ICE ROAD ADVENTURE!

Perhaps the pinnacle of Canadian

experiences is having an ice road adventure. Now that’s a bold claim – pinnacle. But its also a defendable one. You see, Canada is amazing in so many ways. Its unique advantage though is its winter. We have all kinds of every day winter experiences, building snowmen, going skating, etc. But driving an ice road. Its not for the faint of heart. Just locating an ice road can be a challenge. In Canada you’re going to need to travel far north. That’s right. North in an artic region. Probably north of the sixtieth parallel.

Materials list for this include:

· Vehicle – You want to have either two vehicles, or a really reliable one with backup equipment for staying over night in a snow bank. Seriously! It happens.

· Friends – you need them to keep you sane, to keep you warm, and to drive the second vehicle.

· Survival Gear – People get stuck in blizzads, in cracks in the ice, and for other reasons. Because of this, its important to have the equipment you need to stay overnight until help arrives. This includes sleeping bags, lots of dry clothes and ideally a small stove to keep your car interior warm and heat food.

· Food - Bring lots of warm food. Stuff like chili that can be heated easily but is hearty. You need it for the journey and for getting stuck.

· Food - Bring lots of warm food. Stuff like chili that can be heated easily but is hearty. You need it for the journey and for getting stuck.

As mentioned, you need friends. Preferably they are easy going, healthy, and

can drive a vehicle. Ideally they don’t talk too much. Nobody likes a chatty cathy on a roadtrip. It can also be helpful to bring someone from a more Southern destination. They’ll be really entertained by the whole gig.

Pack well. Bring emergency gear, food,

extra equipment for having fun. Make sure to pack in lots of different containers you can easily access. Its also important to leave lots of room in case one of your friends brings a giant purple jacket. It can happen.

Okay. Now you need to start driving. Its

best to start early in the morning. You’ve probably got a long way to go. For example, this picture was taken around 5 in the morning between Whitehorse and Dawson City in Yukon.

Like I said, ice roads are pretty far so

you are going to have to drive for quite a while. We started from Whitehorse, which is North of 60. Then we drove 1200 km just to the start of the ice road!

If you’re already rambling about up North,

its probably best to take advantage and spot some wildlife. I recommend caribou.

This is key. You need to get to an ice road

before you can drive an ice road. Once you arrive, its important to take a group photo. If there is someone trying to be the alpha in the group, they should proceed to do something that will make them stand out in the photo.

Please excuse the exclamation marks, but

its really exciting. Start driving up that road. Leave the community you’re near and drive way out to the middle of nowhere. This ice road shown was about 180km long. We drove about 90 km… and then…!!

You came this far, you need to take advantage of it.