Arctic Bay

We had hoped that there would be internet access here in Arctic Bay, Nunavut so we could post some pictures, but, unfortunately it has been down since we got here very early Tuesday morning. It took forever to get here, the forecast NW winds turned to SW enroute and this impeded our progress significantly. We hove-to for a while and had our first snowfall, wet sleet really and continued when things improved. We arrived around midnight and hoped to get the anchor down quickly. It wouldn't go down due to the disintegrated bow roller from the gale, so, we had to turn around and G. had to change over the bow roller before we could anchor, not a fun job at 1 in the morning with 1 degree temperatures.

Arctic Bay is a small, Inuit community of a few hundred people. There is some employment at the Nanisivik mine, but, it's still very much a traditional hunting/fishing community. Yesterday, we heard they'd landed eleven narwhals in the next bay. The meat is shared amongst the community. It was interesting to see two of the tusks up close while checking in at the RCMP station. A man had come in with two tusks he was exporting. They had to be measured and all the export paperwork filled out. They're worth about $600 each. People are very friendly, after we got the anchor down six local teens rowed out to speak with us. When we land our dinghies (there are three other yachts here) crowds of youngsters gather round to help. We still have almost 24 hours of daylight and the little kids are out there running around wild at all hours. It seems a bustling community, but, it must be a very difficult life here. Prices are through the roof. The local hotel is $250 per night, per person and you have to share the room. Breakfast $45, lunch $55 and dinner $65. There are two well-stocked grocery stores and we've been happy to stock up with some of our Canadian favourites. An example of prices is a can of pop at $5.65, we just ignored the prices otherwise you wouldn't buy anything. G. has been busy ferrying 27 jerry cans of diesel by dinghy to make sure we're topped up for the next phase of our journey.

We are really enjoying being stopped for a while. There is another gale, not as strong (hopefully) as the one experienced in Dundas Harbour, forecast for tomorrow afternoon. We may decide to move on Saturday, right after it blows through. It's all about strategy and waiting for the ice now, hoping to place yourself in the right area at the right time without getting blocked in anywhere. We met a U.S. boat here that had just spent ten days blocked in a harbour on the north shore of Lancaster Sound. We'd prefer to stay on the south side of Lancaster, but, it depends on whether Prince Regent or Peel Sound will open up first. Right now, it's looking like maybe Prince Regent will be first.

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Arctic Bay 14/8/2014 12:00 73°02.0'N 085°08.8'W