Nunavut Adventures- The Outdoor Experience

[TheProvider]

Why are you leaving the north?

We came up here saying 3years. We are a young family and wanted to save up money. Price of living is two high however. Rent is extreme, we just moved from a 3bedroom at $3300 plus utilities to a 2bedroom of $2600 plus utilities. Food is very expensive. School system up here is far from southern school standards. Oldest daughter will be going in to grade 1 in the fall and we don't want her falling behind with this school system. I grew up in northern Ontario so I am used to the cold however when you have kids there's not much for them to do when there's 4months of -50 to -65'C weather plus another 4 months of -20 to -40'C weather. My kids like being outside a lot and aren't used to being cooped up. FLights up her are expensive from Ottawa, Ottawa to Iqaluit is $2600 roundtrip so times that by 4 for our family if we ever want to go on vacation. Luckily I work for an airline so I use my benefits for us to travel and go on vacation. However by working for an airline the pay is pretty much nothing. Actually my lowest paying job ever but in this scenario its worth it for the benefits.

We have saved some money. But we are ready to leave. Its amazing the small things you miss when you live in a tree less environment. I flew down to Ottawa in October and the first things I noticed was the smell of fall. May seem weird to say but its true. A couple months ago we flew to Vancouver for a few days before going to Maui. First thing my oldest daughter did was run onto the first patch of grass and roll around on it saying how much she missed it. Needless to say I spend all my free time hunting and fishing. As a family we love hiking, fishing and camping as much as we can and we can't do that up here. It will be nice to rejoin civilization. Settle down, our family will be growing and time to buy a place. Although now I need to start figuring out employment for the big move. Jan/Feb wil be here in no time and need to secure employment.

[srthomas75]

very cool experience indeed. grass and trees are nice however.

[TheProvider]

Neither the wife nor I regret coming up. A great adventure but time to settle down... Oh by the way I miss hunting first time since I started hunting big game that I didn't get to go big game hunting for a whole year. That takes a tole on a man

[IronNoggin]

Great thread with a lot of excellent pictures & reports!!
Been a pleasure following along your journey through these.

... Oh by the way I miss hunting first time since I started hunting big game that I didn't get to go big game hunting for a whole year. That takes a tole on a man

LOL! That was The Toughest part of moving to the Western Arctic way back when! While I did scoot down to the prairies to hunt whitetails a few times, and often joined the locals in Hunting Forays (allowed to participate in all but the shooting) it was a Damn Tough TWO years (NWT Regs are even stricter than those in the East). T'was worth the wait in the long run though, as my avatar (and many like him and more) hints at.

Don't know if I could have hacked it in the East myself. In the Western Arctic there are trees, mountains and so much more lacking in the opposite direction. Interesting place for sure, and interesting to watch your adventure there unfold - just not so much my own cup of tea...

Funny thing about the North. You'll find yourself pining for wandering back up there from time to time if you're like most. My Lady cried the entire flight when we moved up - cried even worse when we left. I still have a LOT of Great Buddies up there, and still look Right Forward to the day I will return for a visit (or two or three...).

Time will pass quickly for you now as the days you are there fall away. Please keep us up to date with the FUN this summer, and of course where & when you end up afterwards...

Cheers,
Nog

[TheProvider]

A short update. My mother arrived the other day for a visit. I wanted to take her out on a hike and figured take her up along the main river as its easy going. Being cold and windy I decided to take her out on the tundra instead to get out of the wind behind ridges. We had a great 3hr hike. Turns out if we had went to the river we would of gotten to see a polar bear. One wandered close to town and right along the char fishing hot spot. Lots of fishermen and lots of people camp along there so the wildlife officers scared it across the river and far down the bay. That was first thing in the morning.

Fast forward to 9:30 pm. Just getting ready to go to bed but figured I would check the computer once more. Turns out he'd just been spotted 10mins ago back at the mouth of the river. Grabbed my bino's and camera and drove down to the river. Glassed for an hour but he had turned and retreated behind a ridge on the other side of the river. Went home and to bed. Waking up and saw more updates of it walking along the ice heading to the other side of town at 3am. Well at 6am the wildlife officers shot him. Couldn't risk him continuing to be that close to town. My buddy is a park officer so I txted him and got the info and a few close up pictures of him. Turns out it was a nice healthy boar. My buddy was with the wildlife officer when he shot him at 15'. Meat was distributed to locals.

A picture of the bear at 3am. Not my picture.

[TheProvider]

Well we had that polar bear along the river 2-3 days ago that met his creator 2 mornings ago. 20mins ago another bear came into town tundra side and ran down into town and down one of the main streets. Sounds like wildlife officers are pushing it out of town but someone did say they heard a shot. Maybe just bear bangers thought . 2 days and 2 polar bears. Both healthy looking definitely not hungry.

[The Hermit]

I honestly don't understand why more Canadians don't visit the far north rather than sitting on a beach drinking beer and getting sun burnt. It is a place of spectacular beauty, interesting culture, and amazing wildlife. I have had the good fortune to see a lot of both east and west while living in Ft Smith and YK. I kick myself for not taking a lot more photographs. I highly recommend it as a travel destination!

We moved home shortly after our daughter was born (her birth cert is in Inuktitut and English ) for the same reasons you are heading south. I could have stayed another couple years or maybe longer but it is not a great place to raise kids. I have a niece that has been in Iqaluit for five years now and if planning on moving south as soon as she can get a transfer (works for the Feds).

[TheProvider]

Coast guard is reporting 3 more polar bears headed towards town.

[TheProvider]

Been a while since I have had the time to get out and go on some adventures. FInally got out Tue and Wed, hope to get out tomorrow as well.

Tuesday morning I awoke and set out on the tundra. The wind was howling but I wanted to get out and explore before the snow hit. Ptarmigan license in my pocket and bow in my hand I was hoping to bump into ptarmigan and finger's crossed for a caribou shed or two. 3hrs into the day with the sense of adventure still urging me on I saw a wall of white heading my way. Being out in the tundra is not somewhere you want to be in a blizzard. With 15cm of snow expected, I turned for home. Tomorrow is another day.

[TheProvider]

A few more pics of the day.