Tundra Buggy Adventures in Churchill, Manitoba

So today I got to go on my Second and Final Tundra Buggy Adventures as part of my volunteering at the Churchill Northern Studies Centre in Churchill, Northern Manitoba. I will write about my time volunteering in another blog after I finish up my 6 weeks here later on this week, but now onto the Tundra Buggies.

Now Tundra Buggies are basically a huge purpose built bus on wheels over 1.5 metres in diameter that were designed to go over rugged terrain and just happen to be perfect for trying to find Churchill's most famous resident, the Polar Bear. Churchill is named Polar Bear Capital of the World, this may or may not be true but the population around here is the most accessible for people to come visit, particularly during the months of Oct-Nov when they seem to head towards Churchill. This is because this area is typically the first place in the Hudson Bay where the Sea Ice forms thick enough for Polar Bears to return out to see to hunt seal after being stuck on land since about July.

Tundra Buggy Adventures is the awesome Tour Company that I got to go with for free because I technically am still volunteering on the bus helping with making Hot Chocolates for the groups coming to the study centre for special Polar Bear Programs. Otherwise to pay for it individually it is about $400 so not a cheap day out.

So I got to go on two adventures- the first was on the 18th of October and the second was on the 28th and the difference in the landscape in these 10 days was quite interesting. The first tour we had really just had a small amount of snow so the landscape was only a little frozen and snow covered but now the landscape has become very wind blown (helped by the 70km winds we had) and sections of the bay were starting to freeze up. It was nice to see this interesting change in landscape which has been an ongoing and fast change since arriving to Churchill only 6 weeks ago.

Anyway, onto the Polar Bears! On the first trip, we saw a total of 7 bears including a Mother and her yearling cub (means the cub was born to Winter's before) and two males play fighting and sparring. The Mother and Cub were quite a rarity apparently and we didn't really know they were there until they snuck around the buggy ahead of us and started heading towards us not quite knowing what to do. In the end, once I pushed myself towards a window, I could see they got as close as 1 metre next to the bus when they walked past it and the cub was making a lot of noise (which you will never hear an Adult doing). It was a very special moment, especially when it was the first really close bears I had ever seen.

Mother and Yearling having a cuddle

Mother and Cubs heading away from the annoying buggies

After we could no longer see the Mum and it's Cub we kept going on the ex military roads through the Wildlife Management Area until we got to the Tundra Buggy Adventures Lodge (where people with a lot of money spend a fortune on staying in luxurious caravan like accommodation in the middle of the Tundra) where we spotted two Males being very cosy together and having a nap. We ended up watching these two for a while as they eventually got a bit active and play wrestled and some sparring to test out there limits of strength for when the real fighting happens on the ice over females. Needless to say it was a very distracted lunch out here, as the bears were very cute and were very interesting to watch especially how they interact with each other on land compared to the solitary life at ice. 

Two Males sniffing each other

Playfighting!

More Playfighting!

After watching them for a while we checked out another 2 Polar Bears that were hanging around near the lodge then started heading back. On the way back we went along a coastal area called Gordon Point to search for Arctic Fox we found a very cute young one camouflaged young one, after a few minutes it very quickly disappeared and that was the last of our animal sightings for my first Tundra Buggy Adventure.

The Second Tundra Buggy Adventure 10 days later was a lot colder and extremely windy so we didn't have a clue if we would see a few or many but we ended up seeing 12 Bears which was awesome. The first bear of the day was inspecting and leaning up against some other buggies ahead but it decided it just wanted to stroll past us, but he was still probably only 2 metres away from the bus.

Female right next to the buggy

We continued on and saw a few from a distance strolling along the coast and having a nap and then just before we got to the Lodge that had all the bear action last time, we came across at least 6 buggies checking out 2 sleeping bears. We decided to sit in this spot for a while and see what happened. Our patience paid off because we got to see them sparring at first off behind some Willows until a third (a little beat up!) bear came and crashed the party.

Two Males Sparring while the third comes in to crash the party

But after a while two of them got back into the action while the third one sat and watched. Luckily this time it was a little closer to the bus but we still had another buggy in the way most of the time.

Sparring

After they got tired of this they went there seperate ways and one of them went to go and lie in a Kelp bed which apparently is a favorite hangout for these bears during time on land.

Hanging out in the Kelp

We kept heading around the lodges and we were rewarded with seeing this big Male hanging around the Lodge. Apparently Big Males don't tend to head in this direction until a little closer to freeze up but we were glad to see him.

One Big Boy!!!

Eventually we got back out onto that Coast road and just came across 2 young Arctic Foxes chilling out next to the water. So cute and they are so tiny they couldn't walk straight in the strong winds.

Two Arctic Foxes! So cute!

After that it was time to head back to base, on the way we saw a few more Bears from a distance with gave us a great total of 12 bears.

As Polar Bears were my main reason for coming to Churchill, I was definitely not disappointed with the luck I had with the Bears on my two trips. It was so fascinating to get so close to these beautiful massive creatures that are so dangerous they have to be discouraged from coming into town. I would recommend it to anyone, even though the tour is expensive, it is something you do once and you treasure forever because there are not too many places you will get to be this close to a Polar Bear and not be at risk from being eaten.

The Tundra Buggy Adventures  is the company I went with and there are also two other companies that offer similar tours. Great White Bear that enters the same Management Area and Great Bear Lodge who can only stick to the public Coastal Roads and probably see less Bears.

Montreal- An Amazing Summer Part 1

So I have now moved from Montreal to Churchill, Manitoba (at least for a few weeks so I thought it was time to give an update on how much I got done of the list of 100 things. It may take a few posts but here is a few to start with.

01. Feel the rhythm and watch medieval sword fights at the Tam Tams every Sunday afternoon at Mont-Royal
We made a flying visit to the Tam Tams one Sunday afternoon after getting some Aussie Meat Pies from TA, which is just up the road. It wasn't super spectacular but its a nice place to relax and have a Picnic on a Sunny Summer's day whilst listening to a Drum Circle that is made up of anyone who brings a drum and wants to join in. There are also lots of people selling stuff around the Angel statue. 

02. Have a picnic and give free hugs with electronic beats and funky DJ`s at Piknik Electronic, Sundays at Jean-Drapeau
Piknik Electronic is quite famous amongst the younger crowd in Montreal and I had heard about it before getting here so when I had the opportunity to visit this Sunday institution on a Saturday for free as part of Weekends du Monde (a festival combining many different cultures over the course of two weekends) I jumped at the chance despite the boiling humid sunny weather and the fact I was alone. Let me start out by saying that Piknik Electronic is not exactly a relaxed Piknik in the park, when I was there it was fairly hot but did not provide a lot of shade especially under the dance floor which happens to be under some weird sculpture. But after finding a semi shaded wall to lean against with the River behind me I settled in to enjoy the music and people watch. The music was pretty good, the dj playing whilst I was there had a didgeridoo and other instruments which he would occaisionally add to the mix, the dance floor crowd was getting in to it and the people watching was pretty interesting so definitely worth a peek especially when its free. After watching for a little bit I decided to go for a wander through the park which is very shaded and relaxing but after a couple of minutes I decided to turn around at this point I am greeted by a lonely man taking the opportunity to try and pick a girl up in the park. After realising I do not speak Francais he switches to English and invites me to go for a walk with him as he is lonely, I quickly say no, thank you and start speed walking in the other direction but not before the guy is like "Why not, I am a gentle person", I'm sure thats what every murderer or rapist says to there victims. So my Piknik Electronic was slightly tainted but still a great people watching experience.

04. Grab yourself a Beaver Tail, 127 de la Commune E
Beaver Tails are a bit of a Quebec tourist trap (have never seen them out of Quebec Province) that you find in a chain of stores usually where tourists congregate. They are basically a doughnut like pastry rolled out into a long strip and then topped with your desired topping from plain cinnimon and sugar to fancier creations. For my first Beaver Tail foray whilst visiting Just for Laughs I decided to go with the Oreo one which basically consists of Vanilla icing piled with cookie pieces. At $7 this is pretty expensive and I only ate half of it cause it was so insanely sweet I could not fathom how anyone could eat the whole thing. They are yummy but maybe stick with the ones without icing unless you love the sugary stuff.

07. Have fun being green by renting a bike free in the summer at Mont-Royal metro (Desjardins info booth right outside the exit) or Bixi-ing around town
We decided to rent a Bixi bike and attempt to ride to Parc de Rapides and along the Lachine Canal to the St Ambriose brewery terrase. After cycling all the way to Parc de Rapides and eating Baguette and Salami's from Atwater Market we decided to head straight to the brewery cause cycling when you haven't done it for a while hurts, still a very fun day though and one day I will make it along the canal.

Parc de Rapides

08. Jazz it up at JazzFest in the summer!
The Montreal Jazz Fest is apparently the biggest one in the world, not surprising when they have about 350 free shows and another 150 paid shows. This year it happened in Late June and it happens around Place de Arts which is also the home of a lot of different festivals over the Summer worth checking out including Francofolies and Just For Laughs which I have written about below. The Jazz Festival is a very busy event that has about 8 free stages set up around Place de Arts and has acts from all over the world. The best act by far was The Cat Empire which were not scheduled to play but were a special surprise act and they were very, very good. Well, worth coming to Montreal around this time but expect a lot of crowds.

The Cat Empire

09. Walk Plateau-Mont-Royal and Village and discover shops, cafes, culture.
The Plateau is probably one of the nicest areas to live and hang out in Montreal. It has lots of nice cafes, restaurants, plenty of unique shops and plenty of green spaces. Its also an area without a lot of culture and a great mix of people from all around the world. Just go for wander around the Plateau and you will always find something new.

11. Explore some art and history, and/or hide from the rain, at Montreal’s museums
Montreal has a great selection of Museums and many of them are free most of the time or at least a little bit of the time. The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts or Musee de Beau Arts is free all the time (except for temporary exhibits) and you can easily spend a few hours here wandering around all the exhibits spread across three buildings. The Red Path Museum is also free all the time and focuses on Natural History and has a very old Natural History vibe about it as it has been there for 100 years. If you're lucky enough to be free on a Wednesday night then you can visit the Contemporary Art Museum or the Musee McCord. Together I only spent a couple of hrs visiting both of them. The Contemporary Art Museum has some interesting temporary exhibits whilst the Musee McCord has a very interesting area on the history of different districts of Montreal which I enjoyed cause I could match up the place to where I had lived or been There are also plenty of other Museums worth a visit all over Montreal.

                                                             

Museum of Fine Arts

Contemporary Arts Museum

12. Grab some fresh and organic ingredients at Jean-Talon , biggest and best farmer`s market in town. 

Jean Talon Market is awesome. Has a huge range of fresh produce and stores filled with everything to make your taste buds salivate. A must visit for any foodie especially during Summer.

16. Get some bagel action at Fairmount Bagels or St-Viateur Bagels. No need to argue which is the best, just try both! 

I have now been to both. They are both delicious so I could not argue which is better but Fairmount has a bigger selection whilst St-Viateur has more stores either way make sure you try the ones straight from the oven cause they will be amazing.

21. Visit the Oratoire Saint-Joseph

Saint Joseph's Oratory is a very big church/cathedral near Mount Royal. Its free to go in and have a look and has some really nice wood carvings inside. There is also a nice view from here to the North over Montreal.

22. Quack at the ducks at Parc Lafontaine. In the winter you can ice skate there.Parc Lafontaine is a lovely place to sit and have a picnic especially if you get take away from La Banque which is just around the corner. We also saw Shakespeare in the Park here at an open air theatre and there are many other shows over the summer.

24. Watch the fireworks of Loto-Québec either from the Old Port, the Jacques Cartier Bridge, or from l’Île St-Hélène under the bridge.So over the Summer in Montreal there is a Fireworks Competition which you can view from the Old Port. It is a pretty spectacular fireworks show and something nice to check out on a warm Summer's evening.

As you can tell there is a lot to see and experience in Montreal and I will tell you more in my next post.

My Long Train Adventure From Winnipeg to Churchill

So as part of my adventure to Churchill to spend six weeks volunteering at the Churchill Northern Studies Centre I had to choose from two options to get to this super remote town on the shores of the Hudson Bay- rail or fly. So whilst flying is much quicker than the 45hrs scheduled train journey it is also 3 times the price ($325 for train return and over $1000 for the plane from Winnipeg) so for the economically challenged we choose the budget option.

I arrived nice and early at Winnipeg’s Union Station and after navigating the current construction works found the Luggage Counter so I could dump my bags and forget about them for 2 days. As it was only 10am and the train didn’t leave till 12.05pm I had pre-planned to head to the Forks Market which is about a 5 min walk from the station and probably the nicest and closest place to find food. I decided to have a quick breakfast at The Pancake House before picking up some baked goodies from the Tall Prairie Bakery (you must try the Cinnamon Buns) as I knew the options on board the train were fairly dismal in selection.

After returning to the station and waiting around for a bit we finally boarded the train and pulled out of the station at 12.10pm and got 5 mins away before stopping on the outskirts of Winnipeg for like 10 mins.

On board the train there was 3 main carriages- a Sleeper Car (for the people who want to fork out more money to get a proper bed to sleep on), an Economy car where all us poor folk get to sit with plenty of leg room and not many passengers (maybe 15 people to begin with and down to 10 people by Saskatchewan before getting a few more locals hopping on and off for the grocery run to Thompson) and a dining car with only a small selection of takeaway style food but they do serve alcoholic drinks.

The journey takes you past fairly similar terrain for the first day of the journey with mainly just prairies and a small section where you can see the Riding Horse Mountain Range in the distance. Other than that not much except for a Mother Black Bear and her 2 cubs that I happened to sleep through L

Having been on this train, I now understand why it takes so long to cover such a short distance as the train seems to crawl along at a speed similar to walking.

The train doesn’t stop very often though, but it does seem to stop by random roads to let locals off next to there waiting friends and families in there cars.

On the Second Day of the Journey the Train stops in Thompson for a 5hr scheduled stop if it gets there on time. My train arrived just before 3pm so there was only about 2hrs to make the 1km walk into the Thompson to visit the Mall and stock up on goodies. Its also a good place to buy anything else you may have forgotten as there is also a Walmart in the Mall which is much cheaper then the one Store in Churchill. So just before 5pm everyone piles back onto the train including many locals doing there grocery run and tourists who have driven all the way up to Thompson. They also add an extra Engine on here cause its a long way if one breaks down.

After Thompson there are only 1 or 2 stops before Churchill, so after a stop in Gillam the train has a long slow run up to Churchill. This part of the journey is the slowest and bumpiest as it is very hard for the tracks to be maintained as there is no road North of Gillam. So if you get a little motion sickness then beware.

By this point in the journey it is Boreal Forest and by 9am you should be in Churchill. My train arrived by 8.30am which is apparently fairly out of the ordinary for this train.

Overall, it’s not a bad journey, just remember to take plenty of food on board as the dining car serves only Microwave meals but you can get them to give you hot water and they will Microwave stuff for you. Also, if the train is quite empty try to get a set of four seats facing each other as this will be a more comfy nights sleep. And bring a Sleep Mask, Pillow, Blanket and Ear Plugs cause otherwise it will be a much more uncomfortable journey. Oh, and plenty of things to read and watch, and make friends with people on the train. I would recommend catching the plane back though if you can afford it. 

If you want more information on this train journey and prices head to Via Rails Website-http://www.viarail.ca/