Yukon, North of Ordinary
From the offbeat to the extraordinary, we document life in and around Canada’s Yukon and offer deeper insights into the content in our award-winning magazine.
Hosted by Karen McColl
Produced by Karen McColl & Mark Koepke
Northofordinary.com
Episodes
65 episodes since 2021
A bear encounter that began with a curious canter*
When a bear starts running towards you, that's never a good thing. So began an uncomfortable standoff between three women on a backpacking trip and a grizzly bear. Karen debriefs this encounter with Yukon Conservation Officer Dean McLean, who s...
August 14, 2024
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Season 9
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Episode 8
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37:41
YQ | Comedian Steve McGovern
Local funnyman Steve McGovern takes the “Yukon Questionnaire.” His current "down south" status, living in Vancouver, doesn't hold him back from sharing strong opinions about his northern hometown.
July 31, 2024
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Season 9
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Episode 7
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14:19
Hard Rock Minors/The story of youth band Cows Go Moo*
Cows Go Moo might sound like child's play, but when they hit the stage it's anything but. While other Yukoners struggled to let off steam during the pandemic, six pre-teen musicians cranked their amps to 11, practiced like hell, and honed a set...
July 17, 2024
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Season 9
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Episode 6
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34:06
Bear video behind the scenes
If you spend time in the wilderness, you've probably seen "Staying safe in bear country." Thirty years ago, Tanya Handley bluffed her way into a job that required keeping her cool in the face of a charging bear (and on at least one occasion, be...
July 03, 2024
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Season 9
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Episode 5
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23:20
Protecting Whitehorse from catastrophic wildfire*
Recent years have seen devastating fires in Albert and B.C. The Whitehorse South Fuel Break is part of a plan to prevent a similar disaster in Whitehorse. It won't stop a fire in its tracks but it will help firefighters respond. Jennifer Sharp ...
June 19, 2024
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Season 9
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Episode 4
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29:50
((Radio)) by Junction Arts and Music
Haines Junction resident Dieter Gade is passionate about preserving music, which is why he produces the long-running JAM Live! one-hour radio program, featuring beautifully mixed recordings of musi...
June 07, 2024
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Season 9
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Episode 3
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21:44
This is (type 2) fun
Are you really having a good time if there isn't some suffering involved? Paul Burbidge might not think so. The Yukoner likes to take adventure to the next level, often tackling long hikes and bikes in uncomfortably short timespans. Karen...
May 22, 2024
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Season 9
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Episode 2
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28:50
Summer season | dog daze
The snow's gone so we're calling this summer. That comes with music festivals, bears, and a quirky sport played with mallets you've likely never heard of. Also, deep questions about dog breeds and an effervescent photo worth a thousand words. F...
May 08, 2024
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Season 9
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Episode 1
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29:28
YQ | magazine editor Amy Kenny
We took the “Yukon Questionnaire” to Amy Kenny, editor of Yukon, North of Ordinary magazine, and she almost blew us out of our chairs with her enthusiasm for a particular fast-food chain. She also explains why she couldn’t get this place (the Y...
April 25, 2024
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Season 8
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Episode 8
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14:10
((Theatre)) by Larrikin Entertainment
“I tried not to be a theatre producer once… and it didn’t work out well,” says artistic executive producer Katherine McCallum as her Larrikin Entertainment ensemble tours its latest show, Jenny Hamilton—Teenage Cult Leader, to the smal...
April 11, 2024
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Season 8
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Episode 7
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23:13
These old houses: an ode to YXY’s former DPW homes
Writer-producer Mark Koepke takes a deeper dive into Whitehorse’s “heritage homes"—yet another northern legacy of the federal government. It’s a subject that hits very close to home for many Yukoners, including Mark’s family, friends, and neigh...
March 28, 2024
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Season 8
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Episode 6
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38:49
The first great road trip of Greg Karais
A young Greg Karais literally followed a bread crumb trail north and landed in Dawson City, Yukon, where he parlayed his first great road trip into North of Ordinary Media. A conversation with host Karen McColl in late 2023 hints at where Greg ...
March 07, 2024
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Season 8
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Episode 5
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17:34
YQ | broadcaster Roch Shannon Fraser
Retired radio broadcaster Roch Shannon Fraser answers the inaugural audio version of our magazine’s long-running Yukon Questionnaire. He knows a prized caribou when he sees one and is among the few who know where the hell Rock River is.
February 21, 2024
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Season 8
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Episode 4
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16:50
Stalking foxes, talking bears with photojournalist Peter Mather
Photojournalist Peter Mather tours us through the dark streets of Whitehorse to look for urban foxes. Meanwhile, he shares about another project close to his heart: camera trapping the "ice" bears of Klukshu, who stay up late into the fall to f...
February 15, 2024
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Season 8
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Episode 3
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29:51
((Poetry)) by Peter Jickling
"I haven't had a single poetic thought about the Yukon wilderness since I've been home," says Peter Jickling in his poem, "Overdue Epistemology," which he reads from a balcony during a mid-winter poetry crawl in Whitehorse.
February 01, 2024
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Season 8
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Episode 2
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16:35
Spring series | new year new podcast
Yes, it's winter, but in this biz we're always planning ahead. Get ready for fresh sounds and approaches because we've made some changes to the podcast that we think you'll like. Meet our new producer, Mark Koepke, who believes the Yukon has an...
January 17, 2024
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Season 8
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Episode 1
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22:08
Amidst caribou on the Firth River
A paddling trip on the remote, rugged, and beautiful Firth river will always be memorable. Add caribou—a lot of caribou—to the setting and it's like nowhere else on earth. But seeing the majestic porcupine caribou herd involves some hiking, and...
July 17, 2023
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Season 7
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Episode 5
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32:12
Replay: Not another gold-rush tour
Replay*: What do you know about the Klondike Gold Rush? If you've been to Dawson City, you've probably heard about gold seekers and dance-hall girls. But what about the people displaced by greed and colonialism? Parks Canada is widening its len...
July 03, 2023
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Season 7
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Episode 4
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27:44
I got a name: the murder of Krystal Senyk
It's been more than 30 years since Krystal Senyk was shot and killed at her home outside Carcross and Ronald Bax, her accused killer and the estranged husband of a friend, disappeared into the wilderness. In "I got a name," author Eliza Roberts...
June 19, 2023
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Season 7
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Episode 4
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35:29
From Ross River to Red Carpet with Kaska Dena Designs
The runways of Paris and New York are a long way from Ross River, Yukon, where Natasha Peter grew up. But that didn't stop her from making lofty goals of where she wanted to see her handcrafted fashion and jewellery on display. The creator behi...
June 05, 2023
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Season 7
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Episode 3
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34:50
A bear encounter that began with a "curious canter"
When a bear starts running towards you, that's never a good thing. So began an uncomfortable standoff between three women on a backpacking trip and a grizzly bear. Karen debriefs this encounter with Yukon Conservation Officer Dean McLean, who s...
May 22, 2023
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Season 7
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Episode 2
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37:39
Protecting Whitehorse from catastrophic wildfire
Recent years have seen devastating fires in Albert and B.C. The Whitehorse South Fuel Break is part of a plan to prevent a similar disaster in Whitehorse. It won't stop a fire in its tracks but it will help firefighters respond. Jennifer Sharp ...
May 08, 2023
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Season 7
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Episode 1
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32:40
Hard rock minors: the story of youth band Cows Go Moo
Cows Go Moo might sound like child's play, but when they hit the stage it's anything but. While other Yukoners struggled to let off steam during the pandemic, six pre-teen musicians cranked their amps to 11, practiced like hell, and honed a set...
April 24, 2023
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Season 6
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Episode 6
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35:16
When you live at the Arctic Circle and work in hurricane alley
Cathy Brais lives at Eagle Plains, kilometre 370 of the Dempster Highway, just shy of the Arctic Circle. Her job as a highway foreperson often takes her into an infamous stretch of road known as "hurricane alley." What's it like living and work...
April 10, 2023
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Season 6
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Episode 5
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33:06