Northern lights blazing in the Churchill sky above the Nat Hab/ great White Bear cabin off Goose Creek Road. Don Walkoski photo.
Natural Habitat’s aurora watching cabin operated by Great White Bear on Goose Creek Rd. in Churchill. Don Walkoski photo.
Aurora borealis streams above the boreal forest behind the Creek Cabin in Churchill. Robert Norton photo.
The big news from Churchill this season is the new Creek Cabin built by Great White Bear Tours for Natural Habitat Adventures northern lights groups fo travelers. Aurora has once again been magical as you can see from a couple of the images above. The Creek Cabin has been an amazing base to get away from the lights of the town and be in peace on the edge of the boreal forest off Goose Creek Rd. The wood stove keeps travelers warm as they step in and out of the shelter to take in one of the most spectacular phenomena on Earth! This new location adds to the experiences already provided by the Aurora Pod and Aurora Domes in other northern lights viewing sites around Churchill!
Northern lights above an Inukshuk in Churchill. Dorota Walkoski photo.
Churchill and the Hudson Bay region is experiencing some good ole northern Arctic cold these days. However, the aurora borealis and even brighter than ever due to high auroral sun spot activity. The Aurora Domes and the Aurora Pod with their comfortable warm controlled climate are crucial to the northern lights viewing experience for Natural Habitat Adventures travelers these days! This photo from Dorota Walkoski of Great White Bear Tours in Churchill is quite a stunner!
A majestic view of northern lights through the aurora domes. Alex De Vries – Magnifico photo.
Northern lights season is upon us in Churchill and these Aurora Domes about 10 kilometers outside of town are a prime location to view the aurora borealis. With a comfortable warm environment when the temperatures out on the tundra are below zero, travelers can take in the most spectacular northern lights in the norther hemisphere! If you can ever make the trip to Churchill during January through March, make sure the domes are on your itinerary!
Here’s some tremendous drone footage of northern lights in Reykjanes Iceland..Natural Habitat Adventures is gearing up for another spectacular Churchill northern lights season starting in January. If this season is anything like last season we are in for another wild and amazing ride. The incessant aurora borealis captivated travelers last year as they enjoyed the show from the Aurora Pod or Aurora Domes on the outskirts of the sleepy frontier town on the shores of the Hudson Bay. The Churchill skies have been lighting up the northern lights thrill meter at an incredible rate all year long. However, the three month prime season is truly sensational. We are very excited to see what mystical happenings occur this winter in Churchill!
Polar bear season has finally arrived and the season will kick off tomorrow with the initial group of Natural Habitat Adventures travelers arriving in Churchill and heading out to the Tundra Lodge. The lodge is a train – like grouping of rover style cars connected together to form an incredibly comfortable space to view majestic polar bears and other Arctic wildlife in a serene setting on the open tundra of the Churchill Wildlife Management Area. (CWMA) Nighttime provides a dark environment for viewing northern lights off the open balcony decks.
The remote Natural Habitat Tundra Lodge in the Churchill Wildlife Management Area. Natural Habitat Adventures photo.
Although Churchill has not experienced snow yet this season, it has not deterred polar bears from roaming the tundra and boreal forest. The polar bear below was photographed out by the Aurora Domes just yesterday by Churchill resident Claude Daudet. What a beautiful, clean polar bear to initiate the 2016 season. As you can see, a typical animal this time of year is thinner and awaiting the ice to form on the Hudson Bay. This juvenile seems to be in pretty good shape as he awaits the freeze-over that will allow the seal hunting season will commence.
Beautiful shaggy, white polar bear near the Aurora Domes yesterday. Claude Daudet photo.
After one of the most spectacular northern lights season’s last January and March, Churchill was blessed with one of the best Churchill Arctic summer season’s in recent history as well. We have not had reports of beluga whales lingering in the Churchill River or Hudson Bay like last year though there might be a few stragglers braving the late season.
Northern lights over Churchill. Brad Josephs photo.
Some of the nights in polar bear season offer the right conditions for viewing northern lights. There can be many overcast nights since the Hudson Bay remains usually ice – free through October and into November. Moisture rises and creates the cloud cover though occasionally a breeze will clear the skies for some epic aurora moments…especially mid November when temperatures are falling. We are looking forward to some amazing nights that produce some more other-worldly images above the Hudson Bay!
Polar bears sparring in the Churchill wildlife management Area. Natural Habitat adventures photo.
Stay posted for all the news from Churchill, the polar bear capital of the world! Whether it be sparring polar bears, an exciting bear lift from just outside town or the thrill of eyeing a polar bear just an arm’s length away on a polar rover, churchillpolarbears.org will provide daily updates and photos throughout the season. Pass the blog site link along to a friend so they can share in all the action!