Cloud Ridge Naturalists     2 0 0 7
Bathurst Inlet:
A Journey to the Canadian Arctic
   C O N T E N T S
June 23-July 3, 2007

11 Days / 10 Nights

Leaders: Page Burt, Audrey Benedict, and the Inuit Guides of Bathurst Inlet

The Arctic summer is brief—but magnificent! The months of endless darkness give way to a blaze of summer sunshine, painting the land in verdant greens and transforming tundra meadows with the jewel-like colors of Lapland rosebay, lupine and Arctic heather. In late June, ice still lingers in the sheltered bays of Bathurst Inlet. Small herds of caribou, a part of the great Bathurst herd, continue to travel the ancient paths that crisscross the tundra. Musk oxen graze along the shores of tundra ponds. An abundance of nesting birds—redthroated loons, common eiders, willow ptarmigan, tundra swans, peregrine falcons, Lapland longspurs, and many others—take advantage of the long days. Explorations beneath the golden twilight of the midnight sun may reward us with a glimpse of a family of Arctic wolves or a barrenground grizzly.

Stromatolites

Bathurst Inlet Lodge, located along the central Canadian Arctic coastline 30 miles north of the Arctic Circle, offers a base of comfortable accomodations from which to explore. Accessible only by bush plane or small boat, this rustic lodge is truly remote—no roads exist for hundreds of miles. Our hosts, Glenn and Trish Warner, transformed this former Hudson Bay Trading Post into a haven for naturalists in 1969.

Several Inuit families— the Kingaunmiut people—live at Bathurst Inlet and are anxious to maintain an intimacy with their land. Bathurst Inlet is the smallest and one of the most traditional Inuit communities in Nunavut. Far beyond the dramatic scenery, tundra flowers, and wildlife, the Kingaunmiut’s willingness to share their world with visitors is what makes the Bathurst experience so unique.

Arctic paintbrush

From the moment of our arrival, following a 400-mile charter Twin Otter flight from Yellowknife, we’ll be guided by the lodge’s naturalist, the incomparable Page Burt, who lost her heart to the Arctic on her first visit to Bathurst in 1971. Page is expertly assisted by Sam Kapolak and other members of the Inuit host community, whose knowledge of the land is unsurpassed.

  

Lighting the Sea Oil Lamp

Days spent exploring the inlet and its islands—on foot, by pontoon boat, canoe, and by float plane are enriched by lectures on Arctic exploration history, geology, archeology, flora, and fauna. This will be Cloud Ridge’s eighth journey to Bathurst Inlet—our last was in 2000! As we have seen in our recent trips to Greenland and Svalbard, the landscapes, wildlife and Inuit people of the circumpolar Arctic are facing severe challenges in the face of Global Warming. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to experience the magic of the Far North!

Price: $4,950. (includes a $500 deposit)

Group Size: 12 Trip Rating: 3

Price Includes: the services of three naturalist guides, 3 nights’ lodging at the Explorers Inn in Yellowknife (June 23, 25, and July 2), a one day field trip to explore the Yellowknife area and the surrounding taiga forest, all group meals in Yellowknife, roundtrip charter flight (Air Tindi Dash 7) to Bathurst from Yellowknife, all meals, lodging, and guide services while at Bathurst (daily boat trips, use of canoes, etc.). Does not include alcohol or roundtrip transportation to Yellowknife from your point of departure on 23 June or return from Yellowknife on July 3.

Need more information? Please contact us if you would like a full-color brochure describing Bathurst Inlet Lodge. Or, alternately, visit Bathurst’s website at www.bathurstarctic.com

    
Contact:
Cloud Ridge Naturalists
8297 Overland Road
Ward Colorado 80481
email > cloudridgeadb@earthlink.net