Local Fishing Derby

Unfortunately, Inuujaq School wasn’t permitted to hold a spring camp for the students & teachers this year due to COVID-19 restrictions.  This is the second time the school had to cancel the annual week-long event.  We thought restrictions would be lifted by now, but we were wrong.  The camp is usually held in May because of the sunny weather and it’s the perfect time to hunt seals & fish for char.  There’s always next year.

I photographed many skidoos and qamutiks parked along the shores of Arctic Bay on May 26.  They belonged to families who travelled to far away fishing lakes last weekend during the annual fishing derby.  A few qamutiks are taken off the ice, but the majority stay, because families continue to go out on the land to fish at their own leisure.  The ice doesn’t fully melt until the end of June.  I only attended one fishing derby in 2016 when I travelled to Ikpikituarjuk with another teacher.  Hopefully, I’ll get the opportunity to do that again.

At school, the Inuit teachers informed me that the Hamlet Office had organized another fishing derby, later in the day.  The competition would be restricted to the Arctic Bay area.  Participants could fish in the bay or just past Uluksan Point and Pataatalik.  Cash prizes would be awarded to the largest fish caught.  The derby was scheduled to begin at 7pm.  I guess the Hamlet Office had extra money lying around or the community demanded another derby.  Anything to get people out of their houses.

I made sure my camera batteries were fully charged.  I wore my sealskin parka because the temperature was only mildly cold.  I stepped outside and started to walk down to the bay to take pictures of people fishing.  My original plan was to take pictures and then walk home.  I’m not a fisherman.  About halfway I noticed there were very few people fishing in the bay.  This puzzled me because I expected the area to be swarming.  I still took a few photographs and prepared to return home.  And then I looked to my right.

In the distance, at Pataatalik, a very long line of people was fishing along an ice crack.  (Why else would they be standing in a line?).  People were being ferried there on skidoos, qamutiks, and even ATVs.  I changed my plan.  I was now walking towards Uluksan Point to get a better view.

I followed the road to Uluksan Point.  I snapped several photographs along the way.  This is the first time I saw this many people fishing between Pataatalik and Uluksan Point.  I walked off the road, and ascended a tall hill to my right.  I moved from rock to rock, using them to steady myself, and prevent me from sliding back down.  After a short, demanding ascent, I reached the plateau of the hill and continued walking forward.  I stopped walking when I saw the roundabout at Uluksan Point.

Fishing near the airport.

There were only three cars at the roundabout.  All the action was happening along the ice crack at Pataatalik.  There were a lot of people.  Skidoo & qamutik trails were everywhere.  I could only hear the skidoos & ATVs.  I could only assume everyone was having a fun time.  I also saw a group of people fishing near the Arctic Bay Airport.  I was able to get some good clear pictures with my Nikon Coolpix A1000 camera. 

Tall rock face.

I decided to get a better view of the entire landscape by hiking up to a tall sheer rock face behind me.  Again, I moved from rock to rock.  As I was making my way up, I spotted another group of people fishing to my left.  I continued my ascent, but this time, I moved in the direction of the group, hoping to get a better view.  I was aiming for an inuksuk sitting on a ledge, but the path to get there appeared dangerous.  In the end, I got as close as I could and snapped a few good pictures.

I found a flat rock to sit on in front of the rock face.  I rested and took in the breathtaking scenery.  There were four fishing spots: Arctic Bay, airport, Pataatalik, and Uluksan Point.  Naturally, I took many more photographs.  Moments like this don’t happen very often.  There was no one else around.  I was alone.  Once again, all I could hear were the sounds of skidoos & ATVs moving people between the fishing spots.  I just sat there, on the rock, gazing, observing, and making mental notes. 

I photographed an Inuk pulling two large white qamutiks from Pataatalik to Uluksan Point.  The qamutiks were filled with people and supplies.  A skidoo is powerful enough to pull two qamutiks, but I wouldn’t do it often.  You may be pushing the machine too hard.  You also have to make sure there is enough space between the sleds because they don’t come with brakes.  They’ll rear end each other if you’re driving fast & then suddenly stop.  The experienced driver safely made it to Uluksan.

I stayed in the same spot for about an hour and then began my walk home.  I descended from the rock face and followed the route I came.  I took several more pictures of Arctic Bay.  I arrived home close to 9pm.  The sun was still high in the sky, thanks to 24-hour daylight.  I’m glad I got out of the house and documented the fishing derby.  I wasn’t present at the awards ceremony, but I’m sure the lucky winners were excited to receive cash.