Arctic Inuvik Sunrise Festival Begins

by | Jan 6, 2018 | Churchill News

Festivities at the Inuvik Sunrise Festival in 2012. Inuvik Phil photo.

The sun will rise today in Inuvik, NWT for the first time since December 5th. The celebration will be rejoiced by the 3,300 townsfolk and hundreds of travelers during the weekend’s 31st Annual Inuvik Sunrise Festival to honor the return of light to the region.

An ice village in the Twin Lakes area has been constructed as the main attraction and will feature igloos,sculptures, a teepee and an expanded sliding hill for kids to enjoy. Three days of fun and celebration will occur mainly in the Midnight Sun and Twin Lakes districts.

“Hibernation time” is how Kylik Kisoun-Taylor, Owner of Tundra North Tours, describes the sun -lees period leading up to the reemergence. The continuous 24 – hour darkness is in stark contrast to the non-stop daylight in the summer.

“I feel like this town really shuts down. The restaurants aren’t as busy, everyone is really recuperating, and then once the sun comes out, everyone comes back alive.”, states Kisoun – Taylor.

Relatives of resident families and loved ones also return for visits at this uplifting time of year. It’s a celebration of life itself.

Sunrise in Inuvik. Town of Inuvik photo.

“It’s really nice to see because you want to show off where you live and what better time to show it off than when there is all of this great stuff to look, at a festival, bonfire and fireworks.” says Mackenzie Chauvin who  took advantage of an airline discount to visit his cousin.

“They started talking to us about the sunrise festival and the darkness and that it’s really just a good time to get an authentic visit to see what Inuvik’s about.”, states Chauvin.

Canadian North and Air North are both offering discounted tickets for  travelers jorneying to Inuvik for the festival.

Drum dancing at the Inuvik Sunrise Festival. Lu North photo.

Chris Sharpe, Inuvik’s marketing and communications coordinator, is enjoying his first northern winter. He is proud to announce some new activities this year, such as a concert by well-known Canadian musician and songwriter, Norman Foote, .as well as a dance party and DJ workshop. Drum dancing and vendors from local eateries will kick off the festival.

“I recommend it to everybody. If you live on this earth, you should try everything at least once. I’m really glad I experienced it, and I’m super excited the sun is coming back,” he laughed.

 

Churchill Photo of the Week – Wild Northern Lights

by | Sep 25, 2017 | Churchill Photography

Aurora in NWT

Amazing aurora over Reid Lake in the Northwest Territories. Martin Male photo.

Photographer Martin Male took this surreal northern lights shot last Friday night in the NWT. What an amazing shot. Rarely have we seen aurora borealis that completely fill the sky like these did over Reid Lake.

“Sometimes even three cameras are not enough. We had three going out at Reid Lake last Friday night and we could only cover about half the sky. This was the incredible show we were treated to.”

Running With Wolves

by | Mar 15, 2017 | Videos

Rhonda Miller was driving to work in Edzo, N.W.T last Friday when she thought maybe she was still asleep and dreaming. Maybe, she thought, she needed another cup of coffee to explain what she was seeing up on the road ahead. She surely never expected what she eventually saw.

Miller thought there was a man walking along the road. “I thought that was strange because you don’t normally see people walking on the road that far out,” Miller stated.

“I slowed down a bit and I got closer. I thought it was a bear, and I thought, it can’t be a bear because it was the wrong time of year.” She suddenly spotted another animal and realized she was racing along the road with two black wolves.

Rhonda Miller

Rhonda Miller near home in N.W.T. CBC/N.W.T. photo.

Numerous men from Miller’s community have been wondering how fast the wolves were running. Miller estimates they were traveling between 40 and 50 km/hr.

‘So many men have asked, how fast were they going? Had I been a man I may have looked. I don’t know. I think between 40 and 50 [km/h]… it was fast,’ says Rhonda Miller. (submitted by Rhonda Miller)

“I was so struck by the size of their heads and their jaws.”

Miller recorded the wolves thinking the whole time that this was the only way anyone would believe what she witnessed. She described their frantic gait as “flat out”.

“When I got to school, I shared it with the teachers and kids,” Miller said. “Everybody was just amazed. I think just the power of them and the beauty of them, seeing them running like that, flat out, is pretty inspiring.”

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