People were spilling out of the sides of the Donald Kuptana Sr. Memorial Arena in Tuktoyaktuk, where more than 700 community members, dignitaries and outside media came together for a historic celebration of the opening of the Inuvik-Tuktoyaktuk Highway on Wednesday.

The day began with a celebration in Inuvik followed by a ribbon-cutting at the start of the highway near Muskrat Road.

Citizens then took to the highway for the inaugural drive, winding their way up the curvy road and viewing the Mackenzie Delta and Husky Lakes in all their glory, until arriving in Tuktoyaktuk, where the real party began.

Once entering the hall, partygoers immediately saw a giant mural spanning the entire arena, which was made by Tuktoyaktuk-born Joe Nasogaluak.

Fittingly, he made the mural out of the material that is below the gravel on the highway itself, painting it with scenery from Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk.

He had been on the phone talking about how great the road was that morning when his brother- and sister-in-law showed up unexpectedly.

鈥淚 said, this is what the road is all about,鈥� said Nasogaluak, speaking about the connection to family. 鈥淚鈥檓 a really proud Inuvialuk, but I鈥檓 more proud to be from Tuk today.鈥�

He hopes the road can become a gateway for future generations to resources from the sea.

鈥淭hat鈥檚 an open door, a stepping stone for our kids to see if we can get access to work with the oil up here,鈥� he said, adding that 快盈v3ers are resilient people even in economic downturns.

鈥淲e get by. We hunt, we live. We don鈥檛 need the oil company. We can still get by. It鈥檚 what we do. We find ways. If there鈥檚 no caribou, we get more geese and fish. But the oil companies, for the younger people, can maybe make (them) a living and start businesses.鈥�

Governor General congratulates

Governor General Julie Payette captured the crowd, who came to complete silence as her entrance was announced and she walked through the line of Canadian Rangers and cadet members.

She called the name of the road fitting itself.

鈥淓ven the name 鈥� highway, way to the future and aiming high,鈥� said Payette.

鈥淎 road constructed over difficult terrain, mostly at night, at frigid temperatures. Congratulations to the crew, to the engineers and to everyone who participated.鈥�

Payette said it was fitting that the historic road was completed in Canada鈥檚 150th year.

She has been to the Beaufort Delta before and called people of the North resilient survivors.

鈥淢ore importantly, they have taught us, those who came after, a sense of community and importance of working together in order to make it through,鈥� she said, adding that it鈥檚 time those not from the North listen to that message again.

Premier Bob McLeod was glad that the vision from the 1960s finally became a reality.

鈥淭his is an important day for the Northwest Territories and Canada,鈥� he said. 鈥淭oday marks the opening of the first highway to connect our nation by road from sea to sea to sea and creates a northern transportation corridor that makes access to the tidewater on the Arctic Ocean a reality.鈥�

He said the road is an example of 快盈v3ers making their voices heard in Ottawa.

Other speakers congratulated the builders and talked about the importance of such a nation-building project.

After prayers and speeches, host Peter Clarkson wasn鈥檛 embellishing when he encouraged partygoers to step outside for the 鈥渂est fireworks show鈥� Tuk has ever seen.

Tuktoyaktuk drummers and dancers then wowed the crowd with a polished routine, including some dynamic sliding between legs and perfectly synchronized movements.

Finally, Collectif9, which was brought to Tuktoyaktuk by the 快盈v3 Arts and Culture Centre, serenaded the crowd while the feast began.

Beyond the proclamations and performances, the event was a chance for family members to connect and share in a historic moment that will make future connections no doubt easier.