travelmanitoba

11 Tip Start the year with a breathtaking lightshow in Churchill! In February and March, cold, clear and dark nights set the stage for the magical dance of the northern lights. Located under the Aurora Oval, Churchill is one of the best places in the world to view the northern lights, or aurora borealis. With the right conditions, the northern lights are visible in Churchill up to 300 nights of the year. Summer tundra boasts belugas and polar bears The western Hudson Bay is home to 58,000 beluga whales. Every summer in July and August, more than 5,000 of these friendly marine mammals come to the Churchill River and Seal River estuaries feed, mate and give birth to their young. Churchill's visitors can watch the playful whales in different ways. On a boat tour, listen to the chirping of the belugas via hydrophone. Or get a little closer to the curious animals in a Zodiac. Jump in a kayak to observe the pod at water level. The whales swim around the kayaks – ready to share their friendly "beluga smile"! Polar bears can also be spotted along the coast of Hudson Bay at this time. The bears spend the summer months leisurely lumbering around on land and cooling off in the refreshing water of the bay. Located south of Churchill, Wapusk National Park is home to one of the most important polar bear denning areas in the world. In the summer months, up to 1,000 polar bears roam throughout the park. Autumn gathering of polar bears Every fall, hundreds of polar bears migrate from their summer habitat on the tundra to the shores of Hudson Bay waiting for the bay to freeze. After the long summer months, the bears are eager to return to the ice to hunt for seals. In October and November, visitors from all over the world come to Churchill, "the polar bear capital of the world", to witness the life-changing experience of viewing polar bears. Tucked safely inside a specially designed tundra vehicle, your heart will begin to beat faster when the world's largest land predator slowly approaches. For a truly unique adventure, stay in a remote mobile lodge, or embark on a walking safari. At the end of an exciting day, you'll be counting polar bears instead of sheep. P H O T O : J A S O N R A N S O M

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