Ivujivik is a sub-arctic village in northern Quebec, Canada. It is the northernmost settlement in mainland Canada (*), just some 300 km south of the Arctic Circle.
Ivujivik is located near where Hudson Strait meets Hudson Bay, like a sentinel by the entrance door to the Bay.
The settlement sits in a small, sandy cove, surrounded by cliffs that plunge into the waters of Digges Sound.
Coordinates: 62° 25' N, 77° 54' W
Population: ~ 370
'Ivujivik' means "the place where ice floes accumulate", or maybe "Place of sea-ice crashing". In fact, the Hudson Bay currents have a violent effect on the frozen water surface, preventing it from completely freezing.
The prettiness of Ivujivik is probably due to the multicoloured-painted houses.
Winter in Ivujivik
The climate here is particularly hard during the long cold season, usually lower than -20º C; it can snow heavily from October to May, under strong winds, or still worse - the town can be under dense, freezing blizzards.
Winter can be hard, with snowstorms or intense blizzard.
A little History
In 1909, the Hudson's Bay Company established a trading post on Erik Cove, near the site of today's settlement; the main trading was in Arctic fox. Operations closed down there in 1947.
A Catholic mission had been established since 1938 in Ivujivik, and people from the post and around were moved to the new town; when the mission closed in the 1960s, the federal government took over delivery of services in the emerging Inuit village.
Ivujivik native arts
Stone carving - in soapstone, serpentine, marble... - is a major inuit art in Ivujivik.
Aurora Borealis
This is also the place to watch the famous auroras.
Light often comes like a miracle in these latitudes.
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(*) see Comments - Taloyoak is, at 69º 32' , a more northernly settlement, though already in the Nortwest Territories of Canada.
