N.W.T. wilderness travellers surprised to learn they can't register trips with RCMP anymore

RCMP still care when hikers and boaters head out on extended trips, and will still assist with searches when people or groups are reported missing but what they won't do is take responsibility for tracking whether people reach their destination.

• FROM 2016|Man suffers serious chest injury 8 hours into N.W.T. wilderness canoe trip
• FROM 2017|Canoeists rescued from Pelly River near Faro, Yukon

Detachments are no longer registration points for wilderness travel forms which are developed by the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment andoutline where a person is going and his or her approximate return date.

Instead they are to be left with friends or family, so they can decide if a person is missing.

TheRCMPchanged their official policy a decade ago, according to spokesperson MarieYork-Condon.

"In 2008RCMPceased to assist theGNWTdue to a recommendation that the wilderness traveller form beleft with a responsible adult," she said in an email.

It's not clear how that message was conveyed to the public.

• From pedal to paddle: 2 men hauling canoe 1,200 km by bike to Mackenzie River

Many wish change was better publicized

The change has no impact on organized tours or people travelling in national parks, which have their own systems for tracking clients in the back country.

About a dozen boaters, hikers and one small-scale outfitter contacted by theCBCwere surprised to learn of the change.Many said they wish ithadbeen better publicized.

The $200GPS[satellite SPOT]tracker that we have can post right to Facebook.- Chad Robertson

Roger Vail is a teacher and recreation snowmobilerbased inFort Smith.

"I did not know, " he said of not filing with the RCMP.

"I'm sure they don't need anything more to do but would make more sense for ENR becausethey know more about what's happening in the bush, especially this time of year with wildfires."

Chad Robertson and a friend are paddling from Hay River to Inuvik. Before leaving last month, they tried registering their six-week trip with the RCMP.

They were handed the form and politely told to file it with a close relative or friend.

Robertson was surprised but said he understands.

• Parks Canada says no to N.W.T. outfitter to run Nahanni tours, says yes to outsiders

"The $200 GPS[satellite SPOT]tracker that we have can post right to Facebook," he said. "Every stop we make, everybody knows where we are ... The RCMP said that's even better than what they offer."

CathyAlloolooof Narwhal Northern Adventures in Yellowknife is one N.W.T. businessperson who said she's known about the change for years.

"I guess I found out when I went in to register with theRCMP," she said.

"I get it. We emphasize it's up to people to have a float plan, a very specific plan of what to ifa party gets into trouble. The police have better things to do."

• FROM 2013|Damaged kayak cuts short solo Arctic trip
• WATCH|Norwegian adventurer spends 6 months alone in the N.W.T. wilderness