Cambridge Bay

Photo: Jodie Wilson (license)

Overview

Located on Victoria Island in the Kitikmeot region, Cambridge Bay is a community of approximately 1,760 people (2021 census). The hamlet can be reached from Edmonton via Yellowknife, in a flight that takes about five hours. It is part of the Mountain time zone along with Alberta and the Northwest Territories.

Highlights

Cambridge Bay is home to military installations and the Canadian High Arctic Research Station, where scientists conduct research on polar science and technology. The economy is still centered on the traditional Inuit activities of fishing, hunting and trapping.

The Inuinnaqtun name for Cambridge Bay is Ikaluktutiak, meaning "good fishing place." Archaeological sites reveal ancient Inuit campsites and signs of the first European explorers. Arctic fox, muskox, caribou, wolverines and grizzly and polar bears roam the area. The local language is Inuinnaqtun, an Inuit language dialect.

Weather and landscape

Cambridge Bay is located near the 69th parallel and has a polar climate. Through December and early January there is 24-hour darkness; in turn, the community sees nonstop sunlight from late May through late July.

The region experiences extremely long and cold winters and short, cool summers. The yearly average temperature is -13.9°C. Cambridge Bay is one of the coldest inhabited places in the world, with an average yearly temperature of −16.5 °. July, the warmest month of the year, is generally a very mild month.

Cambridge Bay has a plateau landscape that rises from steep coastal cliffs. It has many lakes and ponds. Territorial Park is named after a 200 meter mountain, and is a distinctive feature of this flat coastal area. 200-metre Mount Uvajuq is also known as Mount Pelly.