ABOUT US
Boreal Kennels is co-owned by Julie Boily and Bertrand Bellencourt, the proud owners of 35 wonderful dogs that have been part of our family for over 20 years. We are a Yukon based family operated wilderness adventure tours outfitter.
We live in the beautiful community of Carcross Yukon, home of the Carcross-Tagish First Nations. The small community is situated 70 kilometres south of Whitehorse.
This is the place we call home and where our 3 children are lucky to grow up.
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Our mission: Boreal Kennels, Wilderness Adventures delivers safe, educational, eco-friendly adventure trips, tours and expeditions. Our goal is to provide authentic guided wilderness experiences in remote areas of the Yukon. Our goal is to offer some of the most authentic winter dog sledding expeditions into the Yukon wilderness that are available in northern Canada.
As a family and business owners, we strongly believe in principles of sustainable development and we follow the guidelines of 'leave no trace'.
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-Plan ahead and prepare.
-Travel safe and camp on durable surfaces.
-Dispose of waste.
-Leave what you find.
-Minimize footprint impacts.
-Respect wildlife and animals.
-Be considerate of other users of the land.
Our guides ensure that guests enjoy a safe, wild and authentic Yukon vacation.
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Bertrand: Born in France, I always had a special connection with dogs and especially huskies since the youngest age. I discovered the world of dog mushing when I moved to Canada. I already had a pet husky in that time 'Kowey' and when we both met our first real sled dogs, my old friend was exited like I had never seen him before. That day was the beginning of my journey into the world of dog sledding.
I acquired a dog team of experienced huskies that belonged to a trapper who was retiring. These dogs were trap line dogs. Boy did those guys teach me more than I could expect! These dogs were the ancestors of the dogs I have today. So its a long family story...
I was young when I bought those first 8 adult Siberian Huskies with a sled and all the necessary for the dogs. I remember telling the old man I was buying the dogs from,
'well now I'm a musher'.
The guys answer was dramatic but absolutely right. He looked at me and said
'One day your dogs will look at you, and they will decide that you are a musher'.
'There is more to it than just jumping on a sled'.
I started working as a guide in 1999. Having worked for several dog sledding companies in northern Quebec, I decided to move to the Yukon, the 'last frontier' in Canada and also the 'El Dorado' of dog mushers in 2008.
My domains of expertise include dog sledding, kayaking, fishing, hiking, canoeing, winter survival, and more. I am also a wilderness first res-ponder a emergency medical res-ponder and a trained fire fighter.
I enjoy every minute I spend in the outdoors, and I thrive on seeing others experience it.
Having spent most of my life in the bush, it is a place I feel safe and at home.
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Julie: Born in Quebec, I grew up spending lots of time in the outdoors with my family. Fishing and hunting trips were part of my childhood. I met Bertrand in 2006. I fell for the man and for his furry companions. With them I discovered the thrills of wilderness travel by dog team. Together, we have two sons and a daughter, North-William, Maxime and Annaelle. They too enjoy our outdoorsy lifestyle, and are already mini mushers and great fishermen...
