Overland/Oversea: The Three Ocean Journey

Due to the plague that has menaced our recent years, we have not been able to pursue travel to distant lands. Like so many others, however, we have enjoyed getting back into camping and off-road explorations. Despite supply-chain challenges, I was able to fix up a rugged and comfortable rig for camping and for exploring logging trails, mountains and boreal forests. Land Rover dealers have been good about arranging Owners’ Days for fun and off-road training on wilderness trails in the US and Canada.

Last summer, we managed to drive the Defender up the Alaska Hwy, the Klondike Hwy and the more rugged Dempster Hwy—all the way to Tuktoyaktuk on the Arctic Ocean. Although it was unclear whether the pandemic might close part of the route, I decided to start on the Atlantic coast in the American state of South Carolina. Then I continued west and north back up to Canada’s Banff and Jasper National Parks in Alberta. From there I crossed northern British Columbia to Whitehorse in the Yukon Territory. Sarah flew up to join me, and we drove on to Dawson City, Yukon. The final stage, up to Tuktoyaktuk NWT and back, involved more than 1,600 kilometres (1,000 miles) of mud and gravel roads over permafrost. Although British Columbia and the Yukon have remained open, Inuvik and the Northwest Territories were closed to outsiders for most of the pandemic years. Yet, with some luck and good weather, we were able to complete our Three Ocean Journey from the Atlantic to the Arctic and on to the Pacific before turning back east again. The Alaska Marine Highway ferry system helped us to cut 1,000 miles out of the drive south. All photos are subject to copyright.