Oh hey blog friends, its been a while! Ciara and I have been busy getting used to our new lives up here in Whitehorse. Here’s a quick look back at a few highlights.
TRUCK YEAH
I have finally embraced the mountain biker bro stereotype and purchased a truck to haul bikes around the territory. Its only been a month of living the truck life, but I can’t wait to get out for more adventures and camping with the truck next year.
BIKES
Of course, we spent every weekend, and evening we could out on the bikes. The snow is here now, so the bikes have been tucked away waiting for next year. But up until the last minute, we were out riding both in Whitehorse and down the road in Carcross. The best part was being able to do some shuttle runs once I got the truck so Ciara and I could take turns not having to pedal up the mountain!
SNOW
Yes, you heard me right in the section above… we’re living in a winter wonderland. Its no shock… I think a lot of people that haven’t been up here just assume that it is snowy 365 days a year. We’ve had snow for about a week and a half now, with temperatures bouncing between the single digit positives, and -20 over night a few times.
NORTHERN LIGHTS
Ciara and I got to witness the Northern Lights for the first time. It was pretty faint the entire time, and no cellphone can ever do it justice. But we had an awesome night curled up in the truck watching the bands slowly change over the city
WORK
So… how’s work going? This was the whole reason we were able to move up here so quickly in the first place. Work is going really well. I work with an awesome team of people, feel challenged with new and exciting opportunities yet supported in the pursuit of them. Plus, for the first time in my life, I feel like work/life balance is actually practiced as well as preached.
Now we are just settling in for the darkest, boringest part of the winter. Spending our time planning the next adventures we want to go on.
Now that Ciara and I are free from our restrictions of quarantine, we have finally been able to get out and have some adventures.
Last Friday, we did our first ride on the trails here. We had both ridden a few of these trails when we visited last year, but admittedly in the “less fun direction.” The 17 km loop we did definitely was a wake up call for our legs, but we earned some pretty fun downhill sections. From rocks, to roots, to berms and gorgeous views, this route had a little bit of everything.
Then on Saturday, we spent most of our morning and early afternoon test driving vehicles and trying to figure out that part of life. But luckily, the sun stays out a lot longer up here to allow for more adventures. We drove about 45 minutes down the road and tackled the first hike of our time as Yukoners, Caribou Mountain. It was quite the leg-burner of a hike (both up and down) but the views from the beginning of the ridge were definitely worth it.
Starting from the bottom, you work your way through a couple small stands of Aspens and up some steep, loose climbs. The trail continues onto some still steep, but rocky, shale covered climbs, barely giving your legs a break.
As you climb you have stunning views of the Carcross Desert, the town of Carcross and Montana Mountain to the south.
The trail breaks up and onto the ridge, where it flattens out for a very short while before continuing ever upwards. With our legs and lungs burning, this is where Ciara and I decided to turn around rather than continue up the trail. We had a quick snack, took some pictures, and started making our way down. The way down was even more exhausting. With our legs shaking and weak, we made it back to the car.
Now we’re both curled up on the couch with our muscles aching, watching the rain outside. But I know when the weather clears up we’ll be back out exploring what the mountains have to offer.
Today marks the end of our quarantine. As such, I have now had 14 days to sit in relative isolation with my thoughts, feelings, and experiences. Here are a few that stood out to me
First, how unbelievably lucky Ciara and I are.
Not only because one of us was able to land a job across the country in the middle of a global pandemic, but that we have family and friends up here in Whitehorse that are willing to support us and give us shelter while we figure out the rest of the details. On top of this, we have an amazing group of family and friends back in Ontario that have helped us get to this point. Helping us pack, move, sell belongings, or just listening to us when it all got a little too stressful.
Second, if you are quarantining with your partner, you will probably annoy each other.
(And that’s okay)
Some people are totally okay spending 24/7/365 with one person, other people want to be solo all the time, but most of us land somewhere in the middle of that range. It’s also likely that you and your partner land at different spots in the range. Take this as an opportunity to learn more about how the two of you can communicate best what you need (and don’t).
Third, get outside if you can.
It’s easy to fall into a cycling of watching entire Netflix seasons, or falling down YouTube rabbit holes. If you take the time to step outside (as long as you are legally allowed to) and do it in a safe manner it will help keep you a little less cranky. Who knows, you might see something cool while you’re out there.
A little shorter of an update this week, but now that we are done our quarantine we can actually get up to some adventures (including adventures in bureaucracy as we get everything set up and changed over).
So, you might have noticed some posts about me moving. Since I am absolutely terrible at keeping up a text or email conversation, I figured I would sit down and write out the whole story here (or as much as I can remember from the whirlwind).
The Background
About 8 years ago now, my sister and her husband took an opportunity to move from Ontario up to Whitehorse, Yukon. I was reluctant to visit at first (Isn’t it like freezing cold up there all the time?!), but finally made the trip up for Christmas in 2017.
Taking in the view on a cold winter morning
Ever since that first trip, I was obsessed with the idea of living in Whitehorse. A town in the mountains with delicious beer, good coffee, and did I mention the MOUNTAINS? I traveled up the following two summers, the first on my own to experience the mountain biking I had been told was top notch, and the second to share the mountain views, hikes, and bike trails with my partner Ciara.
Ending our 2019 trip with a visit to Kusawa
After we returned to Ontario, Ciara and I started talking half-seriously about moving up here “one-day.” Then COVID hit – as we started spending more and more time together, we had the opportunity to have some serious life chats and actually seriously talk about moving up to Whitehorse in the next couple of years.
The Opportunity
Once we had set our sights on moving within the next two years. We started seriously keeping an eye on the job postings. We told ourselves that it was to make sure we had the qualifications we might need to get a job we would want up here. What we didn’t know was that a perfect opportunity would present itself, and I would actually take the leap and apply.
An application, a Zoom interview, and a few weeks later I would find myself receiving an offer I couldn’t say no to. And they wanted me to start the first week of August, lots of time! (Oh wait… what about quarantining?)
The 18 Days
So stick with me here… I got the offer July 1st. Given the fact that we would need to quarantine for two weeks upon entering the territory, the latest we could possibly leave was July 19th.
The specifics of the 18 days are still pretty blurry for me, but here is what I remember.
July 1st: I get the job offer over the phone while on vacation at the family cottage. Ciara and I say one last goodbye to Haliburton before driving home and excitedly planning the move while we drove.
July 2nd: we both quit our jobs, contacted the Yukon government to see whether we were even allowed in the territory or not, and gave our landlord notice that we needed to break our lease. (No picture for this one… just imagine a lot of awkward video meetings).
July 3rd – July 16th: A whirlwind of final hangouts with those we could safely see, last bike rides on our local trails, packing our apartment, selling everything we didn’t need, and everything else I can’t remember.
July 17th: We moved everything out with the help of family. And said good-bye to our first apartment.
July 18th: One last family barbeque with both of our families.
July 19th: Early morning drive to the airport with our luggage and four bikes (yes… four. I did let two of my bikes go during the packing/selling phase, I promise).
The Actual Day
Ciara and I rolled in to a luckily empty airport with all of our stuff. A quick stop off at oversize baggage and we were off to security.
Everyone was more than respectful of those around them in the airports, wearing their masks and giving as much space as possible. Both of our flights were nearly full, but everyone followed the guidelines of masks and sanitizer (helped by the mandatory “care” package from the airline that included a mask, pair of gloves, mini sanitizer bottle, and two wipes).
After a total of 8 hours in the air, and a 3.5 hour layover we arrived in Whitehorse, unsure of exactly what the situation to get into the territory would be. But, with a few easy forms and a chat with one of the officials our quarantine plan was approved.
Quarantine!
We’re lucky enough to have some amazing friends living in Whitehorse that have made this all possible. They set up a little apartment for us in their basement, deliver groceries, and helped us navigate this brand new town.
Since arriving in their basement, we’ve been sticking to ourselves, getting out for walks in the neighbourhood, apartment and vehicle hunting, and Ciara has begun the job hunt. We actually just secured a lease on a new apartment too! So the list is slowly growing a little bit smaller.
The future?
What’s next for us? Hopefully a lot of adventures when the weather is good, and a lot of planning more adventures when the weather is bad.
It won’t necessarily be an easy road getting used to a completely new town and territory, but Ciara and I are so excited to get to know our new home. Stick around as we share some of our thoughts and adventures up here in Canada’s North.
Gone to the Yukon 