N O R T H W E S T T E R R I T O R I E S A N D N U N A V U T
Coppermine River
THE COPPERMINE is an intersection of things geological, biological and cultural. It takes you on a roller-coaster ride through
different rock layers that reveal the meeting of geological epochs. Above the rock there is a thin layer of soil that
seems fragile but somehow supports Lapland rhododendrons that are old enough they might have been brushed by Samuel Hearne’s foot in the 18th century. The river traverses the dividing line between
the treeline and the tundra, which means you get both experiences, and have enough fuel to cook lavishly. More importantly, it crosses the border from the Northwest Territories to Nunavut, and from Dene to Inuit territory. It shows that rivers are bigger than politics. When you hike to a place of prospect and see
the river as it cuts through time and space all these elemental things converge and leave you with a lasting connection to this empty land.
Keep your eyes open As a warm-up for his real disaster, Sir John Franklin
travelled to the Arctic Coast via the Coppermine in 1819, losing 11 of his 20 men. Things were still going well for the party when they hit Rocky De- file, a good place to pull out a copy of Franklin’s Journey to the Polar Sea and read the description of the rapid he named: “The river here descends for three-quarters
PHOTOS: ALLYSONPAYNE/HEADSHOT: JAMES RAFFAN
of a mile in a deep but narrow and crooked channel…confined between perpendicular cliffs resembling stone walls…. The body of the river pent within this narrow chasm dashed fu- riously round the projecting rocky columns and discharged itself at the northern extremity in a sheet of foam.” They ran it, of course.
Don’t forget Powdered wasabi and dehydrated pickled gin-
ger for fresh Arctic char sushi.
Routes Charter a float plane drop-off in Point Lake, from
JAMES RAFFAN is the author of Bark, Skin and Cedar and has travelled the Coppermine River twice in the summer and once in the winter.
where you can speed down the river in two weeks or travel leisurely in three. With the exception of Bloody Falls on the last day the entire high-vol- ume, but not particularly technical, river is usu- ally runnable for paddlers with class III skills.
C ANOE ROOT S n 27
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