Congrats on continuing your research on motorcycling the Dempster Highway and riding in Canada’s high arctic! In this article, we’ll share with you our top 4 tips for motorcycling the Dempster Highway and the Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk Highway (ITH). The reason this is highlighted separate is because the Dempster Highway officially ends in Inuvik. The highway going north from Inuvik is the ITH, effectively an extension of the Dempster Highway, all the way to the end of the road and, perhaps, your ultimate destination, the Arctic Ocean!

Why Motorcycle the Dempster Highway?

This is an excellent question. If you’re an adventure seeker, motorcycling the Dempster Highway is one of the more challenging rides you might partake in your life! In fact, you don’t even need to be a motorcyclist to enjoy it. There are several individuals we came across bike packing, RVing and driving all to seek the journey of a lifetime. There is a reason why so many adventure seekers come through here, as it is also the most rewarding journey.

Motorcycling through the high arctic, in 900 kilometers, you’ll move from the boreal forest, through un-glaciated mountains, and the infamous arctic tundra. The views and vistas are just absolutely phenomenal and the pleasure of riding it is undeniably the most liberating thing ever. The people you’ll meet will be absolutely wonderful as the road is full of adventure seekers from around the world, locals who’re incredibly welcoming, and you’ll earn the bragging rights of spending time in Canada’s high arctic!

Myths to Dispel (or confirm) on the Dempster Highway

• No, the arctic is not full of ice and snow all the time
• No, it’s no -30 celcius all the time
• Yes, it can get up to +30 celcius during the day
• No, you don’t need an adventure-style bike – but with caveats.
• Yes, it’s a gravel road with lots of deep and soft gravel
• Yes, dust kicks up in seconds to zero visibility, especially on-coming traffic and especially passing semi trucks
• Yes, highway turns to mud when it rains
• Yes, you’ll have 24 hour sunlight in the summer
• No, northern lights cannot be seen during the summer when there is 24 hour sunlight.

Top 4 tips for motorcycling the Dempster Highway

Without further ado, our top 4 tips for motorcycling the Dempster Highway!

Tip 1: Time budgeting

How long does it take motorcycling the Dempster highway? It depends who you ask. But for us, we budgeted one week to ride up (900km) and back (1,800 km) (or 1120 miles total). We built in time for foul weather, bad roads, repairs, break downs, general unforeseen delays.

From Whitehorse to Tuk to Dawson, we planned 9 days total, including extra time. We ended up using it all.

• Day 1: Whitehorse to Moose Creek Government Campground, as we had already bike issues leaving Whitehorse and it ate most the day.
• Day 2: Enter Dempster Highway, stayed at first campsite, not before going to Dawson for gas.
• Day 3 to 4: Journey to Tuk and stayed two nights in Tuk
• Day 6 to 9: Tuk to Dawson City, with two nights at Tombstone Territorial Park – it was well needed!

Tip 2: Plan your entry and exit strategy

Plan your vehicle maintenance before and after motorcycling the Dempster Highway. We suggest in Whitehorse as it’s the last bastion of specific motorcycle stuff before leaving. Would highly recommended Yamaha Whitehorse as the place to go get ‘er done. Book ahead of time for anything more than tire swap – even then, reserve it as soon as possible! They are slammed in the summer.

Things we didn’t anticipate that delayed us include construction on the road and wildfire closures. Give yourself plenty of time for riding in from either Whitehorse or Dawson City. It may take longer than you anticipated.

If you’re on your own, highly recommended for shedding some weight in Whitehorse (or Dawson City) and taking only the essentials. Everyone we encountered who crashed had one thing in common; their motorcycles were overloaded. And stories of fatality also a cause of overloaded motorcycles. Dump anything you don’t need on your bike! Hostels have been known to help motorcyclists out and keep gear there. Yukon Motorcycle Park is known to be one of the best places to share war stories about motorcycling the Dempster Highway, or at least get good info before you head out.

Tip 3: While on the road

Dust proof your everything as best as you can

This includes wearing an N95 mask! Motorcycling the Dempster Highway is dusty business. Dust will get into place you didn’t think it could go, despite how well you seal it all.

You don’t need as many jerry cans as you think

Or as big a can, but know your range of your bike. As you’re motorcycling the Dempster Highway, you can fill up every 400km or so. At the start, and there are hamlets and townships along the way. This will save you time, weight and valuable real estate on your bike. But that’s not to say, to be complacent about your fuel!

Plan your stops because…

First come first serve campsites! You’ll want to get there first and snag that pretty little campsite and not be left out in the cold! Have an emergency spot planned out in case you don’t make it to your destination. Again, anything could go wrong, from mechanical issues to adverse weather and wildfires.

Group communication

If you’re riding in a group, communication will be key. Especially when riding further apart to keep the dust down and away from each other, you’ll want to know where each other are for safety reasons and general check ins. Check out our recommended motorcycle helmet communication system.

riding position

While motorcycling the Dempster highway, body positioning is going to be key to navigating the deep, loose, and soft gravel.

Weight your front tire!

Weighting your front tire will be absolutely essential to controlling your bike in the gravel. This means standing up! Lean forward! And let the rear half of the bike bounce around as much as it needs to. So long as you get the push from the rear tire, the key thing is to keep the front tire where you want it to go, and that means having it track well by weighting the front.

Tip 4: Emergency prevention and some recommended gear

Shameless plug: check out our curated gear store for recommendations for outdoor equipment (please remove ad-blocker to view recommendations)! Motorcycling the Dempster highway is inherently a risk adventure. Plan ahead for emergency!

• Cash – is king! Recommend CAD $700 minimum, in case payment network outages on credit cards occur, which is more often than not. Also, if you like souvenirs, cash is preferred.
• Full armour – all the time; this is not the time to show off your bravery. Passing cars will spit rock at you and fatalities have happened on the highway. Check out our recommended motorcycle helmet.
• Weather and adverse environment – Check the wildfire and smoke forecast on top of the weather! It will help you plan accordingly for the ride.
• Keep the bike light – as mentioned earlier, this is going to help keep you on top of the deep , loose, soft gravel. This is going to be key for controlling the motorcycle and avoid crashing and spillage (of gear all over the road!)
• Mosquito juice – deet, swatters, bug jackets, citronella, thermacell ; all of it! The bugs are nasty and especially in June
• Sleep mask and ear plugs – it’s 24 hr sunlight! And it’ll help in Tuk when you’re camped out. It’s been known to be loud. But the ear plugs not only for sleeping, but general motorcycling, if you don’t already have a pair. Protect those ears!
• Garmin Inreach or other device – You’re off grid… for days in accident-prone region ; be safe and let people know where you are.
• Water Filter – a lot of campsites will not have potable water. Check out our recommended water filter!

And that’s those are the tips for motorcycling the Dempster Highway! We have our video coming up shortly, but check out our trailer in the mean time!