Highway 5 (paved in 2017, in good condition for RVers and travelers with trailers) leads 166 miles/267 km from its junction with Highway 2 to Fort Smith. There are no services between Hay River and Fort Smith.
Distance from Enterprise (E) is shown.
NWT HIGHWAY 5 Wood Buffalo Route
E 19.8 (31.9 km) Junction with Highway 2 to Hay River and Enterprise.
E 21.1 (34 km) Railroad and auto bridge crosses Hay River.
E 21.3 (34.3 km) Access road leads north 5.9 km/3.7 miles to Hay River Reserve and Dene Cultural Cenre.
E 54 (86.9 km) Buffalo River bridge.
E 54.4 (87.5 km) Turnout to north with outhouse, litter bin and map.
E 57.6 (92.7 km) Junction with Highway 6 to Fort Resolution (see “Great Slave Lake Route” log on page 643). Continue on Highway 5 south for Fort Smith.
E 74.3 (119.6 km) Turnoff for Sandy Lake, 13 km/8 miles south; swimming, sandy beach, fishing for northern pike.
E 79.8 (128.4 km) Entering Wood
Buffalo National Park (a UNESCO World Heritage Site). Established in 1922, to protect Canada’s largest free roaming herd of wood bison, the park is a vast wilderness area—larger than Switzerland—and Canada’s largest national park. Its total size is 44,741 square kilometers, with the greater portion located in the northeast corner of Alberta. The Wood Buffalo National Park Visitor Centre and main office are located in Fort Smith, NWT; there is a satellite office in Fort Chipewyan, AB. The park is open year-round and a variety of outdoor activities and cultural experiences draw visitors from around the world. For more information, contact Wood Buffalo National Park, Box 750, Fort Smith, NT X0E 0P0; phone 867-872-7960;
www.pc.gc.ca/en/pn-np/nt/woodbuffalo.
E 82 (132 km) Picnic area with tables, toilets, firewood and playground to north at Angus Fire Tower. Giant sinkhole here is typical of karst topography.
E 94 (151.2 km) Turnout to south with litter bin, toilets and interpretive signs on bison and the Nyarling River. CAUTION: Watch for wood bison.
E 130 (209.2 km) Highway crosses Sass River. Shallow lakes from here south to Preble Creek provide nesting areas for whooping cranes.
E 135.3 (217.7 km) Highway crosses Preble Creek.
E 143.6 (231.1 km) Turnout with washrooms, litter bin, walking trail and interpretive signs on whooping crane nesting grounds.
E 150.3 (241.9 km) Little Buffalo River bridge.
E 153.5 (247 km) Access road leads 1 km/
0.6 mile to Little Buffalo River Falls Territorial Park with shelter, firepits, picnic tables, sani-dump, 6 non-powered sites, toilets, tent platforms, interpretive trail and boat/canoe launch, fishing. Park is open mid-May to mid-September. Guided walking tours are available with Parks staff on Tuesdays. Camping fee is $22.50 CAD/night.
E 163.5 (263.1 km) Turnoff for Parsons Lake Road (narrow gravel) which leads south 8 miles/13 km to Salt Plains Overlook; interpretive exhibit and viewing telescope. Look for bison, lynx and whooping cranes. Enjoy a panoramic view of this unique environment—a shimmering white pearly desert stretching to the far horizon. Gravel parking area with tables, firepits and toilets at overlook. A hiking trail down to Salt Plains (proper footwear is essential).
Springs at the edge of a high escarpment bring salt to the surface and spread it across the huge flat plain; only plants adapted to high salinity can grow here. Some 227 species of birds are known to migrate through here. More information on the Salt Plains is available at the Park office, Visitor Reception Center in town. CAUTION: Parsons Lake Road beyond the overlook is a narrow wilderness road that may be impassable in wet weather and/or blocked by fallen trees. Four-wheel drive strongly recommended.
E 166.6 (268.1 km) Salt River bridge.
E 170.8 (274.9 km) Good gravel side road leads 16 km/10 miles north to settlement of Salt River; campground, small-boat launch, and fishing for pike, walleye, inconnu and goldeye.
E 176.3 (283.7 km) Access road north to old Bell Rock, where goods portaged from Fort Fitzgerald were loaded on boats bound for Great Slave Lake and the Mackenzie River.
E 181.6 (292.3 km) Double-ended turnout with litter bin.
E 181.9 (292.8 km) Turnoff on Trout Street to north for Fort Smith airport and Queen Elizabeth Territorial Park with 24 powered sites, $28 CAD/night, picnic sites, toilets, water, kitchen shelter, showers, sani-dump station, firewood, firepits and playground. Reserve at www.NWTparks.ca.
Short hike from campground to bluff overlooking Rapids of the Drowned on the Slave River; look for pelicans feeding here.
Fort Smith
E 186.4 (300 km) Located on the Slave River. Population: 2,248. Emergency Services: Dial 911 for RCMP, Fire Department, and Ambulance. Fort Smith Health Centre, phone 867-872-6200.
Visitor Information: Contact Town of Fort Smith, 174 McDougal Rd., P.O. Box 147, Fort Smith, NT X0E 0P0; phone 867-872-8400; [email protected].
Free Wi-Fi at Mary Kaeser Library, 170 McDougal Road; phone 867-872-2296.
Wood Buffalo National Park Visitor Centre (pictured above), 149 McDougal Road, is open year-round. Book a historical walking tour of the community, find out the best spots to view the Aurora, or sign up for a guided hike into Wood Buffalo National Park, or down to the Slave River Rapids. You can also register at the reception center for backcountry camping expeditions, view interpretive videos, talk with the friendly staff, and purchase some memorable Northwest Territories road trip souvenirs. Open 7 days a week from May to Labor Day, and 5 days a week during the winter. Phone 867-872-7960 or visit https://parks.canada.ca/pn-np/nt/woodbuffalo. Email [email protected]. 24-hour hotline 867-872-7962.
Transportation: Air—Scheduled and charter service available. Northwestern Air (867-872-2216) offers flightseeing tours of the area.
Private Aircraft: Fort Smith airport; elev. 666 feet/203m; length, 6,000 feet/1,829m; asphalt; fuel 80, 100.
Fort Smith began as a trading post at a favorite campsite of the portagers traveling the 1,600-mile/2575-km water passage from Fort McMurray to the Arctic Ocean. The 4 sets of rapids, named (south to north) Cassette, Pelican, Mountain and the Rapids of the Drowned, separate the Northwest Territories from Alberta. In 1872, Hudson’s Bay Co. established a permanent post, and the Roman Catholic mission was built here in 1876. By 1911 the settlement had become a major trading post for the area.
There are 2 hotels/motels, multiple bed and breakfasts, 2 grocery stores, post office, 3 gift shops, several restaurants and a take-out place, a bar, convenience store, gas stations and several repair service locations.
Attractions include hiking trails in Wood Buffalo National Park and along the Slave River, and unique wildlife, such as pelicans and bison. Fort Smith is also one of the best places for star gazing and northern lights, as it is right next to the largest dark-sky preserve in the world. Join the Thebacha & Wood Buffalo Dark Sky Festival, held annually in late August or early September. As a dark-sky preserve, artificial light pollution in this area is restricted. This on top of the magnum-grade telescopes provided by the festival, the cast of special guests and speakers (astronauts included), delicious local food, and science experiments for kids and adults, make for an out of this world experience. For more information visit www.tawbas.ca.
The Slave River offers world-class
paddling opportunities for all levels of
paddlers, from beginners to experts. The highlight of the summer for the paddling community is the Slave River Paddlefest (August 2-5, 2024). The elite rapids provide the perfect backdrop for Paddlefest’s instructional clinics, river trips, and fun, friendly competitions. There are events for kayaks, canoes, voyageur canoes, kids, and adults. Paddlefest includes lots of activities for spectators. Come watch the whitewater events, join a community feast, learn Dene traditional games, try paddling, or go on a guided hike to learn more about the local area. Contact the Fort Smith Paddling Club for more information; phone 867-621-2025 or visit their website at https://slaveriver
paddlefest.ca.
Daily guided tours and many local arts and cultural events are scheduled throughout the summer months.
Wood Buffalo National Park was established in 1922, to protect the last remaining herd of bison in northern Canada. It also serves to protect the Canada Northern Boreal Plains and the Peace-Athabasca Delta. Must-see locations in the park include the world-class Salt Plains (stop at the overlook at Milepost E 163.5), the aquamarine-
colored Pine Lake, and the moon-like landscape of Grosbeak Lake. Wood Buffalo offers excellent backcountry camping as well as cozy cabin options. There’s no shortage of hikes ranging from easy loops under a mile to more difficult 9-mile/14-km hikes through field and forest trails. Wildlife in the park include wolves, black bears, the world’s last surviving whooping cranes, and bison.
Fort Smith Mission Park historic site is all that remains of the original 151-acre Oblate Catholic Mission in what is now the center of Fort Smith. The Oblate Mission maintained a Bishop’s Residence, St. Isodore’s Church, assorted sheds, repair shops, a hospital with associated nuns’ residence, a residential school, large fields for the growing of crops, and even an airstrip. Nearby, the church operated docking facilities on the Slave River for their mission boats, a farm, and sawmill. The park provides an extensive self-guided tour of the historic mission sites, with informational signs describing various aspects of the history and activities of the mission, including the fascinating grotto. Open mid-May to mid-September.
Northern Life Museum & Cultural Centre (pictured above), in the heart of Fort Smith, showcases the area’s First Nations, Inuit, Métis and Euro-Canadian heritage. This must-see Museum and Cultural Centre boasts a collection of over 13,000 artifacts, including traditional work of the Inuit, Inuvialuit, Dene and Métis who’ve made these lands their home for centuries.
Displays inside include a reconstructed trapper’s cabin, trading post, birchbark canoe, natural dioramas and hands-on exhibits of the fur trade. Guests can take a closer look at Frank Conibear’s famous trap, which revolutionized fur-harvesting. Or meet up with taxidermy CANUS (1964-2003), a whooping crane sire who brought whooping cranes back from the brink of extinction in Wood Buffalo National Park. They have new exhibits in their galleries every few months and host many art workshops, including traditional indigenous and contemporary art forms. Open Monday–Friday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday 1-4 p.m., June–August; weekdays only, September–May; 867-872-2859; www.nlmcc.ca.
Tee-up with a view of Slave River Rapids at the 18-hole Pelican Rapids Golf Course. The 9-hole course features artificial green, forgiving grassy fairways, water hazards, club and cart rentals and a clubhouse with a deck above the river.
A lookout with viewing telescope is located at the north edge of town, overlooking the Slave River. Enjoy the network of walking trails along the riverbank. The Slave River offers world-class paddling opportunities for intermediate and expert paddlers.
Walk down to Rapids of the Drowned to watch the most northerly colony of nesting white pelicans fishing for walleyes, eels and suckers; interpretive sign at overlook.
Drive out to Pine Lake in Wood Buffalo National Park. Originating from 3 natural sinkholes, its warm clear waters make it ideal for swimming or paddling. Its sandy beaches are the perfect location to kick back and enjoy the incredible Midnight Sun. Watch for bison, black bears and other wildlife. There are 2 cabins for rent on Pine Lake.
Non-powered campsites at Pine Lake Campground for RVs/tents, with 3 pull-through sites, dump station, firepits, firewood; $15.70 CAD/night. Day-use area with beautiful beach, picnic sites, flush toilets, kitchen shelter, and playground. Located 61 km/38 miles south of Fort Smith.
