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Inuvik (''place of man'') is the only town in the Inuvik Region, and the third largest community in Canada's
Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...
. Located in what is sometimes called the Beaufort Delta Region, it serves as its administrative and service centre and is home to federal, territorial, and Indigenous government offices, along with the regional hospital and airport. Inuvik is located on the northern edge of the
boreal forest Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruc ...
, just before it begins to transition to tundra, and along the east side of the enormous Mackenzie River delta. The town lies on the border between the Gwich'in Settlement Region and the
Inuvialuit Settlement Region The Inuvialuit Settlement Region, abbreviated as ISR ( ikt, Inuvialuit Nunangit Sannaiqtuaq – INS; french: Région désignée des Inuvialuit – RDI), located in Canada's western Arctic, was designated in 1984 in the Inuvialuit Final Agreement ...
.


History

Inuvik was conceived in 1953 as a replacement administrative centre for the hamlet of Aklavik on the west of the Mackenzie Delta, as the latter was prone to flooding and had no room for expansion. Initially called "New Aklavik", it was renamed Inuvik in 1958. The school was built in 1959 and the hospital, government offices and staff residences in 1960, when people, including Inuvialuit, Gwichʼin ( Dene) and
Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Canadian Prairies, Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United State ...
, began to live in the community. Naval Radio Station (NRS) Inuvik, later CFS Inuvik, callsign CFV, was commissioned on 10 September 1963 after operations had been successfully transferred from NRS Aklavik. Station CFV was part of the SUPRAD (Supplementary Radio) network of intercept and direction finding stations. CFS Inuvik closed on 1 April 1986 and the site was transferred to the Department of Transport for use as a telecommunications station. Nothing remains of CFS Inuvik today. The Navy Operations base at the end of Navy Road was completely dismantled and removed. Inuvik achieved village status in 1967 and became a full town in 1979 with an elected mayor and council. In 1979, with the completion of the Dempster Highway, Inuvik became connected to Canada's highway system, and simultaneously the most northerly town to which one could drive in Canada. While a winter only ice road through the Mackenzie River delta still connects Inuvik to Aklavik, southwest of Inuvik, the Tuktoyaktuk Winter Road, which ran northeast to Tuktoyaktuk, is no longer being built due to the opening in November 2017, of the Inuvik–Tuktoyaktuk Highway (ITH), which is open all year round. The Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk highway, which connects to Canada's highway system at Inuvik via the Dempster Highway, is the first road in history to reach the
Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, a ...
in North America. Between 1971 and 1990, the town's economy was supported by the local
Canadian Armed Forces } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force. ...
Station, CFS Inuvik, (originally a Naval Radio Station, later a communications research/signals intercept facility) and by
petrochemical Petrochemicals (sometimes abbreviated as petchems) are the chemical products obtained from petroleum by refining. Some chemical compounds made from petroleum are also obtained from other fossil fuels, such as coal or natural gas, or renewabl ...
companies exploring the Mackenzie Valley and the Beaufort Sea for petroleum. This all collapsed in 1990 for a variety of reasons, including disappearing government military subsidies, local resistance to petroleum exploration, and low international oil prices. Since then the economy has been based on some minor tourism and subsidy provided by the
Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada Crown''–''Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC; french: Relations Couronne-Autochtones et des Affaires du Nord Canada)''Crown–Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Iden ...
(INAC), Health Canada (for the regional hospital) and the
Royal Canadian Mounted Police The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP; french: Gendarmerie royale du Canada; french: GRC, label=none), commonly known in English as the Mounties (and colloquially in French as ) is the federal and national police service of Canada. As poli ...
.


Demographics

In the
2021 Canadian census The 2021 Canadian census was a detailed enumeration of the Canadian population with a reference date of May 11, 2021. It follows the 2016 Canadian census, which recorded a population of 35,151,728. The overall response rate was 98%, which is sl ...
conducted by
Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; french: Statistique Canada), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and cultu ...
, Inuvik had a population of 3,137 living in 1,223 of its 1,464 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 3,243. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021. As of the 2021 Canadian census there were 1,990 people who identified as Indigenous. Of these 63.6 per cent were Inuvialuit (
Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territorie ...
, predominantly Uummarmiut), 26.1 per cent First Nations, 5.8 per cent
Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Canadian Prairies, Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United State ...
and 4.8 per cent reported other Indigenous heritage. The non-Indigenous population of Inuvik was 36.6 per cent. The main language spoken in Inuvik is English, though schools teach and a handful of local people still speak Inuinnaqtun ( Inuvialuktun), and Gwichʼin. Local
CBC Radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined belo ...
, CHAK (AM), broadcasts an hour of programming a day in each of these languages. Local Gwichʼin are enrolled in the
Inuvik Native Band The Inuvik Native Band is a Gwich'in First Nations band government in the Northwest Territories. The band is located in Inuvik, a mixed community where First Nations, Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: I ...
. There are also about 100 Muslims, most of whom came there for economic opportunities. A small mosque (dubbed "Little mosque on the tundra" in reference to the CBC show '' Little Mosque on the Prairie'') was established in 2010.


Geography

Inuvik is located on the East Channel of the Mackenzie Delta, approximately from the Arctic Ocean and approximately north of the
Arctic Circle The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at ...
. The
tree line The tree line is the edge of the habitat at which trees are capable of growing. It is found at high elevations and high latitudes. Beyond the tree line, trees cannot tolerate the environmental conditions (usually cold temperatures, extreme snow ...
lies north of Inuvik, and the town is surrounded by
boreal forest Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruc ...
. Due to its northern location, Inuvik experiences an average of 56 days of
midnight sun The midnight sun is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months in places north of the Arctic Circle or south of the Antarctic Circle, when the Sun remains visible at the local midnight. When the midnight sun is seen in the Arctic, ...
every summer and 30 days of polar night every winter.


Transportation


Road

Until November 2017, Inuvik was the most northern community in Canada to be accessible by road (now second to Tuktoyaktuk). The Dempster Highway links Inuvik to the rest of Canada, providing relatively easy access to a wide variety of goods, and greatly reducing their cost. In contrast, many Arctic communities depend on cargo flights for regular goods and summer sealifts for larger freight, making goods expensive and often slow to arrive. In 2017, the Inuvik–Tuktoyaktuk Highway was extended north from Inuvik another to Tuktoyaktuk on the Arctic coast. Inuvik is also connected to Aklavik by an ice road across the Mackenzie Delta from late December until late April each year. The Dempster Highway relies on ferries to cross the Peel River near Fort McPherson and the Mackenzie River at Tsiigehtchic during the summer months. In winter, ice bridges are constructed to cross the rivers. During the spring the crossings close throughout May as the ice on the rivers breaks up. Similarly, they are impassible for most of November while the rivers freeze. During these times air travel is the only way for people and goods to reach Inuvik.


Air

The Inuvik (Mike Zubko) Airport is serviced by several regional carriers.
Canadian North Bradley Air Services, operating as Canadian North, is a wholly Inuit-owned airline headquartered in Kanata, Ontario, Canada. It operates scheduled passenger services to communities in the Northwest Territories, Nunavut and the Nunavik regio ...
has regular direct flights to Yellowknife and Norman Wells. It further connects to
Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city an ...
, and a number of smaller communities in the Northwest Territories and
Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the '' Nunavut Act'' and the '' Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act'' ...
. Air North connects to points in the
Yukon Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...
and travels as far south as
Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. ...
.
Aklak Air Aklak Air is an Inuvialuit owned airline based in Inuvik in Northwest Territories in Canada. It operates year-round and seasonal scheduled services, as well as charter flights throughout the western Arctic. Its main base is Inuvik (Mike Zubko) ...
flies north to the small communities of Sachs Harbour, Paulatuk, and
Ulukhaktok Ulukhaktok (Kangiryuarmiutun (Inuit language) spelling ''Ulukhaqtuuq'' () and known until 1 April 2006 as ''Holman'' or ''Holman Island'') is a small hamlet on the west coast of Victoria Island, in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, ...
. Freight services, helicopters, and floatplane charters are also available from Inuvik. Floatplane service operates out of the nearby Inuvik/Shell Lake Water Aerodrome.


Water

When the Mackenzie River is ice-free, Marine Transportation Services provides a commercial barge service from
Hay River Hay River may refer to: Places * Hay River, Northwest Territories * Hay River, Wisconsin Rivers * Hay River (Wisconsin) * Hay River (Canada), a river in Alberta and Northwest Territories, Canada * Hay River, Northern Territory, Australia * Hay R ...
, on Great Slave Lake to the regional terminal in Inuvik. The annual sealift moves supplies east into the Kitikmeot Region of
Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the '' Nunavut Act'' and the '' Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act'' ...
and west to Utqiagvik, Alaska. Many locals own small boats with outboard motors which are used to access family hunting and fishing camps or to visit Aklavik. Boat traffic comes to a halt in the winter when the Mackenzie River freezes.


Climate

Inuvik has a
subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, g ...
( Köppen ''Dfc''). Summers are typically wetter and cool, with temperatures varying wildly throughout the months due to its peculiar location near the cold
Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, a ...
. The average hottest month of the year, July, has a mean high of and mean low of . Unlike many other North American continental climates, Inuvik warms up very quickly during the months of May and June due to the rapidly increasing day length, and that remaining snow cools down until May. June is a warmer month than August. Seasonal transitions are extremely short, with mean daily temperatures rising or falling as fast as per day. Winters are long and cold; the coldest month of the year, January, having a mean high of and a mean low of . Freezing temperatures can occur any month of the year. Inuvik has a great variation of temperatures during the year, usually peaking below in the winter and above in the summer. The highest temperature ever recorded in Inuvik was on 17 June 1999 and 20 July 2001. The coldest temperature ever recorded was on 4 February 1968. Snow that falls from October onward usually stays until the spring thaw in mid-May. By March, the median snow depth has reached its greatest, about .


Tourism


Famous attractions

Inuvik's Our Lady of Victory Church, often called ''Igloo Church'', is a famous landmark in the region. It is the most-photographed building in the town . Inuvik has the Midnight Sun Mosque, North America's northernmost, which opened in November 2010 after being built in
Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749 ...
and moved by truck and barge. Some media reports have mistakenly called the mosque "the world's northernmost mosque", but in fact mosques in Norilsk, Russia, and
Tromsø Tromsø (, , ; se, Romsa ; fkv, Tromssa; sv, Tromsö) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø. Tromsø lies in Northern Norway. The municipality is the ...
, Norway, are both slightly further north than Inuvik.


Annual events of note

The Great Northern Arts Festival has been held annually for 10 days in the middle of July since 1989. The Festival has hosted over 3,000 artists from across Canada's north, and from as far away as Japan and Australia over 31 years and is the largest annual tourism event in the Beaufort Delta. Featuring on-site demonstrations, 50+ arts workshops, a 3,500-piece gallery, an outdoor carving village, an interactive artist studio zone, nightly cultural performances, northern film screenings, family activities and an
Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...
fashion show, the Festival attracts visitors from around the world to travel the Dempster Highway to visit Inuvik and the Gwich'in and
Inuvialuit Settlement Region The Inuvialuit Settlement Region, abbreviated as ISR ( ikt, Inuvialuit Nunangit Sannaiqtuaq – INS; french: Région désignée des Inuvialuit – RDI), located in Canada's western Arctic, was designated in 1984 in the Inuvialuit Final Agreement ...
s. The annual Sunrise Festival happens on the second weekend of the new year, when the sun finally breaks the horizon after about thirty days of polar night. The Festival is an all-day community event highlighted by dog sled races, a long-program fireworks show and community bonfire. This Festival was highlighted in the award-winning 2010 national Tropicana Orange Juice commercial ''Arctic Sun''. Inuvik celebrates the Muskrat Jamboree each year in late March or early April. Started in 1957, the event brings together thousands of people to participate in traditional games, watch the dog sled and snowmobile races and dance (jig) the night away in town. Most events are held on the Mackenzie River where several community groups operate concessions in stove-heated traditional McPherson tents, preparing hot soup, bannock, baked goods, coffee, Labrador tea, hot chocolate and other traditional refreshments. Many participants and spectators wear traditional clothing and often local artisans will have something to sell. In conjunction with the Muskrat Jamboree, the Town of Inuvik hosts the annual Muskrat Cup 3-on-3 Pond Hockey Tournament on the frozen Mackenzie River, the world's most northerly cash tournament. The weekend closest to the summer solstice (21 June) each year features the Midnight Sun Fun Run, a 5K, 10K and half marathon that starts at midnight under the 24-hours of sunlight experienced for over 50 days each summer in Inuvik. Runners from around the world make their way north to participate in this unique event under the midnight sun.


Facilities

A new hospital opened in early 2003, providing service to an area extending from Sachs Harbour on Banks Island, to
Ulukhaktok Ulukhaktok (Kangiryuarmiutun (Inuit language) spelling ''Ulukhaqtuuq'' () and known until 1 April 2006 as ''Holman'' or ''Holman Island'') is a small hamlet on the west coast of Victoria Island, in the Inuvik Region of the Northwest Territories, ...
on
Victoria Island Victoria Island ( ikt, Kitlineq, italic=yes) is a large island in the Arctic Archipelago that straddles the boundary between Nunavut and the Northwest Territories of Canada. It is the eighth-largest island in the world, and at in area, it is ...
, and from Paulatuk into the Sahtu Region including Norman Wells, Tulita, Délı̨nę, Fort Good Hope, and Colville Lake. The Midnight Sun Complex, a stage-built multi-use facility, was completed in 2006. Featuring the Roy 'Sugloo' Ipana Memorial Arena, with an NHL-sized ice surface; the Inuvik Curling Club with three sheets and a well-situated licensed lounge/viewing area; the Inuvik Pool, an award-winning Class B recreational pool with lane swimming, waterpark features including a two-story waterslide, hot tub, sauna and steam room; two squash courts; a multi-use community hall with stage; on-site business centre/production office; full building wireless; video-conferencing facility; on-site catering/kitchen; and meeting rooms for groups of 5 to 500. At full-building use, the Complex can host conferences, conventions and trade shows with up to 1200 delegates/exhibitors. The community has a state-of-the-art school called East 3. The construction budget for the school exceeded $110 million, and it features modern technologies such as 'smartboards' and videoconferencing facilities as well as a large gym. A distinct feature of Inuvik is the use of " utilidors" – above-ground utility conduits carrying water and sewage – which are covered by corrugated steel. They run throughout town connecting most buildings, and as a result there are many small bridges and underpasses. The utilidors are necessary because of the
permafrost Permafrost is ground that continuously remains below 0 °C (32 °F) for two or more years, located on land or under the ocean. Most common in the Northern Hemisphere, around 15% of the Northern Hemisphere or 11% of the global surface ...
underlying the town.


Media


Print

The town is served by the ''Inuvik Drum'', a community newspaper published weekly by Northern News Services.


Television

Inuvik was previously served by CHAK-TV,
VHF Very high frequency (VHF) is the ITU designation for the range of radio frequency electromagnetic waves (radio waves) from 30 to 300 megahertz (MHz), with corresponding wavelengths of ten meters to one meter. Frequencies immediately below VHF ...
channel 6, a CBC North
television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...
repeater of
CFYK-DT CFYK-DT (channel 8) is a CBC Television station in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada. It is the flagship station of the CBC North television service. History The station signed on in 1967 as the first television station in northern Can ...
( Yellowknife); that station closed down on 31 July 2012 due to budget cuts affecting the CBC.


Radio


Communications

Landline telephone service is provided by
Northwestel Northwestel Inc. (stylized as NorthwesTel) is a Canadian telecommunications company that is the incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC) and long-distance carrier in the territories of Yukon, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut. Originally est ...
, and cellular service by Ice Wireless and Arctic Digital (
Bell Mobility Bell Mobility Inc. is a Canadian wireless network operator and the division of Bell Canada which offers wireless services across Canada. It operates networks using LTE and HSPA+ on its mainstream networks. Bell Mobility is the third-largest ...
). Cable television is also offered in Inuvik by New North Networks. Fibre optic communications were added in Inuvik in June 2017 with the completion of the Mackenzie Valley Fibre Link; the $82 million line adds new capability to the town. However, the dependence on this single trunk line occasionally causes widespread Internet outages during Dempster or Alaska Highway maintenance or construction. A backup trunk line between Fort Simpson and Inuvik is currently under construction.


Planetary nomenclature

In 1988, the
International Astronomical Union The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreac ...
's Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature (IAU/WGPSN) officially adopted the name Inuvik for a crater on
Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...
, at 78.7° north latitude and 28.6° west longitude. The crater's diameter is .


Notable people

* Leona Aglukkaq, former member of Parliament for the electoral district of
Nunavut Nunavut ( , ; iu, ᓄᓇᕗᑦ , ; ) is the largest and northernmost territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the '' Nunavut Act'' and the '' Nunavut Land Claims Agreement Act'' ...
and former Minister of Health * Roger Allen, former member of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories and Olympian *
Zac Boyer Zachary Jason Boyer (born October 25, 1971) is a Canadian former National Hockey League right winger. In the final game of the 1992 Memorial Cup, Boyer scored the championship-winning goal for the Kamloops Blazers with 14 seconds remaining i ...
, former
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...
right winger * Tom Butters, former member of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories *
Jason Elliott Jason Elliott may refer to: * Jason Elliott (ice hockey) (born 1975), Canadian hockey player * Jason Elliott (politician) (born 1970), American politician See also * Jason Elliot (born 1965), British writer {{disambiguation ...
, former professional ice hockey player * Fred Koe, former member of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories * Floyd Roland, former Mayor of Inuvik and former Premier and member of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories *
Richard Nerysoo Richard Nerysoo (born 1953) is a territorial level politician from the Northwest Territories, Canada. He was a member of the Northwest Territories Legislature from 1979 to 1995 and served as the third premier of the Northwest Territories and S ...
, former chief of the Gwich'in Tribal Council, former member of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, former Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories, and former Premier of the Northwest Territories * Eric Schweig, Inuvialuit / Chippewa / Dene actor


See also

* List of municipalities in the Northwest Territories * Vertical distribution of ice in Arctic clouds


References


External links


Town of Inuvik Web Site
{{Authority control Inuit in the Northwest Territories Towns in the Northwest Territories