Churchill, Canada had been on my list for over two decades, ever since friends of mine from Hawaii made the trip in the mid-’90s. Through them, I learned that polar bears congregate here in October, waiting for the Hudson Bay to freeze. Our kids had two days off for fall break, and that was just enough time to make it work. As it happens, Frontiers North had a package that perfectly matched the time we had available. After school on Wednesday, we flew to Winnipeg, Manitoba. Early Thursday morning we (12 of us!) were on a chartered 737 heading to Churchill, a small town in northern Manitoba on the Hudson Bay. There aren’t any roads leading here; only a rail link that primarily transports grain to Canada’s only Arctic harbor.
Churchill is an interesting place. Less than 900 people call it home, and there is only one paved road connecting the airport to the train station and harbor. According to the locals, the only reason the road is paved is because of a visit by Queen Elizabeth in the ’70s (She never did use the road, choosing to helicopter from the airport to town). Our bus driver chose not to take this road either, preferring a dirt track along the coast which afforded us the opportunity to see a plane crash and a red fox on our way into town. Following the Queen’s lead, the kids and I took a scenic helicopter flight, giving us our first look at more than 20 bears and 4 moose from the air.
Tundra Buggy
Churchill considers itself the polar bear capital of the world. Occasionally the bears wander through town and end up in Polar Bear Jail near the airport. Most, however, are found outside of town in the Churchill Wildlife Management Area. To get there, specially designed Tundra Buggies have the ability to navigate the tracks and tundra ponds while keeping you safely above the reach of the bears.
The Buggies are quite spacious and have an open viewing deck in back. We spent Friday in the Tundra Buggie and had a great day! We saw two Cariboo (rare in this area, according to our driver, Luke) and 10 bears.
At the Tundra Buggie dock
Some of the bears were lazing in the distance, others were on the move, and Luke was skillfully able to anticipate their path and park our Buggie right on their intended path. None of the bears tried to reach up to our windows as you see in brochures, but a few of them came close enough to touch our tires. You could watch the bears from the comfort of the Buggie–at least it was comfortable until the windows opened–or outside on the back deck. The view was great, but the frigid wind blowing off of the Hudson Bay discouraged you from staying outside after the bears moved along.
