Yellowknife has developed from a small collection of tipis, igloos and wooden shacks, to a thriving metropolitan city in the Northwest Territories on the shore of Great Slave Lake
By Tasneem Hossain | Bangladesh
Have you experienced the Aurora Borealis most commonly known as the Northern Lights?
It’s interesting to know that the term ‘aurora borealis’, was taken from Roman goddess of dawn, Aurora (thought to bring the sun every morning), and the Greek name for the north wind, Boreas. Many North American communities believed that the lights were the souls of departed ancestors and some thought they were spirits of the animals they hunted.
I have always wanted to watch this natural phenomenon of spectacular light show, dancing across the sky. Me and my daughter planned for a trip in February 2020 but our excitement was short-lived due to the COVID 19 pandemic. My heart still stirred with the expectation of watching the dazzling Aurora dance.
Lucky- my daughter, Shirleen, gave me a surprise gift -a visit to Yellowknife, one of the best places for aurora viewing.
Yellowknife has developed from a small collection of tipis, igloos and wooden shacks, to a thriving metropolitan city in the Northwest Territories (NWT) on the shore of Great Slave Lake. It has a population of about 22,000 and surrounded by a vast landscape of rock, tundra and water. It has become an important cultural landmark in the territory attracting tourists for possible views of the northern lights. It’s also a gateway city to the rest of Northern Canada. It became the capital of the Northwest Territories in 1967.
The name Yellowknife comes from the aboriginal group called T’atsaot’ine, translating to, the Yellowknives. It’s also home to other Indigenous People, including the North Slave Métis, First Nations, Métis, and Inuit whose presence continues to enrich their vibrant community.
Languages spoken in Yellowknife include English only – 79.6%, French only – 4.3% and 14.7% speak other languages which include Filipino, Vietnamese, German, Dene, Dogrib and Inuktitut.
It’s also called the Diamond Capital of North America. Diamonds were discovered in the area in 1991. There are three operating diamond mines close by and ranked as third in diamond production – popular for traditional and diamond jewelry. Other remarkable Yellowknife industries are tourism and transportation.
Today, Yellowknife is a culturally rich city with many nationally recognized artists, musicians, carvers, painters and skilled craftspeople. The inhabitants comprise of nearly 100 different countries and their customs and cuisines are an integral part of the city’s culture.
We researched and found that mid-November to early April was a good time for aurora viewing. As one is never sure, most local tour operators recommend staying in Yellowknife for at least a few nights to maximize the chances of aurora viewing. So, we planned for a four days and three-night trip to Yellowknife from 1-4 December 2023.
It’s always best to go with some touring companies for Aurora viewing, as there are lots of variables involved in finding the right place and time, unless you are lucky enough to be catching the solar storms of 2024 in your backyard! So, we contacted Northern Light Tours. Everything was set for the tour.
We were totally over the moon in anticipation. We packed our bags and went to the airport on 1 December to catch the flight at 6.00 a.m.
There was a layover in Calgary. The airport is not very big but the facility is great. They had a shuttle bus to carry us to our gates. The driver was a jolly good fellow shouting and cracking jokes on the 2-minute ride.
There are regular direct flights to Yellowknife from Edmonton and Calgary, and occasional or seasonal direct flights from some other Canadian locations.
We reached our destination at 1.30 p.m.
Julian, our tall, gentle natured guide welcomed us and provided the special winter clothing we had rented, as it’s very cold in Yellowknife during winters (-16-26 degrees in December). Our clothing included a heavy parka, insulated pants, warm socks and snow boots with insulation as the snow is pretty deep. I wish the clothes were a little cleaner!
Knowing about the freezing weather, we had packed windproof beanies, scarves and hand and feet warmers to use inside the socks and mittens.
Our tour company bus took us to Chateau Nova Hotel. We were booked in a king’s room with two beds.
This is the advantage of taking a tour company as guide. You don’t have to make reservations of hotels or rent a car. For roaming around the city, on your own, Yellowknife is pretty small. Taxis are readily available. The two main Yellowknife areas for hotels and restaurants are Old Town and Downtown.
It was lunch time and the time for pick up for the quest for Northern Lights was at 9.00 p.m. Though, the hotel has a great dining place we ventured out for food and sightseeing in downtown. Even in the freezing cold, it was bubbling with life.
Tourists and locals thronged the streets which are filled with trendy shops. We looked around and bought a few mementos.
Quite a few excellent restaurants are available. We decided to go to a Halal restaurant ‘Shwarma House’. The price was very reasonable and delicious with a large portion. One plate was enough for the two of us.
It was almost 6.00 p.m. when we finished our lunch so we just roamed around the area for some time. Then it was time to go for Aurora viewing. We were super excited and waited in the hotel lounge. There were many groups geared up in winter clothing, given by their tour companies. Everyone was bubbling with excitement and chatted among each other.
We had 30 members in our group. We boarded our bus at around 9.15p.m for our adventure. Julian drove through different roads outside the city for about 30 miles and then stopped at a sighting spot.
We waited. In the meantime, the tour organizers served us hot coffee and cookies. Suddenly Julian announced, ‘Look it’s coming!’ and pointed towards the sky.
Yes, there it was! First, it was a faint hue, then slowly the sky filled with magical display of radiant green, pink and orange. Everyone started to shout and take pictures. The guide had his special camera ready to take pictures for everyone. All of us got the opportunity to pose with the aurora in the background. That day it was KP 6.5
Well, the level of geomagnetic activity is indicated by the planetary K index or KP. The KP index ranges from 0 to 9. A KP index of 5 or higher is associated with good Northern Lights viewing.
After some time, it faded away as clouds covered the sky. We came back to the hotel at around 3.00 a.m. The next day we had planned to go sightseeing in the morning on our own; and go for a snowmobile adventure with Julian at around 1.00 p.m.
We got up early in the morning on December 2. We had buffet breakfast at a very reasonable price in the hotel. There was an array of different kinds of tasty foods for breakfast. We decided not to think of dieting during our vacation and ate to our heart’s content. No wonder, I gained a couple of pounds during the vacation!
Julian arrived at 12.45 and took us on a jeep to a vast expanse of snow. We got introduced to the other tourist, who joined us. He was an amicable Indonesian. From the very beginning we had a good vibe. As we were four, we took four snowmobiles.
First, our guide showed us how to operate the bike and then we had a 15-minute practice session. Afterwards, Julian led us towards the snowmobile ground and we began our ride. It was an exhilarating experience for me. Early on, we had to climb a small incline. When my bike wasn’t going up, I decided to accelerate-and wow, what an experience! The snowmobile lifted off the ground for a few seconds. It could have ended in a dangerous accident, but my quick instinct and determination helped me land safely.
Well, from what I heard from the others, their hearts were stuck in their mouths watching me fly…ha ha ha. They were certain of an impending doom but thankfully, I didn’t panic. My quick thinking helped avoid any mishap. After that, my guide decided not to take any risks, so he had me ride with him. We rode through beautiful snow-covered trees and enjoyed an incredible two-hour adventure.
We came back at around 4.00 p.m. to the hotel and had lunch in a Chinese restaurant.
Later we went out to visit the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, the Government of the Northwest Territories’ museum and archives near Frame Lake. It took about 20 minutes to walk there from Chateau Nova Hotel.
The museum features fascinating exhibits on the culture and heritage of Yellowknife. It includes an archive of archaeological artifacts, paintings, sculptures of local artists, clothing, hunting and working tools depicting their culture, geological samples and many other items illustrating the history of the NWT.
NWT Rocks section displays the wealth of mineral resources available and how these resources have influenced settler immigration, impacting the industry and economy of the region.
We were amazed, seeing the sample of Moose-skin Boat on display. In the late 1800s to the 1950s, moose skin boats were built by the Shutagot’ine (Mountain Dene) to carry large loads of cargo along dangerous mountain rivers. A 13,650-year-old steppe bison skull found in Tsiigehtchic, NWT in 2007 also captured our attention.
The section ‘This Land is Our Home: Wıìlıìdeh Yellowknives’ Dene’ showcases Dene First Nation’s traditional territory history, language and culture through artifacts, clothing, oral history and photographs.
After having an insightful tour of the museum, we went for dinner and raced back to the hotel for another adventurous night of Aurora hunting.
Once again, we started at around 9.00 p.m. in the bus. That day we were almost disappointed because no sighting was visible for a long period. We drove 70 km through the roads outside the city.
Suddenly Julian stopped the bus and shouted ‘Come on we have a sighting -wonderful aurora dancing!’
We rushed out of the bus. As we stood there in the open field, the full sky lit up and engulfed the whole sky as if it was the walls of a castle. Myriads of green, yellow, orange, pink colored lights started their captivating dance. One has to see this to believe it, that there can be such a powerful display of dancing colors. It was very cold, our feet were freezing standing there for such a long time, but no one wanted to go back. Though Julian took our pictures, we went on taking pictures with our mobiles. That day it had 8.5 KP a very unusual phenomenon. I guess, God had listened to our prayers and the Aurora came with its mighty powers of beauty to announce its presence.
We came back to our hotel at around 3.45 a.m. The sighting became the talk of the town because this high range of KP is a rare phenomenon. We were super lucky.
The next day, on December 3, we went ice fishing. Yellowknife is a superb spot for fishing.
That was an exceptional experience with 14 group members from different countries. There are many ways to catch fish. In our case, a hole was made in the solid rock 24 hours ahead of our arrival. A fishing net with a rod had been pushed inside to catch fish. The organizers asked us to volunteer to pull out the net and lo and behold! Thirteen different types of fish were in the net including burbot, trout, pickerel, whitefish and northern pike.
Then we were taken to a nearby lodge, where we warmed ourselves in the cozy dining room. They served us with hot soup, biscuits and noodles. Meanwhile the cook dressed the fish in front of us and fried it. As we waited, we shared each other’s home country’s traditional ways of cooking fish.
We relished three-four pieces of the steaming hot fish. Later, we were taken back to our hotels.
A warming experience indeed!
As we were to leave the next morning Shirleen and I decided to visit the legislative building, which was a little far from the hotel. Entry is free! When we reached, the office time (10a.m. – 6p.m. daily) was over but a group of six tourists were inside.
Our heart warmed up, seeing that there were no security measures taken. Anybody could walk inside. Only a receptionist was there. This, itself speaks volumes of the nature of people residing in Yellowknife. It’s a two storied building, so we walked upstairs and saw the parliament sitting room and other rooms. A few paintings and wooden sculptors are decorated in a few corners.
By the time we walked downstairs, everyone had left. As we tried to open the main door, it was locked. First, we panicked a little. We tried to shout to see if there was someone, but with no success. The other doors were also locked. We discussed that we can call the guide and tell him and see what can be done. Also, we made a backup plan that if we can’t go out, that’s okay we will sleep inside in the big couches and leave the next morning. While planning this, we saw a note beside the main door saying, ‘I am going out for my rounds. You can use the canteen door to go out’.
How would we know where the canteen door was? We decided to venture together, so that even if we were lost we will be lost together. Luckily, after a little exploration, we found the door and walked outside, took a few pictures and went back to the hotel.
Another great adventure!
The next morning, December 4, we had a luxurious breakfast at the hotel. Then we went around the hotel to have a few more pictures. At around 11.45a.m. Julian’s father dropped us at the airport.
On the flight back home, we were thrilled with the trip. We had planned to go for dog sledding, a ride through the snowy forests with a pack of dogs. But hadn’t been able to avail any of the tours. Also, during the winter, there are some festivals such as ice sculpture contests, hand games, local music festivals, food fairs, skating rink, artist’s market, and many more which we hadn’t been able to attend.
So, both of us decided that we need to visit Yellowknife once again.
Julian is a great guide and is incredibly passionate about the northern lights.
I would definitely recommend the tour operator as they are very friendly, reliable and punctual.
The journey never ends until we breathe our last. Dreams of visiting other exciting places keep us looking towards the future in anticipation.
Dazzling across the misty wintry night
Appear the glaring dancing lights.
Flickering fluorescent waves of emerald and jade beams,
Swirling fiery flames of green and pink,
Shine in heavenly gleam;
Aurora Gods have heard our pleas,
Showering us with colorful dazzling dreams.
Read: Poetry is Life
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Tasneem Hossain is a multilingual poet, columnist, op-ed and fiction writer, educator, translator, and training consultant. She writes poems in English, Urdu, and Bengali. As an op-ed writer, she has authored over 130 articles. Her articles deal with day to day life events and deals with personal development issues; and creates awareness about social and human rights issues. Several of her articles and poems are utilized as teaching material in universities and academies across various countries; some have been referenced in university research papers by academics. She is author of three poetry collections—Grass in Green, The Pearl Necklace, and Floating Feather and a book of articles ‘Split and Splice’, she also leads an international poetry project and group called Life in Lyrics. Additionally, four more books are currently in progress
