Nestled within the valley, between the western Mackenzie mountains and the eastern Franklin mountains, lies the town of Norman Wells – right on the edge of the Mackenzie River – Canada’s longest river and one of the biggest rivers in North American by discharge. Norman Wells is 320 kms north from the last all-season road and is thereby only connected to the Northwest Territories’ meager road system by a winter ice road typically in operation from late December to early April. For the rest of the year, the only way to reach this town is either by flying or by boat – with bigger re-supply items, such as fuel, brought in by barge ships.
The town has about 700 residents and the broader region is home to the Shuta Got’ine – the Mountain Dene.
I was offered the rare opportunity to visit the remote northern community of Norman Wells in the summer of 2024. As a nature enthusiast and as someone stemming from an academic background in biology, I was invited by a Dene Elder to help out with his passion project – the CANOL trail youth hike – and to provide input on a long-envisioned dream of his (and his people) – the Doi T’oh Territorial Park.
There are only two flight companies that fly from Yellowknife to Norman Wells – Canadian North and North Wright Air. I took Canadian North on the way there. The plane was a Boeing 737 combi plane – meaning only half of the plane is reduced to passengers and the rest of the plane is for cargo (the passenger aisle is cut short by a wall). I had a brief layover in Inuvik – a remote community within the Arctic Circle – before finally arriving in Norman Wells. During the flight, I could see the wide, brown-coloured Mackenzie River that cuts through the otherwise monotonous landscape of green and blue from endless trees and lakes, and which funnels water north into the Arctic Ocean. I also witnessed some stellar mountain views characteristic of the western region of the Northwest Territories.
My return flight with North Wright Air was also a unique northern experience. It was a large prop plane with a singular row of seats on either side. There was also no door between the cockpit and the passengers, so the entire time you could see the pilot. It made for a very intimate commercial flying experience. The pilot was also the same person who checked our bag weights at the airport, who led us onto the tarmac, and who set up the small stairs into the plane. He was a flight attendant, steward, and pilot all in one!
I went down to the main river dock upon arriving in town. The Mackenzie River is wide with a swift current. I gave an offering of tobacco to its turbulent waters as is custom in the North and a sign of respect for the land. From across its waters, I could see the beckoning Mackenzie Mountains, painted in the golden hues of the evening light. I went down to the small McKinnon Territorial Park where there’s a large tipi and some informational plaques about the region.
In the few days I spent in Norman Wells, I was impressed by its quaint historic charm mixed in with the sharp-edged ruggedness of the North. All roads are gravel or dirt bordered by overgrown grass and weeds. Neighbourhoods are an arrangement of modular homes – which is very common in the North since building materials are expensive and hard to come by (especially in a community with very limited road access). In the core of downtown, there’s a restaurant and inn with an adjoining veranda, and within the same block is the grocery store, post office, and bank.
In town, there’s a beautiful rustic catholic church with white wooden lap siding and light blue trim. There’s a Legion – a staple of small Canadian towns, originally meant for war veterans but where most community events and frequent meals take place. There’s also a beautiful log cabin-style building that serves as a homebase for Canoe North – one of the main paddling companies in the NWT.
On the edge of town is the imposing Imperial Oil refinery which signifies the northern economy’s dependence on natural resource extraction. Imperial Oil has had its claws in the region since the 1920’s, when they first began extracting oil from the region’s rich deposits. By the 1940’s, World War II delivered another wave of sprawling activity to the region via the Canadian Oil Project (CANOL). The project was spearheaded by the Americans but a joint venture between the two countries with the objective of building a pipeline that would deliver oil from Norman Wells, over the Mackenzie Mountains, to Whitehorse, where it could then be accessed by the Americans to fuel their war efforts. The broader project also saw the construction of what is now known as the world-famous Alaska Highway.
After years of treacherous conditions and grueling work to put this pipeline in place, it was only in operation for under a year before it was decommissioned in 1945. Although the use of the pipeline was brief, its creation left lasting impacts on the region. In town, you can still see remnants of old vehicles rusting and left behind – relics and reminders of another time. It feels random to see these antique vehicles in a place that’s isolated from the rest of the world. I find it interesting to think about who used to drive these vehicles in their prime, what their objectives were, and at what point these vehicles were laid to rest in overgrown willow thickets.
The little museum in town, which also serves as a visitor’s centre and souvenir store, contained a lot of great artifacts and information about the town and broader region. There were also quite a few pelts and taxidermied wildlife, such as moose, muskox, bear, and caribou.
Along the only winding road that leads out of town towards the Franklin Mountains, is Jackfish lake – a popular angling and recreational spot for the locals.
Thanks to the northern late-setting summer sun, I went on a midnight hike. Just after midnight, the sun was still taking its sweet time sinking into the horizon as I traversed the Ridge Trail which meanders through thick forest until it eventually comes out to a stellar ridgeline with an unobstructed view of a valley and the Franklin Mountains. If I’d had more time, I would’ve searched for fossils, since these mountains are known to be rich with them.
The road leading out of town speaks to the remoteness of the region. Where the only hint of “civilization” is the gravel road that cuts into the unending landscape of pine trees and shrubs. Wherever you are, you’re on the cusp of nature, and standing on the frontier of human’s quest to conquer the wild.
