June 24, 2019
May 29th marked the first guided tour to the Arctic Ocean for the Arctic Motorcycle Adventures and first ever tour company to offer 2-wheeled tours to Canada’s northern coast. The tour consisted of 10 cyclists in total, riding northern-road appropriate motorcycles and sporting rain gear.
Group reaches the top (Lawrence Neyando Instagram)
The Inuvik based company operates along the connecting Dempster and Inuvik-Tuk Highways and is operated by owner Lawrence Neyando. Born and raised in Fort McPherson, Lawrence now lives in Inuvik
and has been a motorcycle enthusiast for as long as he can remember. With many years of experience riding rugged northern roads, he saw an opportunity no one in the North has yet to capitalize on – a guided motorcycle tour of the Northern landscape with a focus on the cultural tourism. Lawrence designed his tour to guide you through the region of the North the Gwich'in and Inuvialuit peoples call home.
Lunch break (Lawrence Neyando Instagram)
We spoke to Lawrence on what he expects in the next coming months. “This is our first summer providing guided tours and I think we will learn a lot about what riders are looking for. Do riders want a variety of activities they can choose from? What activities should we add or drop? Is there an opportunity to provide maintenance and parts to self-touring riders? The list goes on.”
Related Story: Taming the Dempster and Inuvik-Tuk Highways on Two Wheels is Gaining Popularity
Lawrence has a true passion for the culture and positive development of the North and its people, and with the Inuvik-Tuk highway he sees this as an amazing opportunity for the region to take advantage of the enormous tourism potential and invite the tourists to come without intermediaries and expand the horizon for NWT tourism.
Taking in the view on the trail (Lawrence Neyando Instagram)
Tour packages are designed for riders with limited time, looking to experience the unique northern landscape and culture, and determined to “dip a toe” into the magic of the Arctic Ocean.
Riders will also experience:
- Wildlife sightings
- Local foods and markets
- Visits with local elders
- Pingo viewing
- Midway Lake Music Festival
- Spectacular mountain views
- Photography
- The Arctic Circle Monument
- Community and Culture tours
“The overland biker community is large and loud, along with the online promotion we’ve had tons of interest. Riders from our first two tours say their coming back with family next summer. We’re excited to see where the road takes us.”
Lawrence joined ITI’s Beafort Delta office at the Calgary Motorcycle Show this year to help promote the region and his unique tours. With the help of ITI, will be heading to Calgary, Vancouver and Edmonton motorcycle shows next year and will be participating in a motorcycle FAM tour culminating in an eight-page article in the Motorcycle Mojo magazine early next year.
So where did the help come from? Programming offered through the Tourism 2020 investment strategy and the Support for Entrepreneurs and Economic Development (SEED) policy to support marketing, business development, and market intelligence.
Learn more:
“Without ITI, Arctic Motorcycle Adventures would not exist. The programs and grants were integral in getting the business off-the-ground”
It’s an example of how programming offered by the GNWT makes a real difference for entrepreneurs, and helping diversify the territorial economy.