Every October the polar bears descend on Churchill, Manitoba Canada, population 850, to gather and wait. No they are not waiting for the 15,000 tourists who come to see them each year. They are waiting for Hudson’s Bay to freeze over so they can begin their winter feeding
They hang around the tundra, lean and hungry, waiting for the ice to come so they can start hunting their favorite food – seal. While they wait the enterprising citizens of Churchill play host to thousands of people eager to get a glimpse and a photograph of a polar bear in its natural habitat.
Tourists come from all over the world to spend a few days or even a few hours riding around the tundra in a specially designed tundra buggy complete with heater, food service and a toilet, to “hunt” polar bear. Passengers sit high off the ground and have a good view of the terrain. There is a viewing platform outside at the end of the buggy that holds about 10 people. The ride is slow and bumpy.
Although there is no guarantee that you will see any polar bears, the guides know where the bears are. Polar bears seem to be solitary creatures, preferring to wait on their own. They have not eaten since spring and are low on energy so they do not move around a lot. Polar bears do not hibernate; they are active all year round, especially in the winter months. They are not afraid of the tourists, they will come right up to the buggies hoping for a handout or maybe they just are just plain curious.
The town has a bear jail, where they keep the bears that come into town to forage through the garbage. Churchill has a policy of not feeding the bears. They lock up their garbage (only in Canada, eh) in military like compounds to keep the bears out. When a bear is caught breaking the law, it is incarcerated in the bear jail until the ice freezes over. Then they are released.
The town of Churchill caters to the bear watchers with several souvenir shops and hotels lining its main street. They hold the title as Canada’s polar bear capital because of the number of polar bears that visit each year, not tourists.
If you want to go and experience the bears yourself, check out these websites for more information:
www.canadapolarbears.com
www.classiccanadiantours.com/polar-bear-tour/
www.greatcanadiantravel.com/churchill_polarbear_tours.htm
www.churchillwild.com/ice-bear.HTML
www.freshtracks.ca/watching/w_polar.shtml
