Three weeks out, and the picture for September has firmed up considerably. Two emails from the co-leaders in August — one on the 13th, one on the 22nd — carry most of what’s changed. Here’s the short version, with the full detail collected on the new Before You Go page.
Your arrival time is personal now
Parking assignments went out rig by rig in late August: a date, an arrival window, and a site number. The windows are staggered, so the general “1:00–4:00 PM on Sunday the 13th” from July no longer describes everybody. Go by the times in your own email. If the date doesn’t work, say so right away — earlier parking can be accommodated.
Advance parking on Friday the 11th and Saturday the 12th is unchanged for those who arranged it, 1:00–4:00 PM each day, early parkers on duty.
No campfires this year
Manitoba is extremely dry, and burning restrictions are in force across much of the route. No open fires during the caravan. The co-leaders are bringing a propane fire pit and tank for group use, so the evenings still happen — just without the woodsmoke.
Be ready to see wildfire damage as we go north. Conditions around Thompson are expected to be well in hand by the time we get there, with much better air quality, though as one of the co-leaders put it, their crystal ball is broken. Manitoba’s province-wide state of emergency has been lifted, which is the good news.
One sealed envelope per person
The Medical Emergency Form is not one per rig. Every person fills out their own and seals it in an envelope with their name on the outside. They’re collected on arrival in Winnipeg and travel with the co-leaders the whole trip, opened only in an emergency, and handed back before you leave. Frontiers North has access during the Churchill leg. Blanks will be available on arrival if you’d rather not deal with it at home.
Buy the antifreeze before you leave
The rigs sit in Thompson for five days while we’re in Churchill. Two gallons of RV antifreeze, down the drains — not through the fresh water lines. Drain and blow out the water lines, drain the hot water tank, and leave an electric heater running on the counter. One of the co-leaders will help anyone who wants a hand with it, and Colleen keeps the keys at McCreedy and checks the furnaces while we’re gone. Full detail on the Winterizing in Thompson page.
The community service collection
This is the one to start on now rather than later. The caravan collects donations for northern communities — warm clothing of any size for any gender, everyday hygiene products, things for women, babies and children, and skeins of yarn for the knitters. Thrift stores at home or anywhere along the way; there are plenty on the road up to Thompson if your storage is already full.
Everything gets sorted in Thompson on October 1. Some goes to the women’s shelter and the local schools there; the rest is boxed and rides the train to Churchill for the Anglican Church and the First Nations community. VIA Rail carries the boxes north for free. The Community Service Project page has the full list of what’s needed.
Odds and ends worth knowing
Bring binoculars — the co-leaders called that one out by name. There’s Starlink for everyone, with the password handed out in Winnipeg; cell service is good in the towns and thin between them; over-the-air TV stops north of Winnipeg. If you didn’t book a sleeper on the train, bring a pillow and blanket — the coach gets cool. There’s no dining car — just a snack and lounge car with a very limited selection and no ability to handle dietary restrictions — so pack what you’ll want for the 16-hour run. Any alcohol you bring has to ride in checked baggage, not carry-on. You go through security in Thompson before boarding — baggage limits and the rest are on The Train to Churchill page.
Two open asks: they’d love drone footage of the caravan on the move, and someone to put together the trip video the way last year’s caravan did. If either is your thing, volunteer — but note that the Churchill leg is closed to drones. Frontiers North confirmed directly that the Churchill Wildlife Management Area, where the Tundra Buggy Lodge sits, is a firm no-fly zone, and between the airport, the Parks Canada sites and the CWMA there is essentially nowhere up there you can legally fly. Southern Manitoba is where that request actually applies.
And if a dog is riding along, there are now requirements in both directions — a signed rabies certificate into Canada, and the CDC Dog Import Form to come home. Details are on the Before You Go page.
Three weeks.