TRAVERSE 11
The Dempster cuts a 926-kilometre path from Dawson City, Yukon, to the edge of the continent on the shores of the Beaufort Sea a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, ending at one of the northernmost points accessible by road in North America. What lies between is not just distance, but challenge, solitude, and encounters with Indigenous cultures whose deep relationship with the land predates the highway by thousands of years.
The journey typically begins in Dawson City, although our Yamaha Tenere T700s supplied by Sean O’ Donnell at Arctic Moto, are based in the Yukon’ s capital city of Whitehorse. This provides an option to ride the extra 500-kilometres or so, each way, adding something a little different to the adventure and providing an early experience of this vast landscape.
Exploring with Arctic Moto, riders are supplied with late-model dual-sport motorcycles, including the agile Yamaha Tenere 700 and nimble Kove 450 Rally, perfect machines for managing the mix of paved stretches and challenging gravel. To join an Arctic Moto tour, riders need a full motorcycle license, at least two years of riding experience, and the spirit of an adventurer. What they don’ t need, O’ Donnell insists, is to be an expert.
TRAVERSE 11