Although it’s the fifth largest island in the world (and the largest in Canada), Baffin Island remains a mystery to many. Most of the island’s population of 11,000 live in the capital of Iqaluit, leaving the vast majority of its land surface uninhabited.
Does anyone live on Baffin Island Canada?
Living on Baffin
More than 17,000 people (48 per cent of Nunavut’s population) live here and on small surrounding islands in nine coastal communities including Iqaluit, the territory’s capital and only city.
Who lives in Baffin Island?
Baffin Island Inuit (also known as Nunatsiarmiut) are Indigenous peoples who live on Baffin Island, the largest island in the Arctic Archipelago and in the territory of Nunavut. According to the 2016 census, the total Inuit population in the Baffin region was 14,875.
How many people live on Baffin Island Canada?
13,039
Its area is 507,451 km2 (195,928 sq mi), slightly larger than Spain; its population was 13,039 as of the 2021 Canadian census; and it is located at 68°N 70°W. It also contains the city of Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut.
Baffin Island.
| Native name: ᕿᑭᖅᑖᓗᒃ (Qikiqtaaluk) | |
|---|---|
| Population | 13,039 (2021) |
| Pop. density | 0.03/km2 (0.08/sq mi) |
What do people do on Baffin Island?
Travelers gaze for hours upon glaciers, red-rock hoodoo spires, steep valleys, sheer sea cliffs covered with nesting seabirds—and of course wildlife, which includes narwhal and beluga whales. Bird-watching, hiking, rock-climbing and skiing are among the things to see and do in Sirmilik National Park in Baffin Island.
How cold does Baffin Island get?
Baffin Island has an extreme cold threshold of -50 C or a windchill index of -50 C. In Iqaluit, that temperature means local elementary schools close for the day, as happened one afternoon last week. But for the rest of Nunavut, that threshold is slightly higher at -55 C.
What airlines fly to Baffin Island?
Canadian North is currently the only airline to operate scheduled passenger flights to Baffin Island.
What is the average temperature on Baffin Island?
Summer temperatures range from 0°C to 15°C. Protected from strong north winds, this area of Baffin Island enjoys a surprisingly stable climate. Fall and spring weather is variable, with temperatures between 0°C and -30°C. The snow begins to melt in May, but the sea ice doesn’t break up until the end of July.
Does Nunavut pay you to live there?
Nunavut Northern Allowance
The GN pays a northern allowance to make up the differences in the cost of living between Nunavut communities and larger designated southern centres. The allowance is paid based on the community of employment. Currently, it varies from $15,016 to $34,455 annually.
Can you drive to Baffin Island?
No roads lead to Nunavut, so the only way to reach Baffin Island is to fly. Regularly scheduled flights connect Iqaluit with Ottawa and Montreal, and there are also flights via Rankin Inlet from Winnipeg and Churchill in Manitoba and Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories.
How cold is the Baffin Bay?
The absolute minimum recorded is an icy –46° F (–43° C) at Ilulissat (Jakobshavn), on the Greenland coast. In July the temperature on the shores averages 45° F (7° C). There are occasional winter thaws and summer snows. Icebergs are dense in Baffin Bay, even in August.
Why is the cost of living in Nunavut so high?
There are no roads or rail lines into Nunavut; goods can only reach communities by air or – when the Arctic Ocean thaws – by sea, resulting in significant fuel costs and subsequent sticker shock at local grocery stores.
Who controls Baffin Island?
Canada
Baffin Island is separated from Greenland on the north and east by Baffin Bay and Davis Strait and from the Labrador-Ungava mainland on the south by Hudson Strait. It is administered as part of Baffin region, Nunavut territory, Canada.
Can you drink in Nunavut?
Each of Nunavut’s 25 communities can choose whether to allow, restrict or prohibit liquor in their municipality. Community members make this choice by voting in plebiscites. The three liquor systems currently used in Nunavut are prohibited, restricted or unrestricted.
Can you see the northern lights in Baffin Island?
From October until April, Baffin Island is one of the best places in Canada to view the Northern Lights because there is very little light pollution to interfere with their viewing, even in the capital city of Iqaluit.
Is Baffin Island Remote?
Highlights and main attractions of Baffin Island
A spectacularly remote land of dramatic scenery, Baffin Island features rugged mountains contrasting the flattest lowlands, and coasts that start with sheer, icy cliff drops.
What is the coldest town in Canada?
The coldest place in Canada based on average yearly temperature is Eureka, Nunavut, where the temperature averages at −19.7 °C or −3.5 °F for the year. However, the coldest temperature ever recorded in Canada was −63.0 °C or −81.4 °F in Snag, Yukon.
How long does Nunavut go without sunlight?
In Grise Fiord, Nunavut’s most northern community, has 24 hours of daylight in June and 24 hours of darkness in December. Southern Nunavut communities have more hours of light in the winter and more hours of dark in summer.
Are there polar bears on Baffin Island?
Polar bears generally follow the annual growth and retreat of sea ice. When sea ice is at its minimum in early autumn, the bears end up on Baffin Island, where they wait on land until winter, when they can head back out onto the sea ice.
Do they have cars in Nunavut?
There are cars in Nunavut, but these can only travel on the roads within communities. In Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut, there is only one paved road and there are no traffic lights. This paved road is the only one in the whole territory, a territory that makes up one-fifth of Canada’s land mass.
What is the largest community in Baffin Island?
The city of Iqaluit is a community unlike any other in Nunavut. Previously known as Frobisher Bay, Iqaluit is Nunavut’s biggest community, it’s only city and is the capital of the Canadian Territory.