Churchill

About this place

Churchill is a small subarctic port town in northern Manitoba, on the west shore of Hudson Bay at the mouth of the Churchill River, about 1,000 km in a straight line north of Winnipeg. No road reaches it: visitors arrive by plane or on the long train ride from Winnipeg. It is known as the «Polar Bear Capital of the World». Each autumn, from about October to November, hundreds of polar bears gather on the coast near the town, waiting for Hudson Bay to freeze so they can go back to hunting seals on the ice. Visitors watch them safely from tundra buggies, large vehicles with high windows that drive slowly across the frozen tundra. In summer, from about July to August, thousands of beluga whales swim into the river mouth to feed and calve, and can be seen from boats and kayaks. On clear nights, especially in late winter, the northern lights often fill the sky over the town, and in July the tundra around it blooms with small flowers. Because bears can wander into town, visitors should never walk alone outside the town area and should follow local warnings. Bear and whale tours are best booked well ahead, as places are limited.