Churchill Winter Road Complete

by | Dec 18, 2017 | Churchill News

Ice road to Churchill

The ice road to Churchill via Gillam is finished and ready for business. Polar Industries Ltd. photo.

Christmas is coming a little early to Churchill this year!

The winter “ice” road project initiated by Polar Industries, Fox Lake Cree Nation and Churchill’s Remote Area Services between Churchill and Gillam has been completed and supplies are scheduled to arrive in town by Wednesday.

“The guys finished up late [Thursday] night and they’re on their way back out to Gillam so we can start our actual journey with freight on Sunday,” explained Polar Industries president Mark Kohaykewych.

“We’re doing a spiritual, traditional ceremony since we are crossing Fox Lake traditional land. We’ve been accepting a lot of freight the last week and the trucks are leaving to head up to Gillam for Sunday afternoon.”

Kohaykewych set a tentative completion date of Christmas and thanks to weather conditions consisting of cold conditions and relatively little snowfall the artery is ready for shipping albeit not overly large loads.

“We’re just starting off with two, we don’t want to go too heavy on this first journey. We definitely want the ground to harden up and we don’t want to be busting through any rivers or damaging any ice bridges that we’ve created,” Kohaykewych said. “We’re splitting the load between three cat trains, 20,000 pounds apiece.”

Last May the tracks between Churchill and the south suffered extensive damage from melting snow and ice that had accumulated after major blizzards blanketed the region. The ice road became a reality after the realization the Hudson Bay Rail Line between Gillam and Churchill would not be repaired before Spring. With no projected repair timeline in sight, the winter road will help ease the financial hardship incurred by residents and businesses having to pay for air shipping costs nearly quadruple that of ground shipping.

“We’re cross-docking off of the transport trucks onto sleighs that we’ve manufactured and then pulling them with what the general public would know as dozers or cat trains,” Kohaykewych said. “I’m figuring we should be on the road between 30-36 hours.”

The road will allow Santa to drive his sleigh safely across the tundra and arrive in Churchill by Christmas Day!

 

Iqaluit Snowstorm Rings In Fall

by | Oct 3, 2017 | Videos

This early season in Nunavut’s capital city Iqaluit has signaled the beginning of a northern winter season. All across the Arctic and sub- Arctic, the temperatures are dropping and snow has either fallen or soon will be blowing in the air across tundra and Precambrian rock outcrops.

Churchill’s polar bear season, which begins in a week, will take on a different feel this year as the Hudson Bay Rail line is still inoperable and repairs are surely not going to be initiated before spring at this juncture. Hopes are high for an influx of travelers by air coming as usual to see the magnificent polar bears and other Arctic wildlife roaming the Churchill Wildlife Management Area and in the bluffs of Cape Merry. Their presence will give hope both financially and spiritually to Churchillians trying to withstand the isolation and strife the disaster to the rail – line has caused since last May.

Stay posted to our site for all the normal exciting news from polar bear season as well as updates on how townsfolk are dealing with no train service. Should be an exciting season with lots of news from Churchill!

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