Coppermine River, Nunavut, Canada; Whitewater Rafting Arctic Circle

The Coppermine River has been proposed as a Canadian Heritage River because of its rich cultural history, natural significance and diverse recreational opportunities. The name of the Coppermine River originates in the mineral copper which can be found in nugget form along the lower stretches of the river’s banks. Copper continues to be used by the local Inuit(also known as Copper Inuit), to fashion tools.

The Coppermine River runs northwest, 845 kilometres from Lac de Gras near Great Slave Lake. Bloody Falls Park, located 13 kilometres south of Kugluktuk, is a popular camping and fishing spot for travellers and local people. The Coppermine River is home to many species of fish including Arctic Char, Lake Trout and Arctic Grayling. The Coppermine’s valley provides habitat for a variety of animals and birds such as moose, grizzly bears, golden eagles and peregrine falcons.

The human habitation of the Coppermine River’s valley goes back at least 3000 years. Samuel Hearne was the first European explorer to travel down the river in 1771. While exploring in this area, in 1772, he witnessed the massacre of a local Inuit group by a Chipewyan tribe he was travelling with at Bloody Falls.

The community of Kugkluktuk is located at the river’s mouth where it enters Coronation Gulf. Home to the nomadic Copper Inuit, as well as the Athapaskan Slavey, Chipewyan, and Dogrib Indians, the Coppermine River’s headwaters lie in the barrens at Lac de Gras. The river then winds its way back into the treeline near Redrock Lake, finally leaving the trees again near Big Bend on its final plunge to the ocean through rapids bearing names like Rocky Defile, Escape, and Bloody Falls.

Reading List

Your guides will carry a small reference library that will include field reference books. Following are some books for winter reading

Narrative of a journey to the shores of the Polar Sea in the years 1819,20,21 & 22; By Sir John Franklin, M.G. Hurtig, Edmonton, 1971.
Narrative of a second expedition to the shores of the Polar Sea in the Years 1825, 1826 & 1827; By Sir John Franklin, M.G. Hurtig, Edmonton, 1971.
Summer North of Sixty: by Paddle and Portage Across the Barren Lands; By James Raffan, Key Porter Books, Toronto, 1990.
Caribou of the Barren Lands; By George Calef. Canadian Arctic Resources Committee. Firefly Books. Scarborough, Ont. 1981.
The Incredible Eskimo; By DeCoccoa & King. Hancock House, Surrey, BC. 1986.
The Muskox of Polar Bear Pass; By David R. Grey, Fitzhenry & Whiteside, Markham, ON, 1987.
Barrenland Beauties. Showy Plants of the Arctic Coast; By Page Burt. Outcrop, Yellowknife, NWT., 1991.
A Naturalists Guide to the Arctic; By E.C. Chris Pielou. The University of Chicago Press. Chicago.
Field guides of the Birds, Flowers and Mammals are carried by your Guide/Naturalists for your enjoyment. You are welcome to read and use these throughout the expedition.

Nahanni River Adventures, Nahanni offers exceptional expeditions by raft and canoe on the great rivers from Alaska to Nunavut including: South Nahanni River, Tatshenshini River, Alsek River, Firth River, Snake River, Wind River, Stikine River, Burnside River, Coppermine River, Horton River, Mountain River, Yukon River, Taku River, Gataga River and Sea Kayaking and whale watching at Point Adolphus, Alaska, over-looking Glacier Bay National Park.

Our expeditions encompass Nahanni National Park (South Nahanni River), Kluane National Park (Alsek River), Ivvavik National Park (Firth River), Glacier Bay National Park (Alsek River), Herschel Island Territorial Park (Firth River).

Nahanni River Adventures operates in Alaska (United States of America), Yukon Territory, Northwest Territories, Nunavut and British Columbia (Canada).

Nahanni.com is the online presence of the company, Nahanni River Adventures Ltd.

Nahanni River Adventures works with the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society to ensure the environmental integrity of our wild places.

Neil Hartling, founder of Nahanni River Adventures, is also the author of: Nahanni, River of Gold...River of Dreams. Alaska to Nunavut - The Great Rivers. Nahanni River Guide. These books may all be purchased through Nahanni.com.

Common misspellings of the name are Nahani, Nahannie, Nahanie, Nahoni, Nahonni.
Nahanni River Adventures.