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Behchoko (Behchoko)
Pop. 1860
Located on scenic Marion Lake, Rae is the largest Dogrib community, and the headquarters for the Dogrib Treaty 11 claim area.
Visitors who drive the
19 km access road from Highway 3 to Rae will find a modern community
with vehicle services, a restaurant, two motels and a large general
store. The community has a health center providing emergency services,
and an RCMP post. There is no bank, however credit cards are accepted
at most retail outlets. The community schools are located in Edzo,
a residential community a few km away.
Very fine crafts – beaded jackets, mitts and slippers, and reproductions of traditional Dene tools are made by several local families. Well worth a visit, a traditional Dene camp and wilderness spa (reservations recommended) is located nearby.
The scenic older section of Rae is located on the rolling shoreline of Marion Lake, at the western limit of the rocky Precambrian shield. There’s an historic church, which once was part of a much larger mission including a convalescent hospital.
The communities original name comes from Dr. John Rae, an arctic explorer and Hudson’s Bay Company trader, who established a trading post now called Old Fort Rae, near here, in 1852. Today, many younger residents are employed in Dogrib companies, in local government and business, or work on rotation at the diamond mines, some 300 km north.
Photo by Ronne Heming, Outcrop.
