After the weather clearing up enough for a plane to land in Igloolik yesterday…I was able to make the 20min flight to Hall Beach. Before yesterday I had only ever been in the airport–it was so nice to be able to leave the airport and explore the community! So without further ado, here’s some photos from my walk.
Just before you enter the hamlet of Hall Beach coming from the airport…you see this GIANT anchor. I asked some people in town what the story was and was told that a ship during the war was anchored here…but when people woke up it was missing, only thing left was the anchor. Honestly, not sure how much fact or fiction is in that story…if you know more, please leave a comment and let me know! Hall Beach (ᓴᓂᕋᔭᒃ) but is called ‘Sanirajak’ in Inuktitut which means ‘The shoreline place’. It is located at (Latitude 68° 46’ N and Longitude 81° 13’ W).
This is the oldest known permanently inhabited community existing north of the Arctic Circle. Hall Beach is a very traditional Inuit hamlet located on the eastern side of Melville Peninsula, which is part of the Canadian mainland. It faces south toward the fertile waters of Foxe Basin. For thousands of years, the local people have enjoyed and benefited from the yearly arrival of large herds of sunbathing, squabbling ivory-tusked walruses of enormous girth and tooth. This ancient place boasts some of the best northern wildlife viewing sites on the planet and it has an exceptional human history. The local hunters say that you will see creatures here that you just won’t see in many other parts of the circumpolar world. A happy sense of community here warmly welcomes you and draws you deeply into the local Inuit culture. {Source}
Here are some photos from my walk this evening around town. Below is the Co-op Hotel, the only option for accommodation…last night it was fully booked. (however, I didn’t have a roommate so that meant more could have been accommodated!)
Today was a glorious sunny day! The days are definitely getting longer here above the Arctic Circle—sunrise is about 5:25am and sunset is around 9:27pm.
One of the things about Hall Beach that is so weird (after living in Pangnirtung for so long) ishow FLAT it is!!!
…while I was at the school I saw the new ‘anti-littering’ campaign from the GN (Government ofNunavut) it’s below to the right! Such a great poster…made me smile when I saw it.
While out for a walk I spotted this old bombardier…a bit rusty, but still running!
Snapped a shot of this shed…and kammotiqs in this person’s yard.
I came across a group of dads sliding down this little hill to the beach while on my walk. It was really cute watching them go up and down…the hill was a heap smaller than the ones around Pang!
In the late 1950s Hall Beach was created as a settlement to support the Distance Early Warning Line System or a DEW Line Site. These sites were strung across the Arctic to be on ‘alert’ and warn southern Canadians if there was an attack was coming.
Now Hall Beach is home to a North Warning System which is ” a joint United States and Canadian early-warning radar system for the atmospheric air defence of North America. It provides surveillance of airspace from potential incursions or attacks from across North America’s polar region. It replaced the Distant Early Warning Line system in the late 1980s.” {Source} It’s located near the airport…which are the buildings located in the photo below in the middle (the ones to the left is the Fuel Tank farm for the community!) It’s been a great visit here in Hall Beach. Everyone I talked to were so friendly and welcoming. I’m glad I finally got to visit and be able to leave the airport!