During the winter months, when the temperatures drop well below -40°C, the rhythm of life in the villages of the Northern territories slows down considerably. Yet, it is during this particular period that traffic intensifies between Whitehorse, the capital of the Yukon, and Tuktoyaktuk or Tuk, as it is commonly referred to.
Tuk lies 600km north of the Arctic Circle and is the northern-most sea port of the American continent. When the ice grows thick enough to support a whole convoy of trucks, a road – a transient track - is traced across the ice in order to deliver supplies to the remotest parts of the region. The roadmen regularly check the thickness of the ice and monitor the appearance of cracks before giving the all-clear for the trucks to cross the ice. This seasonal highway winds its way through legendary territory – the Klondike mountains of Jack London fame for example, but also other parts of the region that even today attract trappers and gold seekers.
For Canadian truckers, the Ice Road is something of a goldmine, because the pay is very attractive indeed – in just two winter months, some truck drivers can take home well over thirty thousand Canadian dollars. Many drivers dream of being picked for the job! As long as the Ice Road is open, they run back and forth between Whitehorse and the northern-most places.
Kelly Brown is the central character of the road movie on ice. Throughout the year, he works as a truck driver in his home town of Edmonton. But during the winter - for the past ten years already - he is part of the happy few who are picked for the run on this seasonal highway.