Arctic Bay 2 continued

Hi everyone! Its hard to believe we only have another month before we head back to Thunder Bay! In this somewhat longer-than-usual post: shopping in Arctic Bay, finding gas, arts and crafts, our snowmobile trip, and road trip to Victor Bay. Let's get started!

There are two stores in Arctic Bay--Northern and the Co-op. Northern is like a pint-sized version of Walmart. The Co-op mostly sells food. Both are expensive. Between them you can find everything you absolutely need to live in the north, although they likely won't have everything you want. Shelves may be empty, especially in winter, if flights are delayed or cancelled. Produce takes even longer to get here than it does to Iqaluit, so anything "fresh" is difficult to find. 

This is the co-op. It isn't an abandoned building. It just looks that way.

Northern. Where you buy stuff.

JJ bought a fan to help us sleep better.

Yes, this is a lot to pay for cheap quality ice cream. However, it is JUNE,
and I am on vacation away from my children. Chocolate ice cream is a must.

Bikes are very popular here, which surprised me as the roads are
snow-covered most of the year.

The electronics department is toys.

Family fashion: camping gear.

****

So, how do people get around in Arctic Bay? There are cars here, but not many. The sealift comes here a couple of times a year, and is the only way to actually bring a car to the island. Most cars are older, and there are several mechanics in town who do their best to keep all the vehicles running. There are no taxis or buses. Town isn't that big, but even a 20 minute walk is challenging if you are carrying groceries for a family (drinks are heavy! And diapers are big and awkward!). A lot of people use all-terrain-vehicles (4-wheelers) or snowmobiles in lieu of cars. These are cheaper to purchase and ship than cars. And of course, there are many working sled-dog teams in town.

The health centre seems to have two vehicles available for use--the nice van and the "other car". We were able to borrow the nice van for an afternoon and drove all around town checking things out, plus we bought some supplies. 

Many people drive these four-wheel vehicles instead of cars. I saw a family
of four on one of these, with one child draped across the front on his belly. Helmets are not worn.

Arctic Bay gas storage. Each year four silos are filled with gas for vehicles. That's the entire
annual supply. Gas is shipped via sealift (boat), then pumped in from off-shore (the bay isn't deep enough for ships
 to actually dock).

The only gas station in town.

Need some mo'gas?

Sled dogs are a viable alternative to vehicles that burn gas.

*****

I wasn't sure what I would find as far as "shopping" in Arctic Bay. Would they have just essentials, like toilet paper and light bulbs? Turns out, no! There actually is nice stuff to buy and take home with you! One afternoon I purchased a polar bear carving (carved from white marble--locally mined) from an artist walking around town. He had the carving and his 7 year-old daughter with him. I got a great price, and I love that every cent went directly to the artist. Unfortunately, the artist only had one carving with him, and I wanted to look for more. If you don't just want to hang around on the street waiting for an artist to walk by (which could take days), you can check out the Heritage Centre. The Heritage Centre is the main store (only store?) in town to pick up locally made carvings and crafts.  They sell knitted items, local music CD's, paintings, furs, ulus, etc.

Traditional Inuit exhibit at the heritage centre.

Marble quiliq (traditional seal oil lamp).

Most of the art is gorgeous, and I have a lot of respect for skilled artisans.
However, I did notice that one polar bear looks an awful lot like "Sid", from
the movie Ice Age.

The carved walruses with caribou tusk horns were my favorite.
The "elder doll" made of skins is pretty neat, too.

Baleen, bone, antler, and sealskin jewelry.

Carvings in Arctic Bay were far less expensive than those in the stores in Iqaluit. The downside to buying carvings at the Heritage Centre (as opposed to buying them from an artist in front of the house) was that I had to lug them all the way back across town on foot.  Marble is heavy! (Now I know why that artist on the road only had one carving with him.) However, I'm not about to let anything get in the way of a bargain, so I hauled my heavy duffel bag back to the townhouse focusing on how much money I'd saved (and how cool the carvings are).

*****

One day Gail suggested to JJ that we might enjoy snowmobiling on the sea ice. The terrain around arctic bay is beautiful. One of the more striking features are the 183 meter (600 foot) red rock cliffs (called the St. George Society Cliffs) just outside town.(source)We saw them from the plane on the flight in, but apparently the best way to see them is from the sea ice just outside the bay.

Snowmobile and qamutik parking lot on the bay.

 Two people who have never been on a skidoo before, in the arctic, alone, on the sea ice, in spring.  What could go wrong?

I borrowed some super warm gear from Gail to wear as I had only packed my regular coat from Iqaluit, not full winter gear. (My gear was fine for around town, but not in the cold wind out on a snowmobile.) She loaned me Canadian military arctic boots, snow pants, and a big comfy Inuit parka. She also scrounged up some gear for JJ.

You can see that the ice off-shore is just starting to melt. Its also quite rough.

Before heading out we were given a crash course in using a snowmobile by Kenny, an Inuk who works at the health centre. We followed him a short walk down to the water. The sea ice was melting close to shore, but the cracks were small enough that we could just step over onto solid ice again. Kenny showed JJ how to start the snowmobile. Or, at least he tried to. He tugged on the cord (the way you do with a lawnmower) repeatedly, but nothing happened. "Is it because you need this?" asked JJ, holding up a key. Kenny laughed and stuck the key in the snowmobile. He tugged again, and the engine started. He showed us how to rev the engine. JJ asked about gas. How much was in the tank? Kenny seemed confused. He tried looking in the gas tank.

"I can't see anything in there."
"You can't see any gas? Does that mean there is no gas in this thing?"
(Shrug) "There's probably enough."
"Um.....probably?" JJ was incredulous.
"Probably."

Like many Inuit, Kenny was very, very laid back. Super relaxed. I have to admit though, at this point I was feeling a bit nervous.  I mean, yes, we were about head out on what some people would consider a slightly risky endeavour. People who have never ridden a snowmobile before probably have no business heading out onto the arctic sea ice, alone, just before the spring thaw. However, we had asked around and the consensus from local experts was that we would be just fine. (In fact, everyone seemed pretty blasé about the whole thing.) Gail's partner suggested "If you come to any large cracks in the ice, just make sure you hit them head on, don't ride across them parallel." But, to head out onto the sea ice, as newbs, without working cell phones, not knowing if we had gas to get back?


Now that's just silly.

Luckily, common sense saved the day. JJ just looked more closely at the snowmobile. "Hey wait--isn't that a gas indicator?" It was on F. "Oh yeah. Looks like you're fine." Kenny grinned.

Having completed our 2 minute snowmobile safety course, we were fully prepared for anything that might lay in store for us. Kenny maneuvered the snowmobile out of the bay, as it was very choppy. Once the snowmobile was on firm, smooth ice, that was it. We were on our own. "Wait", called JJ as Kenny walked away. "How do we actually make it go?" "Just keep revving the engine until it moves."

Kenny maneuvering the snowmobile onto "easier" ice for us. I'm on the back,
JJ is walking behind us taking pics.

Crack.

Totally safe. Totally.

JJ is so happy. At this point I'm still
skeptical.

And, we're off!

A few times JJ hopped off to grab photos. It didn't take long for the iPhone to die,
so we didn't get very many.

Once we were away from the shore and the ice was smooth (and solid) I have to admit, snowmobiling is a lot of fun. We took turns driving. It was awesome.

The cliffs were as spectacular as advertised. Arctic birds circled the ledge.

Where we left the snowmobile after we couldn't figure out how to back up.
Kenny thought this was hilarious.

We got back safely, of course, or I wouldn't be blogging about it. Despite my misgivings it was a highlight of our trip. Also, we were just in time to borrow a vehicle to head over to Victor Bay (a five minute drive away) before it got dark. Ha! Tricked you! It NEVER gets dark! I've added some pics, but there really wasn't all that much to see. It's another bay, but without houses. Actually, there are a few homes at the end of the road. People in town refer to them as cottages. I don't really see a difference between the handful of "cottages" and the regular houses back in town.

Road to Victor Bay.

The "other" car.

GN-mobile. The front bumper is held together with duct tape.

A friendly puppy we met in Victor Bay.

The other bay.

After five days it was time to head back to the large metropolis of Iqaluit.

Goodbye Arctic Bay!

Up next: Spring has (finally) sprung in Iqaluit! Plus, JJ has agreed to do another post about his time as Territorial Chief of Staff, practicing in Arctic Bay, etc. Look for that post in about two weeks!