Camping in the Yukon

The wildlife is genuinely wild: grizzlies, wolves, caribou, and Dall sheep inhabit landscapes that humans have barely touched.

Getting to the Yukon with an RV

• The primary land route is the Alaska Highway — 2,224 kilometres from Dawson Creek, BC (Mile 0) to Delta Junction, Alaska, passing through Whitehorse (with a further 158 km via the Richardson Highway to Fairbanks).
• The highway is paved or chip-sealed end to end, with construction zones in summer.
• From Edmonton, allow 3–4 days to reach Whitehorse comfortably.
• From Vancouver, 4–5 days.
• Fuel up whenever you can — distances between services can exceed 200 km in some sections.
• The Cassiar Highway (Hwy 37) from northern BC is a scenic alternative, connecting to the Alaska Highway near Watson Lake.

The Dempster Highway

• The Dempster is a 736-kilometre gravel highway from Dawson City to Inuvik, NWT — Canada's only public road across the Arctic Circle.
• It passes through Tombstone Territorial Park, climbs over the Ogilvie Mountains, crosses the continental divide, traverses the Richardson Mountains, and descends into the Mackenzie Delta.
• The road is accessible to most vehicles and RVs if properly prepared: two spare tires minimum, extra fuel canisters, and a windshield cover are essential.
• Campgrounds exist at Tombstone, Engineer Creek, Rock River, and Eagle Plains (the halfway point with fuel, food, and accommodation).
• Allow two to three days each way.

Bear Safety in the Yukon

• The Yukon has an estimated 6,000–7,000 grizzly bears plus a large black bear population.
• All food must be stored in hard-sided containers or bear canisters when camping outside designated campgrounds.
• Bear spray should be carried accessible on your person, not in your pack.
• Make noise while hiking.
• Learn to identify fresh bear sign.
• Government and national park campgrounds have bear-safe food storage facilities, but backcountry campers must be entirely self-sufficient with bear-safety protocols.

Midnight Sun Camping

Around June 21 Whitehorse gets about 19 hours of daylight and never gets fully dark; Dawson City's sun barely dips below the horizon. Sleeping requires blackout curtains or a good sleep mask.

Northern Lights

• The Yukon sits under the auroral oval; aurora is visible on dark, clear nights from late August to April.
• The lights become visible when skies are dark enough — from late August onward.
• September offers a beautiful balance of reasonable nighttime temperatures and long dark hours.
• Dark sky sites away from Whitehorse, particularly along the Dempster Highway corridor, the shores of Kluane Lake, and near Carcross, offer extraordinary aurora displays.
• Apps like My Aurora Forecast and Space Weather Live track Kp index and can help predict strong aurora events.