Feb 28, 2012
Presentation of Nuvavut
Nunavut, Gateway to the Arctic
A Nuvavut glacier
Nunavut, Canada’s northernmost territory of nearly 750,000 square miles offers an exploring experience to remember forever. Home to the Inuit who have occupied this land for more than 4,000 years, Nunavut attracts tourists with its raw, natural beauty.
History of Nuvavut
Historians believe Norsemen may have been the first to encounter the Inuit. However, Martin Frobisher, an explorer hoping to find the Northwest Passage was the first known European to meet the Inuits in 1576.
Over the centuries outsiders coming for whaling, furs and adventure decided to stay. April 1, 1999 marks Nunavut’s birthday as Canada’s newest territory.
Activities and Events in Nuvavut
An area so vast will surely provide an incredible, tailor-made experience for any adventurer. The best time to experience Nunavut is during the spring and summer.
Amadjuak Bay
The sun shines 24 hours a day in the northern regions from April to August. Further south the period of 24-hour sunlight is shorter. This is perfect for fabulous outdoor adventures.
Take a hike. Day hikes or extended backpacking with experienced guides put you in touch with pristine areas rarely explored by others. Camp as comfortably or as primitively as you like.
Paddle a canoe or kayak. Kayaking comes natural to the Inuits. With over 28,000 miles of coastline you too can paddle in sparkling, unspoiled Arctic waters.
Watch an iceberg. On the east coast of Baffin Island stand on an ice floe and watch huge icebergs make their way out to sea. Experience the wonder of small white Beluga whales congregating in this area.
Go to a community festival. Many hamlets have festivals on April 1. Around mid May the bays, coves and inlets have fishing derbies. Springtime is a time of celebration in Nunavut.
South Baffin Island
As the earth renews itself entire communities gather to play games. Popular sports include hockey, curling, dogsleding, snowmobile racing and other Arctic games. Entertaining throat singers and drum dancers, through their music, tell stories thousands of years old.
Watch the dancing Northern Lights. Winter is the best time to see the dazzling display caused by collisions of gaseous particles in the earth’s atmosphere with charged particles released from the sun’s atmosphere. The next ideal time to view this colorful phenomenon is in 2013. Awakens your spirit in Nunavut, the best place in North America to see the lights.
Geography of Nuvavut
During your explorations you will have noticed the tundra and the amazing variety of flowering plants. About 1,700 types of plants grow in Canada’s Arctic and over 800 produce flowers.
A mountain in Nuvanut
In the summer after the ice melts, the ground is loaded with patches of vibrant red, pink, purple, white, yellow and blue flowers. Lichens, mosses, grasses and small shrubs also blanket the ground providing food for the tens of thousands of caribou, musk ox and other animals.
The highest point in Nunavut , Barbeau Peak on Ellesmere Island, rises majestically 8,583 feet in the Arctic Cordillera, the northernmost mountain range in Canada.
The tundra and rugged cliffs provide a fabulous place for the millions of birds that start to arrive in June. Nunavut has 11 bird sanctuaries with incredible colonies of nesting birds. Expect sightings of snowy owls, sandhill cranes, plovers, loons, jaegers and the largest falcons in the world, the gyrfalcons.
Without a doubt you’ll never find anything as amazing as a visit to Nunavut.
Mar 20, 2012 @ 03:41:09
You have misspelled Nunavut. You have Nuvanut.
Mar 20, 2012 @ 11:14:52
Hi Dwight
Absolutely right, I’m changing that right away.
Thanks !
May 23, 2012 @ 11:26:20
My friends asked me to book our Nunavut trip on October and we are really excited for the adventures that we will be experiencing there. I need help though. How can I arrange a tour there?
Thanks.
May 30, 2012 @ 01:57:55
For adventure-seeking visitors to Nunavut, tour operators and outfitters offer a wide range of excursions that include various levels of services. Outfitters usually operate between March and September, which is Nunavut’s peak travel season. They can still be contacted in the off-season months to facilitate planning, however due to cold temperatures and reduced daylight, few travellers visit during this time of year.
May 29, 2012 @ 15:41:35
I was going through some travel websites when I came across your site about the cool spots in Canada. I am a mountain climber and the Barbeau Peak caught my attention. I would really like to try it out. When is the best time to climb this mountain? Thanks!
May 30, 2012 @ 01:52:28
Yes David, Barbeau Peak is great for mountain climbing.
The best time to climb Barbeau Peak is during the brief and furious Arctic summer which is July and August. Daytime highs average between 8-15 (celsius). Teams have also been known to visit during April, though temperatures then average between -25 and -35 so it is a far different undertaking at that time of year. Storms of course are common and are notorious, residents have been bound to their home for ten days at a time duing the most severe of blizzards.