Established on an island skirting the Mackenzie and Liard Rivers on Northwest Territories eastern end, Fort Simpson is the gateway to spectacular Nahanni National Park Reserve.
Reachable by road, air and water, Fort Simpson is the only community to have ‘village’ status in the entire Northwest Territories.
By road, Fort Simpson lies alongside the Mackenzie Highway – a 65km side trip north from the junction of the Mackenzie and Liard Highways. It’s a good road for RV travel and worth the effort. Those who may wonder what there is to see and do in Fort Simpson and Nahanni National Park will find the answer at the end of the road.
Nahanni National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, encompassing 30,000 square kilometers of spectacular wilderness. The easiest way to experience its majesty is from the air as the park has no road access. Various tour operators offer day trips by floatplane over the park, most stopping at Virginia Falls where Parks Canada Heritage Interpreters lead a guided walk to the Falls. River experiences are also offered and expert climbers flock to Nahanni to conquer the peaks of the Cirque of the Unclimbables, considered one of the 50 classic climbs of North America.