Paulatuk, whose name translates to “place of coal,” is an Inuvialuit community of about 300 near the western mouth of the famed Northwest Passage. This is the ancestral territory of the Copper Inuit and they still practice traditional hunting, trapping and Arctic char fishing.

People have inhabited these lands for over one thousand years, but the community only became permanently occupied following the opening of a trading post in 1935. As its name would suggest, Paulatuk is near the famous Smoking Hills, a constantly burning coal seam on Cape Bathurst containing oil shales that have been burning continuously for centuries. 

Visitors to Paulatuk can also take a charter plane to Tuktut Nogait, one of Canada’s least-visited National Parks. You’ll have the nearly 19,000 square kilometres of “Young Caribou Place” practically to yourself. Paddle the Hornaday River and marvel at the park’s stunning canyons and the beautiful La Roncière Falls.

Access to Paulatuk can be arranged by plane from Inuvik.