Take
an Ice Fishing Trip to Great
Slave Lake
There’s a lot of winter
in the Great Slave region –
even a late fall or spring vacation
is likely to give you a chance
to snowshoe and snowmobile on
the frozen lake, or drive one
of the area’s seasonal
ice roads (try the 15 –
10 minute, 6.5 kilometre ice
road trip from Yellowknife
to the First Nations community
of Dettah.)
The coldest and shortest days
are in December and January;
the months of November and March
are ideal times to experience
the northern winter life.
Great Slave tour operators
and outfitters don’t hibernate
in the winter - they offer a
wide variety of adventure tours
that can take you racing across
the ice with a dog team, or
riding a snowmobile 40 kilometres
up the lake’s North Arm
to a comfortable wilderness
fishing lodge. Fish for northern
pike by day, gaze at
northern lights by night. All
equipment and meals are provided
–even warm clothing is
available for rent.
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The Ultimate Northern
Lights Vacation
Picture this: Perfect silence. Deep drifts
of sparkling, pristine snow. A steaming,
wood-fired outdoor hot tub. And a sky awash
in vivid streams of northern lights. Too
good to be true? Not in the Northwest Territories,
where the aurora borealis is at its brilliant
best. The shimmering kaleidoscope of colour,
varying from yellow-green to radiant red,
results when particles released from the
sun’s atmosphere collide with the
gaseous particles of the earth’s atmosphere.
Electromagnetic energy is drawn to the earth’s
poles, charging the atmosphere and causing
it to glow
If you want to see the northern lights
– really see them, without a trace
of urban light pollution – book a
fall or winter flight to Yellowknife, and
head to one of the northern Great Slave’s
secluded wilderness lodges. A snowmobile
ride or ski-plane hop to your destination,
along with sled dog mushing, ice fishing,
snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and authentic
meals of musk-ox, caribou and Arctic char
are all part of the adventure, but the jaw-dropping
nightly light show is the highlight. Don’t
forget to get your aurora borealis certificate,
signed proof of your visit to northern lights
nirvana.
Family Fun: At
Aurora Village, a family-oriented destination
attraction just east of Yellowknife, aurora
borealis viewing is combined with dog sledding,
caribou viewing, snowmobiling, and tubing
on a specially-constructed 3-storey slide.
Heated teepees, located on a hill overlooking
Aurora Lake, feature an interpretive display
on the scientific and legendary aspects
of the northern lights, and tips on how
to photograph them. The Village is open
from November 20 to April 15, prime aurora
borealis viewing time. With 20 hours of
darkness in mid-winter, visitors have lots
of time to see the lights. Special packages
include ice fishing and snowshoeing, and
even provide winter clothing rental.
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