Tracing one warm line through a land so wild and savage
And make a Northwest Passage to the sea.
– Stan Rogers
Arrived to Winnipeg late on Tuesday night. The weather was cold and relatively clear, temperature was 26 degrees. Will continue the journey at 06:30 tomorrow morning on a flight traveling an additional 1100 miles due northwest to the extreme edge of Manitoba, at the gateway to the Canadian Arctic.
The tiny town of Churchill, deemed “polar bear capital of the world”, for having the highest concentration of white bears in the world. As a result of this notoriety, Churchill might also be the most famous 800 person town in the world.
The bears here, after spending a summer wandering in a suspended animation, haven’t eaten anything since June or July and are hungrily waiting for Hudson Bay to crust over and freeze. The shores are beginning to slush, ice is blowing in from the north, and the bears are getting excited for the winter and prospect of a seal hunt. For the next 7 days, it is at this stage that we join them….
For those in the mood for some Canadian folk music…the great Stan Rogers: