Journaling this impeccable travel experience with my index and thumb fingers while i nurse the frostbite on the rest of my fingers. Sadly, this is the byproduct of my winter adventure. I have been back for a month and it seems i'm still a long way from recovery. Anyway, let's move on to the fun part.
During winter last year, i travelled to Lake Louise to experience Canadian rookies in winter for the first time. Seeing how beautiful the mountains are, i decided it wouldn't be bad idea to make ski trip a yearly tradition. I have been looking forward to it ever since.
However, this year i decided that i wanted to see the northern lights which means i will be traveling North of Canada but i really wanted to ski too so i planned the itinerary to include a 2 in 1 trip given the routes are connected.
So, my first stop was Banff, which is just an hour away from Lake Louise, I wanted to experience other ski resorts and villages too before heading North to see Aurora Borealis.
I have always wanted to see Northern lights and was hoping to share the moment with my family, i couldn't get them to commit so i did what i do best. Solo travel!
The best time to see the Aurora is during the winter because of the longer nights but the only deterrence was how cold the Northwest Territories could get during that time of the year and i wasn't sure if i was built for this type of weather but i ended up giving in.
Several weeks before organising my trip, I had a chat with a colleague at work who had been to see the Northern lights and she was kind to introduce me to her tour guide. On reaching out to the guide, they mentioned that their package had a minimum of two guest which meant I was automatically disqualified, it's either i find someone on the same curiosity level as myself or give up.
I wasn't going to give up so i decided to split up the tour package, i went with them for the Aurora viewing tours then decided to sort out my hotel and flight bookings myself. While i was looking up flights, it turned out that if i included Banff in the itinerary, it would cost me more or less the same amount so it made financial sense to include the Banff trip in my itinerary.
This trip was not my ideal kind of trip given i hadn't taken time off work, the only silver lining was i would be in another timezone which paid off in my favour asides from the little compromise i made with my sleep. 
On arriving at Calgary, I took a coach to Banff which is approximately 2 hours drive from Calgary. The weather was brutal, it was -30 degree celcuis, i thought i had flown into the Northwest Territories already. This was not the same weather forecast i saw a week before but i tried not to let that deter me and kept a positive spirit .
We eventually arrived at my cabin which is the best i have stayed so far, it had the breathtaking views laced with the revitalizing spirit of the Canadian Roockie. C'etait rêve!! I had not finished unpacking my bags before the ski village gave me a call and asked if i would like to cancel given the extreme weather condition but i declined as i didn't have other major plans aside après ski shenanigans and it would not have made any sense to cancel, it's the only reason i was there so i said i was happy heading to the slopes.
Also, I had purchased 2 full day ski passes, cancelling a day would mean i would not get the same amount back given it was discounted so i went ahead anyway.
It was my first time at the Sunshine Ski village, i had read so many great reviews on it, the gondola ride to the ski slopes is longest I've had, it was scenic and picturesque but brutally cold at the same time. I could only take one picture in the gondola, i had to decide whether it made more sense getting my hand frozen for pictures or on the actual ski slope. I went with the latter.
I had already done my fit check, rented a ski boot, skis and helmet so i headed straight for the slopes, it wasn't crowded at all which i loved and the crowd was actually more fun than i had anticipated, i kept coming in to warm up which took a bit away from the fun. After some time i lost all the feelings in my fingers so i stayed out and made the most of the day. That lost of sensation in my fingers later became my worst nightmare which i would nurse for weeks.
On day two, the weather worsened so i did half day skiing and decide to take a tour of Banff. At this point my hand already felt like a log of wood, immovable and i had not even made it to the Northwest Territories yet. I tried to use hand warmers as much as i could which provided some temporary relief.
In the evenings on both days i spent at Banff, i dined and wined at restaurants and bars where i chatted with total strangers that shared the same travel passion as me.
I had an amazing experience at Banff and the cabin was the highlight of my trip, waking up to the views of the mountain was so therapeutic and nothing beats the sunrise hitting the horizon on both mornings. It was a dream!
Then it was day three and i was ready to go to the Northwest Territories. It was just a two hour flight from Calgary and my hotel already arranged a pick up for me.
Northwest Territories
Experiencing Aurora Borealis was the original intent of this trip so for me the fun had just begun. On arriving in Yellowknife, the weather was similar to Banff which the people of NWT consider great weather. Apparently, the temperature the week prior to my arrival was -47 degree celsius. I arrived at exactly 1PM just in time for another work meeting i had, as soon as i concluded that, i had a two hour nap because if i was going to be chasing the lights at midnight to early hours of the morning, then i needed to replenish my depleted energy. The state of my fingers was already making me sick but i wasn't going to give it any attention.
I woke up around 5PM, i had some dinner and went to the bar to have some lovely wine, i must have drank around three glasses to get the night started. At exactly 10pm, the tour guide arrived and we drove down to the Aurora village. I had thought we would be out all night and it was going to be an "all of the light" type of situation but i was wrong or misinformed. It was more like taking a chance with nature. Just like the weather, the forecast may be wrong, so one has to hope that the odds are in one's favour, also the Aurora does not light up the sky all night, just like a thunderstorm it happens very fast but if you're lucky to experience it, it could be the most beautiful thing you've ever seen.
I'm happy to report that i took a chance with nature and i was rewarded abundantly for it on both nights. On the first night, i was a wreck so when we got to Aurora village, while the tour guides were outside trying to spot the lights and the other guest were drinking warm beverages in the cabin, i was dozing off on my palms. Honestly, i thought i had outgrown this sleeping habit but turns out some things will never change but i will blame it on the long day i had.
All i heard was "come out, its about to happen", i made it outside our cabin just as the Aurora began dancing, it was like a whirlwind but in light form and as if the lights were going to fall on my head. Maybe, i'm exaggerating as I had just woken up from sleep but it's the most beautiful thing my eyes have seen. The entire show lasted about three minutes and that was it for the for the five hours we spent in the cabin. If i had missed that moment, that would have been it and i would have to look forward to the following day.
Day 2
There isn't a lot to do in the Northwest Territories, as a matter of fact, when i dreamed of this trip, i thought i would be smoking some joints during the day and reminiscing about life. It didn't take long before i scrapped that plan because how am i supposed to enjoy the Aurora I have come to see if my vision is impaired.
So, on the second day, i booked a dog sledding tour, I opted for a U-drive which meant i had to partner with another solo traveller. i was on the waiting list for sometime but luckily we found someone who was willing to do the tour with me. This tour would later become one of the highlights of my trip.
When we arrived at the cabin of the dog sledding tour organisers, we took sometime to educate ourselves on taxidermy as there were a couple of bears, foxes, wolves etc that have been taxidermied. That activity allowed me bond with my U-drive partner and got to know more about her so we both felt comfortable. It wasn't long before it was our turn, so off we went!
The U-drive requires people to take turns, the way it works is, the musher would have to stand and pedal (i.e pushing the sledge with one foot) while the other person sit and they could both switch halfway. I decided to be the musher first which was a bit scary given i'd never done it before. I made sure i listened to the instruction carefully prior to experiencing the fun. It was really fun and the dogs were so active, they were a few bumps as we were riding too fast, i asked my partner if she was happy with the speed and she was ecstatic so i didn't bother applying the brakes. Then, we were half way and we switched, it was my turn to sit.
The phase two of the ride begun, it was bumpy and fast, then i started speaking to my partner as we did while i was peddling, but no response so i thought she was just having a moment or not interested in chatting, i can be talkative sometimes. Unbeknownstto me, she had fallen off the U-drive and I had been left with the dogs, i remember thinking the ride was longer but i was having too much fun to even look back, then after some minutes i saw a motor sledge pull up and the guy said "we found them". I was confused and laughing at the same time, then i asked, how do you mean you found us?
He explained that my partner fell off the U-drive a long time ago and they had to rescue her first before coming to find me. I must have peed a little in my pants, then i started laughing and was so thankful that i did not realise that was the case. I think i would have panicked and tried to get off the ride or just screamed and would have been a nightmare, at the same time i was so happy because it was so much fun. Apparently, i made history, i'm the first person to ride the dog sledding that distance which meant i got a bang for my buck. my partner and I later laughed about it on the coach back to the hotel and when we met again at the Aurora village at midnight. Great times!
At Midnight, we went out again to watch the aurora, this time we stayed at a lovely cabin where some elderly women dressed us in real fur, made us a bread called "Bannick" and fish soup. It was delicious! She told us a lot of stories while we hoped for Aurora to do its thing. We had a much lager crowd including some Japanese tourist who would later give me travel tips for Japan. We enjoyed each other's company while we wait for the lights.
At exactly 1:15AM the sky was filled with stars, within some minutes the Aurora came out but the intensity was not as great as the night before but it lasted longer. Again, another variation of Aurora but it was beautiful. At 4AM, we headed back to the hotel and called it a night.
Day 3
During the Aurora viewing the previous night, our coach driver took an interest in me and asked if i had visited the ice road and the great slave lake, i said no and he said, in his words "not under his watch" he committed to collecting me from my hotel the following morning for a city tour. If you have been an avid reader, you should know by now that i never say No to opportunities so i replied with an enegetic Yes!
I woke up early enough to pack my bags so i could dash out to the airport as soon as i was done with my tour. The gentleman, Stanley collected me from my hotel and drove me around Yellowknife, while explaining all the landmarks. Honestly, it felt like being with my Dad on a roadtrip again, the only differnece was he didn't overwhelm me with too much details. Driving over the ice road was such a cool experience. Great slave lake is among the top ten deepest lake in the world with the depth of 614 meters.
We also saw houseboats that were frozen on the lake. Apparently, owners of these houses do not pay property taxes. Once we were done with that activity we went to the snow castle that was being constructed at the time which later opened up to tourists on March 1st. I have never seen anything like it, the closest i got to that was the ice bar at Lake Louise. Loved it!
As you would have imagined, Stanley and i would be hungry by now, so he suggested a cool fried chicken restaurant. Not necessarily my style but i thought having it once wouldn't kill me. It was Mary Browns chicken, apparently, it's a Newfoundland & Labrador fast food chain and it made Stanley feel close to home whenever he has it, so i got a taste of that too.
Once our lunch was over, he drove me back to the hotel, on our way i noticed the plate numbers were the shape of a polar bear, he stopped and i took a picture. He mentioned that whenever he visits other cities he's always concerned about the safety of his plate number as people tend to steal them because they look so nice and could pass for a collector item. Honesty, i think i would collect those too if i could.
He finally dropped me off and refused any tip i gave him, he said he was just happy hanging out. It was a nice day for me too, we said goodbyes and i left for the airport. Overall, I'm glad i came on this trip, it was in the middle of nowhere but an amazing experience. I only wished the Aurora had lasted longer and i didn't have to deal with the frostbites i had sustained while skiing. I'm looking forward to seeing the northern lights again but maybe in Iceland.
Love and Light xx
