Spending the last day in Yellowknife with leisurely strolls through souvenir shops

February 25, 2018:  I can’t believe that today was already the last day in Yellowknife and the trip has come to an end.  For some reason, even though I was in Yellowknife and seeing the sights and sounds, it still didn’t feel like I was there for some reason in the last two days.  Perhaps it’s because there were so many familiar stores and people (so many Asians all over the place) that it didn’t feel like I had left Toronto.

Anyway, this last day in Yellowknife was spent leisurely on our own.

Since we still had leftovers from the late lunch that we had at Bullocks’ Bistro, I used the microwave in the hotel room to heat it up.  It was still so delicious and the buffalo meat and fries were so satisfying as an early breakfast. 😀  I watched the last of the Winter Olympics in PyeongChang on TV as I enjoyed my breakfast in bed. 🙂

Leftovers breakfast in bed! So delicious

Headed to the hotel next door for their brunch

Met Star for the first time!

I had messaged an acquaintance who lives in Yellowknife for suggestions of restaurants since I was looking for a place to eat lunch.  She suggested the brunch buffet at the hotel next to ours, the Explorer Hotel.

Our hotel checkout was at 12 p.m. which was perfect (extended from 11 am :)) for us to head next door for brunch.

Click here to read my review of the brunch buffet at Trader’s Grill.

Polar bear and inukshuk in the hotel lobby

After this nice meetup and chat, we headed towards the souvenir shops of Yellowknife.  There was one across the street from The Independent supermarket called Northern Souvenirs & Gifts (4905 48 St, Yellowknife).  It was quite standard in terms of what they had inside for souvenirs and gifts.

Stuffed plushies

Bundled up to walk to the souvenir shops after lunch. Their bus stop shelters are the same ones as Toronto

Old Town info

Then we headed towards Down to Earth Gallery and Gallery of the Midnight Sun.  It was only -12 degrees today and oh so sunny and warm for what it was worth.  It was such ideal walking weather!

A nice winter’s stroll

It took around 20 minutes to walk there.  The two galleries/shops sold various clothing, art, collectibles, souvenirs, and more.  It was a nice stroll.

Down to Earth Gallery at 5007 Bryson Drive, Yellowknife.  This was a small intimate art gallery and shop.

Down to Earth Gallery

A lot of artwork inside

Cute Huskies, knives made out of caribou, tag bags, Yellowknife “Aurora gold”, 20,000 year-old permafrost

One tourist attraction we missed was the Ice Road. It looks amazing!

Jewelry, knick-knacks, art

Ingraham Trail map

Yellowknife map

I’d been eyeing their licence plates all week when I was here. It’s of a polar bear!!

Gallery of the Midnight Sun at 5005 Bryson Drive, Yellowknife.  It was a really good art gallery with souvenirs and Yellowknife-focused items!

Lots of animal plushies and hats

Bear, polar bear, wolf furs and porcupine quills!

A really big store with a lot to buy

Ragged Ass Road is another tourist spot we didn’t visit

Again, love their licence plates but not enough to buy one of my own haha

By 5 p.m., we headed back to the hotel to get ready for our ride to the airport.

Picture outside the gallery

Walking back in time and beating the sunset

It was so cold. We were bundled up. (It was actually only -12 degrees)

Our boarding time was 7:24 p.m. from Yellowknife back to Calgary.

Tour guide taking us back to the airport

We had a red eye flight, not something I usually take, but there aren’t many connecting flights out of Yellowknife, etc., so this had to work.  Then from Calgary, we flew back to Toronto and arrived around 7 a.m.

From Yellowknife to Calgary to Toronto

I’m very thankful for our trip to Yellowknife and the Spectacular Northwest Territories! 🙂

To read all the blog posts of my trip to Yellowknife, click here for Day 1, click here for Day 2, and click here for Day 3. 🙂