A little introduction to the “Place of coal”
Location:
69°21′ N, 124°04′ W
Elevation:
5 metres
Population:
345
Name means:
“Place of coal”
Record high / low:
30.3°C / -46.9 °C
Setting:
On silty tundra facing Darnley Bay, just east of the Melville Hills at the western exit of the Northwest Passage
Languages:
Inuvialuktun, English
Ethnicities:
Inuvialuit, non-Aboriginal
Getting here:
By air from Inuvik
Founded in:
This is the ancestral territory of the Copper Inuit. The community became permanently occupied following the opening of a trading post here in 1935
Best daytrip:
To the Smoking Hills, 105 kilometres west at Cape Bathurst, where underground coal seams have smouldered for centuries, sending eerie plumes over the Arctic Ocean
Best expedition:
Paddling the Hornaday River, which runs through nearby Tuktut Nogait National Park and empties into the sea just east of Paulatuk
Don’t miss:
Purchasing local sculptures and stone-cut prints, for which the community is famous
Come for:
The Ikhalukpik Jamboree, held every August, celebrating the return of Arctic char with traditional games, drum dances and other events
More info:
To get the whole story on the “place of coal,” explore Paulatuk