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Baffin Island Birding Tour
offered by supplier M17130 (view this supplier profile)
Key Information:
Tour Duration: 10
day(s)
Group Size: 4
- 12
people
Destination(s):
Ontario
Specialty Categories:
Birdwatching
National Parks
Season: June
Airfare Included: No
Tour Customizable: No
Minimum Per Person Price: 4450 US Dollar (USD)
Maximum Per Person Price: 4650 US Dollar (USD)
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Highlights:
- Travel by sled on the sea ice with Inuit guides
- Unique arctic birds and wildlife
- Spectacular scenery
Featured Birds and Mammals:
- Dovekie
- Thick-billed Murre
- Gyrfalcon
- Northern Fulmar
- King Eider
- Pomarine Jaeger
- Long-tailed Jaeger
- Northern Wheatear
- Common Ringed Plover
- Narwhal
- Ringed Seal
Tour Summary:
- Easy to moderate tundra walking
- Travel by komatik (sled) to the floe edge
- Comfortable camping near the floe edge and on the tundra
- 4 nights in hotels, 5 nights camping (equipment provided)
- 6 to 12 participants
- Cold climate
- Price does not include round-trip airfare from Ottawa to Pond Inlet (approx. $1980 CDN)
- Includes all meals
We experience this dramatic Arctic landscape at a time of year when the sun never sets and the wildlife is returning to a very rich area of the Arctic. This area is one of the most diverse in the true arctic with over 30 species of birds breeding in the area. This includes some very interesting northern birds that are seldom seen outside of their arctic environs– the all white Ivory Gull and mostly Eurasian Common Ringed Plover. In addition, the mixing of ocean currents from Baffin Bay and Lancaster Sound makes the marine life very rich!
At this time of year, the sea ice is melting back and marine mammals are traveling north along the icefloe edge where the food is concentrated. We hope to see several species of seals and the amazing spiral-tusked Narwhal. With luck we will also see Beluga whale, Walrus, or the endangered Bowhead whale. We may even get lucky enough to see a polar bear!
To view this amazing wildlife, we travel from Ottawa, Ontario north to the hamlet of Pond Inlet, Baffin Island, which is more than 72 degrees north latitude. From there, we travel across the sea ice to the floe edge by snowmobile and komatik (sled) with our Inuit guides who are well seasoned at traveling in this dynamic environment.
From our camp at the floe edge, we have the luxury of watching this spectacle of migrating wildlife travel by! Northern Fulmar, Long-tailed Duck, Common and King Eider, Black-legged Kittiwake, Glaucous Gull, Dovekie and Thick-billed Murre should all be easy to see at the floe edge. During our tour, we visit seabird nesting cliffs that host over 40,000 Thick-billed Murres and 6,500 Kittiwakes and we explore the open tundra and ponds around Pond Inlet and in Sirmilik National Park in search of Common Ringed-Plover, Red Phalarope, and Purple, Baird's and White-rumped Sandpipers, and Snow Buntings and Lapland Longspurs resplendent in breeding plumage.
This area is also home to mammals such as Arctic Fox, Arctic Hare, Caribou, and even wolves. Remote wilderness, striking Arctic landscapes, rich northern wildlife, and fascinating culture! This promises to be the experience of a lifetime!
Your Itinerary:
Day 1: Arrival in Ottawa. The tour begins in the evening in Ottawa, Ontario. We meet over a welcome dinner to discuss the coming adventure. Those arriving early may enjoy a visit the Canadian Museum of Nature before dinner. Night at our hotel in Ottawa.
Day 2: Travel to Pond Inlet. We leave Ottawa in the morning for our flights to Pond Inlet at the northern tip of Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic. After a plane change in Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut, we should arrive in Pond Inlet in the afternoon. After dinner we will have plenty of time for a short walk around town because the sun does not set at this time of year. Hotel night in Pond Inlet.
Day 3: Travel to the floe edge. In the morning we will explore the shoreline, tundra and ponds close to Pond Inlet. We will encounter some of the more common species such as Lapland Longspur, Horned Lark and Snow Bunting, and we will be looking for Common Ringed Plover here and elsewhere. This mostly Palearctic species has a very small breeding range in North America, restricted to the eastern Arctic of Canada. Late morning we will depart for our camp. We travel by komatik, which is a wooden sled lashed together and pulled behind a snowmobile. This is the traditional means of travel for the Inuit, the only difference is that snowmobiles have replaced the dog teams.
En route we should have the opportunity to get up close and personal with several icebergs that have spent the winter frozen in place. These can be both beautiful and enormous as they await break up of the ice before they continue to drift southward. The floe edge is where the winter ice meets the open waters of Baffin Bay and it is where the wildlife is concentrated on their northward migration. We should have wonderful opportunities to photograph wildlife and to observe the traditional harvest by the Inuit. Hunting is still the main source of food gathering for the people of Pond Inlet and other Baffin Island communities.
The birding at the floe edge should be superb! Hundreds of Northern Fulmars, Brant, Common and King eiders, and all three species of jaegers will be a treat. We will see hundreds or even thousands of Thick-billed Murres, many Black Guillemots, and with luck, several Dovekie in their very sharp breeding plumage! We will also see a collection of northern gulls: Glaucous, Thayer’s, Sabine’s, Black-legged Kittiwake, and with good luck, Ivory Gull. You have to travel very far north to find this beautiful all white arctic gull, but here we will be in the heart of its range.
Unfortunately, they have become quite scarce in the last several years and are now an endangered species. We will have the opportunity to watch as these and possibly other species move northward along the floe edge.
Days 4 – 7: Floe edge and Bylot Island. Our daily activities will depend on the location of the floe edge and weather conditions, but will likely include these highlights. We will use a camp near the floe edge and possibly on Bylot Island for these nights.
Bylot Island
Bylot Island is part of the recently declared Sirmilik National Park and is one of the largest bird refuges in the world. We hope to head out onto the Tundra to look for many of the common northern species that are returning from the south at this time of year. Shorebirds are sparsely distributed, but we hope to find several species nesting including American Golden-Plover, Baird’s Sandpiper, White-rumped Sandpiper and Red Phalarope. The phalaropes will be an outstanding sight in their beautiful red breeding plumage.
Long-tailed Jaegers will also be beginning their breeding on the tundra. On the cliffs, we will look closely for Gyrfalcon, including white-morph individuals, and Peregrine Falcon. On the tundra, we will look for Rough-legged Hawk, Rock Ptarmigan, Snowy Owl, Northern Wheatear, and Hoary Redpoll. In the ponds on Bylot Island and around Pond Inlet, we will search for Red-throated Loon, Greater Snow Goose, Long-tailed Duck and King Eider. It should be a spectacular setting being on the tundra surrounded by the rugged snow-covered mountains that rim the eastern Arctic.
Visit to Seabird Colony
From our camp, if ice conditions permit, we will travel to the seabird colony on Bylot Island. North of Cape Graham Moore, these cliffs rise thousands of feet and host over 40,000 Thick-billed Murres and 6,500 Black-legged Kittiwakes. Hundreds of them will be coming and going from their precarious ledges as they head east to feed at the floe edge.
At the Floe Edge
We will likely spend a couple of days at the floe edge with the hope of seeing some of the more elusive species that will be moving by, including the marine mammals. Waiting patiently at the floe edge should improve our chances of seeing that amazing northern whale, the Narwhal. We will be watching for groups of these bizarre creatures, with their long spiraled tusks – the male’s tusk can be up to 7 feet long! This will surely be a highlight!
It is also possible to see Beluga and Bowhead Whales, Walrus, and that creature of legend, Nanook, the Polar Bear, but we will need some luck for these. The floe edge will also give us the chance to see Ringed, and possibly Bearded and Harp Seals.
Day 8: Return to Pond Inlet. We leave our camp for our return to Pond Inlet. On our journey we may view the towering hoodoos of Bylot Island plus the spectacular landscape of mountains and massive glaciers. Hotel night in Pond Inlet.
Day 9: Around Pond Inlet and travel to Iqaluit. On our last full day in Pond Inlet, we will have a chance to explore the town and walk to the nearby Salmon River. This river is one of the few in the area that support an arctic char run. This excursion should provide some more excellent birding at the open water of the river mouth.
The birds will be concentrated here because the open water at the river mouth is still surrounded by sea ice. We will also be searching for tundra nesting birds that we may have missed earlier. In the afternoon we catch our flight to Iqaluit. Night in Iqaluit.
Day 10: Travel to Ottawa and onward. We have the morning in Iqaluit to visit a museum or explore the capital of Canada’s newest territory. Our flight south leaves midday with an afternoon arrival in Ottawa. You may connect to a flight home or spend an extra night in Ottawa. We will head home with many fond memories from this amazing adventure in the land of the midnight sun.
What to expect:
Early June is still cold in the Arctic. Temperatures may not be much above freezing and it could snow, but warm layered clothing along with the waterproof boots and warm outer suit that we provide should keep you warm. It is usually sunny though and the sun is up 24 hours, so bring sunscreen. We will also provide all of the necessary camping equipment including a warm sleeping bag for the nights camping.
Our daily activities will be focused on looking for and watching birds and other wildlife at the floe edge or on the tundra, but we won’t hesitate to enjoy other aspects of the natural and cultural history of this area.
While we have outlined the detailed itinerary, this schedule and our daily activities will be very dependent on the daily weather and ice conditions. In addition, we cannot guarantee single occupancy in our hotel in Pond Inlet.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
$4450 + 6% GST
$4650 + 6% GST
- We cannot guarantee single occupancy in Pond Inlet.
Also see tour packages in:
Canada
Ontario
Birdwatching
National Parks
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