Monthly Archives: May 2008

Here is the stained glass from the Nanook lounge. 

The bar has no windows, but instead has these decorative light boxes.

(click on this image for animation)

Ice on the Mackenzie river doesn’t melt gradually. Once a year it suddenly breaks apart and starts flowing down the river. This is a loud, impressive spectacle.

Once the ice is moving (about the speed of a person walking fast) people gather and watch it move like it was a parade. They have BBQs, etc.

Update: Here is the ice as it appeared the day before:

There is a lot of garbage on Inuvik’s streets these days!

Frosty’s used to be a great place to have a beer, but now the parking lot looks like a landfill.

UPDATE: There’s been some effort from the “fast food” restauraunt to clean up lately, so credit to them. (Some “after” shots will be published soon.)

Inuvik had snow blowing today, but it seems trees are starting to develop.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans held a workshop at Samuel Hearne secondary school today.

They were encouraging students to pursue careers as wildlife officers.

Part of the fun was dissecting fish, looking for earbones whose rings can be counted like tree rings, determining a fish’s age.

Wildlife officer Wade Norman told the students he loved his job.

“Some people pay thousands of dollars to come up to the Territories and fish. If you become a wildlife officer, it’s something you’ll be paid to do. Plus you get to fly in helicopter, ride boats and skidoos and spend time in nature.” He also shared stories of tagging Bowhead whales in the Beaufort sea and stopping for tea with people in the communities.

Sounds like a good day at the office!

Wade also said there is a big demand for resident officers in the NWT, since many southerners come here for a few years and leave. Therefore, the job has excellent salaries and northern allowances. (He told students they could make $90,000 a year with a $24,000 northern allowance, with only a two-year college course.)

For recorded audio interviews and more photos, please check out www.cbc.ca/northwind.

(extra note: boy did this ever remind me of my time at Lapointe’s fish market in Ottawa!)

Interesting juxtaposition here: Nature’s chaotic tangle versus man’s straight orderly lines.

Nothing says “run down” like old barb wire fencing.

If you’re shooting a movie and you want to convey “the bad part of town” all it takes is one shot of something like this.

Local musician Bob Mumford held a blues workshop at the high school in the evening on May 27, teaching people the basics of the style.

On the blackboard he wrote “12-bar blues: (in Inuvik we only have the 2 bar blues).”

Get it? The town has two bars…the Mad Trapper and the Mackenzie!

(See www.cbc.ca/northwind for coverage of this event including sound and more photos)

Update: Of course, we also have the Nanook Lounge, but there are usually about three people there on a Saturday night. 

This bird was peeking out of its house near the Public Works building on Veterans’ Way.

Nice to see such a lovely birdhouse being used!

Young people seem to have a parrallel network of sidewalks in Inuvik. They walk on the utilidors, pipes, and other raised structures.

This hare was spotted in the early morning.

With their new spring colours, they blend well into the landscape.

Here’s the Husky Sweeprite, agitating the dust on Veterans’ Way. 

The roads are now smooth and dry for bicycling and skateboarding.

Boot Lake has a very nice boardwalk. 

However, it is close to being set on fire by vandals or careless travellers.

These fire pit remnants have been popping up lately, and firefighters fought a forest blaze there this weekend past 2am!

It’s springtime, the birds are back!

Seen on the side of a shipping crate: The latin word for truth, Veritas, with a representation of this “statue of liberty” style woman bringing knowledge (the torch), democracy (the conch), food (the rooster) and medicine (tangled snakes) to the north.

What are your thoughts?

UPDATE: Those aren’t oats, as previously written, they are the scales of justice!

There are plenty of ducks on Boot Lake these days. 

These photos were taken around midnight, which should give you an idea of the sunlight here.

Notice how the letters “NTCL” (Northern Transportation Company Limited) resemble syllabics on the side of this shipping crate.

Lobsters are few and far between in Inuvik. 

If you know someone flying in from the maritimes, it’s definitely something you should ask them to bring!

The Francophone Association recently held a lobster dinner at the Legion Hall, with boxes of them flown in especially for the occasion.

Here’s a dancing bear and a very fluid-looking goose, also from the lobby of the Mackenzie Hotel.

Aurora College recenty celebrated the graduation of 18 students (see Northwind’s coverage here.)

Notice how this sign has five languages!

What happened to this tile near the Gwich’in building? Was this a bigger project that was unfinished?

Here, the Mackenzie river is still frozen while a nearby lake has melted.

Hopefully by June, well start to see less ice.

This box is easily 6 feet tall and on top of a shipping crate. Makes the instruction seem funny!

This pile of antlers sits near a house on Inuit road.

There are several dozen caribou here, as well as a muskox skull.

Why would anyone have so many? Is this storage for crafters who will be carving?

There are no green leaves yet in Inuvik, despite it being May 19. 

However, we’re starting to see buds on some branches.

If you’re going to Lakeview apartments, bring a pair of rubber boots!

Melting snow has created a large and deep puddle.

This is Sednas’s Pool, which was replaced by the multi-million-dollar Family Centre pool.

It was only available in the summer because of its dome construction.

Strange sign for the airport: Was this an old airline company?

Seen at a community feast at Ingamo Hall: A charred muskrat head, which was among the cooked muskrat tails and bodies.

Check out those crooked, yellow teeth!

“It’s a 12-hour drive South to Dawson City, we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it’s 24-hour sunlight and we’re wearing sunglasses.”

“Hit it.”

Something seems a little odd about this piece of art at the Mackenzie…almost like…the caribou are waving their butts at the viewer?

Spring thaw has brought puddles and flooding to Inuvik.

Here, some colourful row houses are reflected in the runoff water.

Inuvik has many ski trails, and is a very active skiing community.

However, with the snow starting to melt, the sport will take a shot pause. (Summer lasts from June to August)

This is an interesting poster, seen at the Youth Centre. 

Resembles those Apple computer ads, no?

It’s part of the promotion for an excellent cultural website you should check out. There are galleries of artifacts, photos, etc. 

There are even recordings of elders speaking in their traditional language! This site cannot be recommended highly enough.

Bodywork is expensive in Inuvik and parts are scarce; therefore, you see a lot of beat-up cars.

It looks like more animals are crawling out from hibernation. There are squirrels everywhere, no doubt trying to remember where their buried their food stores.

A whole lot, at least judging from the boxes of paper at Ingamo Hall!

Might as well enjoy this one; We won’t be seeing sunsets for a while with 24-hour sunlight.

The community of Tsiigehtchic is always a quiet place to visit. 

The fishing hamlet is alongside the Dempster Highway but separated by a quickly melting ice road. 

For the next few weeks, residents will be trapped as though on an island, until the ferry starts for the summer.

Note: CBC’s Northwind show had an interview with Tsiigehtchic elder James Cardinal, who spoke about the melting ice. Click here to listen. (Also features more photos.)

The community of Tsiigehtchic probably has more birds than people.

Between these photos and the spotted owl (previous post) it was a very interesting trip on May 9.

Pictured here are eagles, ravens, cranes and snow buntings. There were also hawks flying around.