August 11th, 2014
Facts about Midway Music Festival
This festival is held on the land 25 miles SW of Fort McPherson, a small community located just off the world famous Dempster Highway over the first long weekend in August. It is a wonderful opportunity for family to come out and enjoy live music and storytelling. There is also a dance floor to accommodates those who wish to show their steps to traditional Gwich’in jigs, waltzes and square dances. This festival helps celebrate the Gwich’in culture that is spread throughout not only the NWT but the Yukon and Alaska.
Today’s Highlights
Andrew writes:I think the scenery. It finally got pretty. Lots of greenery, and the mountains in the near-distance. I had a few moments today where I just stopped to take it all in.
Today’s Lowlights
Andrew writes:About 5 hours in I saw a mileage marker on the other side of the road. It read “Fort McPherson – 35km”. It just seemed so deflating.
What happened…
Andrew writes: Early to bed, early to rise right? So Amanda did the unthinkable and set the alarm for 8am. As soon as it went off, she was up like a shot, putting all of her gear away and making enough noise that I decided to wake up too. We had a new recipe for breakfast, “franola” or friend granola. I read it in a backcountry cookbook before we left. It was really great! With breakfast and a few cups of coffee, we were on the road and out of town by 10am. I think the whole point of getting up early was so that we could grind out 100km to the Rock Creek Campground.
The rolling hills have been replaced with a near constant uphill. The wind wasn’t much of a factor today which was a godsend. Just hill after hill, after hill. After awhile, the cloudless sky got to me and I decided during lunch to have a bit of a lie down in the shade. Then we were back on the road.
I feel fat. I feel lazy. I feel old. I feel weak. I feel like we are hauling too much stuff. I feel like I’ve been taking this highway for granted. I feel like a quitter. After about 40km we pulled into Midway and decided to call it a day. A part of me can’t believe that we stopped after such a short distance; that we didn’t achieve our daily mileage that we had hoped for. Another part of me is happy that I’m not afraid to stop and enjoy a swim in a nice, refreshing, Arctic lake. I’m happy that we got some laundry done. I’m happy that the sun is shining, the birds are singing, and that dinner and lunch are cooking.
Tomorrow we will try to ride the 60km to Rock Creek Campground, and then Eagle Plains the day after. Eagle Plains represents the halfway mark of the Dempster, so that should put us into Dawson around the 17th.
Today’s Photographs
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