Back up North

I don’t really care much for hanging around in the town. The minute I arrived in Churchill I was ready to get out on the buggy. It seems that is where the real action is. Last year I went out on the buggy the day I got in, but this year we spent the day in town and left the next day. Not much happens in Churchill. Now that I am out on the Tundra, I am excited to be here. The tight quarters and staying 10 feet off the ground don’t really bother me much. Driving around in these buggies is pretty cool. On the drive out the buggies plow through hip deep lakes and over 5 feet ice drifts. They are really awesome machines and one-of-a-kind. Last year I asked the owner/manager of the Tundra Buggy operation when they would have a toy-sized replica of the machines and he said it was in the works. I can’t wait to get one.

We were not out on the tundra more than one hour when we saw our first bear. The scientists I am with say the bears don’t look as good as they did last year. They are pretty skinny. It all depends on how long they get on the ice and where the ice flows end up. Last year a bunch of ice blew into Hudson Bay so the bears here got to spend more time out hunting, but this year the story is different.

One bear in particular was looking pretty skinny. His name is Dancer. Everyone was excited to see Dancer back this year. He is a regular around the lodge. They say he comes back around the 1st of November every year, but he got back early this year. They call him Dancer because he loves to stand up on the buggy then push off and walk backwards on his hind legs. I am yet to see this display, but hope to.