Inuvik Rendezvous
The trip starts and ends in Inuvik in the Northwest Territories. Trip participants meet the trip leader and two guides at the Arctic Chalet at 8 pm, the night before the trip starts. While the Firth is in the Yukon Territory, Inuvik, situated in the very northwest corner of the huge Northwest Territories, is the closest town with a jet-serviced airport.

The First Morning
On the first morning of the trip, everyone will have an hour or two to do any last minute errands in Inuvik. You may need to pick up something at the Northern Store (the new name for the old Hudson Bay stores in the north) or get a National Parks fishing license at the Parks Canada office. The trip leader will shuttle everyone and their gear to the airport. The flight to the river will leave the Inuvik Airport around 10 am.

Flying to the River
The flight in is on a deHavilland Twin Otter aircraft. The route takes us over the maze of the Mackenzie River Delta. The myriad channels and thousands of lakes are home to many nesting swans, ducks and geese, which are easily spotted from the air. Once out of the delta we'll keep our eyes peeled for larger mammals.

The Yukon is shaped like a tall pointed triangle wedged between the Northwest Territories to the east, Alaska to the west and the Arctic Ocean to the north. The 275 km flight into Ivvavik (formerly Northern Yukon) National Park takes us virtually across the narrowest part of the Yukon almost into Alaska. A little over an hour after leaving Inuvik, we land near Margaret Lake on balloon-like "tundra tires" and taxi almost to the river's edge.

Margaret Lake, the put-in area, sits at 410 meters and we'll wind our way downstream for 130 kilometers through the British Mountains to sea level at the Beaufort Sea. The put-in is very close to the border with Alaska and the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) and just over the hills to the south lie the Old Crow flats.

The Upper River
At first, the Firth has a quiet nature. The low banks permit unobstructed views up the valley sides and imposing limestone crags rise from the river to 1680 meters in elevation. Our rafts glide over deep crystal clear pools full of grayling and char. In this area, one finds many coral fossils which further attest to the sedimentary nature of the geology. The river valley provides prime habitat for many birds: phalaropes, sandpipers, plovers, jaegers, terns, buntings, long spurs and even robins. All along our route, we'll hike back to small lakes and ponds to look for nesting loons and ducks.

We should see grizzly, caribou and moose. As in much of the area, caribou migration trails line the hillsides. Red fox and ptarmigan are common. There are many other areas, such as the Tatshenshini, with higher bear densities but the Firth may be hard to beat in terms of watching them on the open tundra. On rivers with thick brush, sightings of wildlife are usually brief as the animals wander through vegetation as they feed. On the Firth we carry a spotting scope on a tripod to take maximum advantage of wildlife viewing opportunities.

After a couple of days of travel we reach the area of Joe Creek, which is the Firth's largest tributary. Here, as along much of the route, there are ancient signs of human use of the valley. The Inuit would leave the coast where their culture was centered to travel inland and hunt caribou and moose and fish for char. When we pick a nice campsite for the night-one with good wildlife viewing opportunities or perhaps a great fishing hole-we may find remains of old meat caches and the stone rings that once held down skin tents.

The Middle River-Through the British Mountains
Once past Joe Creek the river enters a beautiful canyon. For several days the riverbank is primarily canyon with scattered breaks. The landscape begins to change as the limestone rock type gives way to volcanics, the valley narrows, mountains steepen and a change in vegetation is apparent. Here the Firth is a combination of quiet pools and calm stretches between exhilarating rapids. The tortured strata of the geology is beautiful and contrasts with the round river rock and gravel on the bars.

There are ten species of raptor in the Park and the canyon walls are ideal nesting sites for some, including golden eagles and gyrfalcons. Snow-white Dall Sheep inhabit the canyons, as well as the mountain crags. We may float literally a stone's throw from a band of big rams. Wolves are found throughout the watershed and are seen on many trips.

Just above the confluence of Sheep Creek are some of the bigger rapids of the trip. There are good opportunities to photograph the rafts coming through from the cliffs.

In July the Porcupine Caribou herd migrates across the Firth River. On occasion, we've been lucky enough to see 30,000 animals cross the river around our camp. In places there are still remnants of the stone caribou fences that Inuit hunters used to funnel the caribou into tight enclosures where they could more easily kill the animals with ancient weapons. In time the river enters a low and spectacular canyon that continues for approximately 40 km.

The Lower River & Delta
After a few days, the British Mountains merge into the Buckland Hills. Soon the canyon walls are left behind and the Firth emerges onto the coastal plain. A few hundred yards from the river rises a rock knoll known as Engigstiack. Though only one hundred feet high, Engigstiack provides great views over the plain.

For thousands of years hunters have stood atop this rock and gazed out over the tundra looking for the coming the caribou and other, now extinct, game. Engigstiack is considered to be one of the most important archaeological sites in the Yukon Territory and we'll see signs of digs conducted by archaeologists on the nearby tundra.

At this latitude the land is underlain with permafrost so that only the top metre of the soils thaws out in the summer. This creates some interesting features such as polygons on the tundra but, because there is nowhere for the water to percolate to, the flat areas tend to be wet. Arctic ground squirrels and other burrowing creatures are consequently limited to areas on hills or along riverbanks where the soil does not freeze and is well drained. Wolves and foxes tend to den in similar areas.

Shortly after Engigstiack, we leave the canyon-like nature of the Firth behind as it splays out into the Firth Delta. The tenth night is usually spent at the head of the delta where musk ox wool drapes the willow bushes. The musk ox herd is growing and we're almost guaranteed to spot musk ox. The herd is descended from animals that were reintroduced into nearby Alaska after having been extirpated by whalers looking for meat at the turn of the century.

The delta is prime habitat for turnstones, golden plovers, snowy owls and tundra swans. Bird species exotic to North America such as the siberian tit and yellow wagtail are often seen.

The Arctic Ocean & Beaufort Sea
We camp on the beach of Nunaluk Spit at the mouth of the delta for our last night. Here we'll enjoy the first campfire of the trip. As the forests are so sparse and spotty and the rate of growth so slow, the Parks Service has wisely restricted the use of campfires along the river for emergencies only so we will be cooking on propane stoves. The coastline, however, is lined with driftwood that has floated to the Beaufort Sea from points far south by the Mackenzie River and then floated to the west to the Firth Delta and Herschel Island.

The brackish, barrier-island lagoon system is very an important molting and staging area for scoters, old squaws, eiders, and shorebirds which thrive in the coastal lagoons that are formed by a series of shingle spits just off shore. Thousands of snow geese congregate here on southward migration in September.

Ocean currents bring rich, nutrient laden waters from the Mackenzie River to the east. This mix of fresh and saltwater helps support rich populations of fish which in turn are preyed upon by seabirds, waterfowl and ringed and bearded seals. Seals and beluga whales are commonly seen right off the lagoon's barrier islands.

Herschel Island
On the last morning of the trip the Twin Otter will pick us up off Nunaluk Spit's beach. It will fly us across and over Herschel Island to Pauline Cove. While the plane returns to Nunaluk Spit to fly the rafting gear back to Inuvik we'll have time to check out Herschel Island.

Herschel Island (or Qikiqtaruk as the Inuit call it) is the Yukon's first Territorial Park and the only offshore island. Known for its abundant wild flowers and wildlife as well as interesting history, Herschel is essentially a large lump of permafrost and consists of 50% frozen water. Nearly eighty species of birds are found on Herschel. There's even a colony of black guillemots in the abandoned mission school.

Pauline Cove has a number of historic buildings that date back to the turn of the century when American whalers would spend the winters between short whaling seasons. Whaling in the Beaufort Sea was as short as it was lucrative. In the 20-year period (about 1890-1910), the western Arctic population of bowhead whales was brought to the verge of extinction. The bowhead is slowly making a comeback but is still very much an endangered species. (If you're lucky you may see some on the flight back to Inuvik.)

Many of the heritage buildings have been painstakingly restored and the backdrop behind the cove consists of graveyards (whalers, Inuit and Royal Canadian Mounted Police) that attest to the harsh times. But Herschel also shows signs of Thule Inuit occupation going back 1000 years and may have been used by peoples migrating from Asia across the Bering land bridge, perhaps as much as 30,000 years ago. The Inuvialuit people of the North Slope have strong family ties all along the coast from Barrow Alaska to the Mackenzie Delta. Herschel will be quite luxurious, as the Territorial Park staff have constructed outhouses and even a fancy sauna!

Back to Invuvik
Later on the afternoon of the final day, the Twin Otter aircraft will arrive back at Pauline Cove for the last leg back to Inuvik. Once back in Inuvik, we will transport you from the airport to your hotel in time for a final dinner (not included) with the crew. Remember that you will need a hotel room for this night. The next morning you may fly home.