Day 32: Rock River Campground to Nitainlaii Territorial Park

July 6, 2010

I made it over the Wright Pass today. The roads were in good condition all the way to the top. The border between Yukon and the Northwest Territories is at the top of the pass. I figured that I deserved an easy descent to the MacKenzie Valley Delta after that. However, it was not to be. It seems that they put a fresh layer of loose gravel on top of the road. It's about an inch or two thick. It works well for cars, but not so much for bikes.

To make up for the rough roads, the people were amazingly helpful. I was slowly descending the Wright Pass when a pickup truck passed me and then slowed to a stop. He introduced himself as the manager of the road maintenance crew between the NWT border and the Peel River. He said he had a couple of sandwiches and a doughnut that weren't going to get eaten and asked if I would like them. I thanked him profusely. He gave me more information on the road conditions and then was on his way. A little further down the road there was a construction site with a flag man to control traffic. As I stopped he asked me if I would like some water and handed me a bottle.

I stopped at the Nitainlaii Territorial Park ($15) for the night. It is just beyond the Peel River ferry crossing and about 10 km before Fort MacPherson. It is run by a gentleman named Robert Alexie. He asked me where I stayed last night and I told him the Rock River Campground. His response was 'Oh, the mosquitoe campground'. He suggested that the Rengleng River might be a good place for me to stop tomorrow. He also offered me a ride to Inuvik tomorrow, which I declined. He's headed there for a meeting.

End point:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=67.35106,-134.8675&ll=67.35106,-134.8675&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1