mountains winding through boreal forest – something which itself I had never seen before this trip. The forests supposedly contain thousands of foxes, wolves, deer, and bears, though I unfortunately saw none of those. To be fair, though, bears and wolves aren’t exactly animals I would want to see outside the safety of my car.

After a few hours, the mountains gave way to rolling hills, but instead of weaving around them, the highway went over them instead. This certainly helped keep things interesting – as if I needed help with that considering the incredible scenery this far north. However, the gravel road quickly started to wear on me, and thankfully I reached my overnight stay at Eagle Plains in early afternoon.

However, I didn’t make it without suffering a casualty in the form of my car’s rear right tire.

Thankfully, Eagle Plains has tire repair services, which means I can make it to my ultimate northern destination tomorrow.

And what’s tomorrow, you may ask?

Why, tomorrow is the Arctic Circle.