A River That Turns Into Road And Again Becomes River. Inuvik-Aklavik Ice Road
Inuvik-Aklavik
Two cities, one river. A river that freezes every winter and forms a road to connect the two cities. It melts again in summer and turns into a river. It is a truly surprising event from our mother nature.
This amazing event has happened to us every year in this world. Today I am sharing about that amazing event. It will be good for me if stay with me till the end.
It happens every year in a country named Canada. In that country, there is a majestic river named Mackenzie. It is one of the main rivers of that country. This country is located near the North Pole. So according to the natural rules, winter stays here throughout the half of the year.
Everything is frozen here in winter. At that time, the Mackenzie River also froze. Thick ice covers over the river water. This lining is so hard that heavy vehicles can pass through it very easily without any danger.
INUVIK is the name one of the towns located on the banks of this river. Inuvik is located at the centre of the arctic entrance with a population of 3,243. Inuvik was created in 1953 as a replacement town and administrative centre for the town of Aklavik, on the west of the Mackenzie Delta.
Because the town AKLAVIK was at risk of flooding through the Mackenzie River. It was the main town in that region before the foundation of INUVIK. There was no room for expansion in the town of Aklavik. So the new city of Inuvik was founded.
Initially known as the “New Aklavic”, the new city was renamed Inuvik in 1958. The town school was built in 1959 and the hospital, government office and staff quarters were built in 1960.
Inuvik is one of the major cities in the region of Midnight Sun and Gateway of the Beaufort Delta. This is where the Arctic adventure begins. Citizenship here is a mixture of invalid, Gwich’in and indigenous citizens.
You have already read the name of another city, Aklavik. This city is more ancient. In summer it is almost isolated. In the winter, the Mackenzie River freezes, giving it access to the main regional city of Inuvik.
Near the Richardson Mountains, the town of Aklaviks is located on the western edge of the Mackenzie Delta. Aklavik, which means “Barren ground was the former administrative center of the Western Arctic. For practical reasons, it was necessary to relocate.
The town of Aklavik survived to be abandonment when locals refused to relocate. Aklaick achieved his motto, “Say never to die.” Inuvik now serves as the administrative centre, other hands with about 600 locals in Aklavik maintaining this tradition of, “Say never to die.”
This time let’s talk about the road. How is it made and how is it transported?
Inuvik-Aklavik Ice Road
Length: 117 kilometres
Average opening: December 24
Average closing: April 29
Average vehicles per day: 54
The Western Arctic is still a beautiful place and several legendary ice roads create in winter. Across the Mackenzie Delta, the winter road from Inuvik to Aklavik is located 117 km north of the Arctic Circle. Many spectacular views, including the Richardson Mountains, can be seen on this road.
Although there is not much light at the beginning of winter, residents try to make sure that the sunlight is on as much as possible when driving on this road.
When the month of April arrives, the sunlight begins to increase. This time the road becomes better for traffic.
This is the ice road, which creates through the freezing of Mackenzie River to connect the two cities. Ice roads in northern Canada appear to be magical every winter, which melt in the spring. It is one of the many wonders of our mother nature.
