Category: Out on the Land

We bought a new toy: a kite for kite skiing (or snowkiting). We’re not at the skill level yet where we’re using skis; so far we’re just getting used to working with the kite itself. However, a strong wind can still easily pick us up off the ground and/or drag us down the frozen lake.

Our main challenge is that it’s generally not very windy here in the winter. Ideally, you want >20km/h winds, which we don’t get very often.

We can always drive further North where it’s windier. Maybe we’ll even do some Arctic Ocean kite skiing at some point this winter…

Taking advantage of our shiny new daylight, Sam and I drove up the ice road to Aklavik. Aklavik is about 50 km from Inuvik as the crow flies, but the ice road route is closer to 120 km.

Aklavik used to be the main community in the region, but it’s located right in the Mackenzie Delta and is prone to flooding. In the 50’s, the government attempted to relocate Aklavik to what is now Inuvik (initially called “New Aklavik”), but people don’t like it when the government tells them what to do, so Aklavik remains (and regularly floods) and the town motto is now “Never Say Die”.