Natural Habitat guide Sue Zajac and her first group of the summer arrived by train just a -half hour late…very impressive for the summer Hudson Bay Railway train…to a more moderate Churchill..temperature -wise that is. With hot weather pervasive the past couple of weeks, the nearly on-time train arrival is even more impressive. The heat has a negative affect on the tracks, especially the further north they run, by melting the top layer of the permafrost and allowing the steel tracks to bend slightly. This affect forces the authorities to impose “slow orders” for locomotives to evade possible derailments. Most derailments happen to grain trains due to the extra weight of the cargo. The photo below illustrates an unusual breakdown of a mound most likely covered in permafrost.
Derailment due to permafrost melt. The CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Saskatchewan RCMP
With an efficient start to the adventure up north, Sue gathered the group and headed out to Cape Merry for beluga reconnaissance. With 63F and overcast skies across the vast Hudson Bay, travelers spent over an hour at the cape..a fairly mosquito – free cape at that.
While searching eyes scanned the bay and river, whales appeared at first to be quite scarce until at last out in the direction of Fort Prince of Wales across the river, some smaller groups of 10 or more among hundreds in total, seemed to be resting on the surface and remaining afloat for five minutes at a time. Even some sows and two-week old calves were scattered throughout the larger pod. The mouth of the Churchill River also has swift currents coupled with turbulent water…another possible attraction for the weary leviathans. It will be interesting to follow subsequent beluga behavior this summer. ..a new pattern each season! A “glorious day at Cape merry”!, according to Sue.
On the birding front, the greatest excitement of the trip thus far came from an excursion out to the granery ponds on the backside of the port on the edge of town. A multitude of nesting herring gulls, yellow legs, and Arctic terns greeted the group as they observed with binoculars and cameras. A green winged teal with chicks in- line crossed the road leading out to the boat docks just as the terns began their calculated assault on travelers that were, in their opinion, much too close to cherished nests. Dive bombing terns attacked the group fending themselves off with a long stick. I personally have witnessed the “wrath of the tern”, and although no imminent danger presents itself, an occasional beak to the head can draw blood… A fair warning to keep your distance.
The premature and extended heat this spring has stalled the prolific bloom of wildflowers across the tundra. Many early flowers like the avens have already gone to seed. Hopefully the rest of the summer, with a little cool weather, will provide some late bloomers.
Natural Habitat guide Karen Walker finished off the northern lights season with a fun group of travelers that flew in and out of Churchill. “We arrived and had snow the first evening, but the sky cleared around midnight, so I woke up the guests and we drove down to the inukshuk behind the town complex for a nice view of the aurora.” reported Karen. High winds hampered the outside time a bit and soon the clouds appeared driving the group back to the hotel and warm beds. Great start to the adventure!
Karen’s last aurora group poses for a photo at the airport in Churchill.
The following day was a full one starting with Dene elder Caroline Bjorklund giving a cultural presentation on the native traditions of the Dene people. An exhilarating dog mushing trip on a beautiful, clear day got everyone’s blood flowing while gliding through the boreal forest…only the sound of paws breaking the crust of the snowy trail singing through the thin, black spruce forest.
A cozy dogsled trip through the boreal forest. Photo Brad Josephs.
That evening viewing the northern lights was incredible. Two hours of arches and swirls of greenish, diffused light in the sky above the Hudson Bay left lasting bonds between travelers and a everlasting memory of their journey north. A nice display indeed.
Aurora borealis over the boreal forest in Churchill,MB. Brad Josephs photo.
A visit with Myrtle and a presentation on Metis people and native culture the next morning followed by a drive out to the Churchill Northern Studies Center launched another active day in Churchill. A demonstration on snow testing gave the group some insight into what scientific research happens at this amazing, revamped facility. The sky was overcast all day, but cleared later in the evening in time for the traveler’s arrival at the aurora domes outside of town. The aurora appeared just as the group got settled in. “The lights grew brighter, then suddenly gave us quite a show — fast dancing curtains, tinged in pink, swirls, and a corona right overhead. It was a short but awesome display.” Karen reported. Everyone was thrilled with another stellar viewing night.
Since the Anglican church was under construction, Bill Calnan had the group out to Goose Creek to give his Hudson Bay historical talk and give people a feel for living in the snowy, cold conditions in Churchill. A fine way to round out an amazing trip to the sub-Arctic!
Another year of incredible immersion in Arctic culture and fine aurora viewing…every season is different and surprising. Another group of travelers will get to experience the same, hopefully, next year. For now, the next phase of natural adventure in Churchill will come in the form of beluga whales finding their way to the Churchill estuary in the Spring-time. Natural Habitat Adventures provides summer trips that are well rounded and all encompassing. Birding, botany and ample wildlife sightings fill long days of exploring. Can’t wait.
This Summer season has provided amazing looks at wildflowers, birds and thousands of beluga whales cruising the Hudson bay and Churchill river. Of course the focus is on these beautiful, majestic mammals and the environment of the Arctic. The calming feeling one gets from being out on the water with the whales is everlasting in the soul. Life becomes fluid and this feeling transcends the woes one has in everyday life. The Arctic life cycle is unlike any other.
Polar bear heading to land from sea ice. Photo Rhonda Reid.
Polar bears in Summer in Churchill can be hit or miss…..this year they have been quite the hit indeed. In all the years I have guided trips in Summer here I remember most the ones where polar bears have been more prevalent. When you don’t have expectations the most unexpected tends to happen. Most of the time you could be within a hundred yards of a bear in Summer and never even know it. Other times you arrive just at the right moment when a sow and cub happened to be crossing a remote road outside of town. Or, on a long hike through tundra, shotgun in hand…a bear appears from the fog. Those moments..however hair -raising they are brand incredible memories into one’s soul. Any bear encounter in the world creates the same feeling.
Polar bear on the rocks last week in Churchill. Photo Rhonda Reid.
When a Summer is brimming with bears the thrills are just around the next rock-outcropping. Bears leave the deteriorating ice flows generally up north and gradually make their way along the coast to Churchill by Fall. Churchill serves as the staging area for bears to once again head onto the floes in late November. Ice forms first around Churchill due to the geography of the land jutting out somewhat into the Hudson Bay and the confluence of many freshwater rivers, including the Churchill, in the Southwestern corner of the bay. This freshwater freezes at a faster rate then saltwater in the bay so the platform starts to form against the land here. Bears gather along the coast and test the ice as it solidifies. The cycle repeats year after year.
For various reasons bears appear in larger numbers randomly. This Summer, bears have been all over the land and water which some proponents of global warming point out as a red flag. Ice melting earlier sends bears to the land. However, it’s also linked to the freeze-up date in November. If the ice is very late forming then an early melt is more dire. Most recent years have averaged out to be consistently the same number of ice days for bears out hunting seals on the ice Historically however, bears have seen their hunting grounds confined to a shorter time-frame over the last century. The time in the historical perspective is miniscule but the evidence of our ozone layer being damaged is there so we must be critical of the conditions. Take a look at the current ice formation in the Hudson Bay.
Polar bear just out of the water on the rocks in Churchill,M. Photo Rhonda Reid.
The bears are in Churchill this Summer and that surely bodes well for an early Fall season of good bear numbers…again, “good” is a relative term here. With travelers attracted by the prospect of seeing bears in the Summer in Churchill, they will hopefully be educated to the adverse affects of greenhouse gasses being emitted into our atmosphere. With that information, people might return home and make better decisions in how they live and pollute. Turning negative circumstances into positive reactions.
