WORLD CLASS ARCTIC CHAR

July 12, 2018 | Arctic Watch

WORLD CLASS ARCTIC CHAR

From Arctic Watch, Creswell Bay is only a short Twin Otter flight away. World class arctic char fishing awaits and can be booked by request to compliment your trip to Arctic Watch!

North of the Arctic Circle, the sun casts three-hundred-and-sixty-degree shadows on the rolling hills of the open tundra. The midnight sun prompts no natural bookend to the day’s activities. From the lodge, the turquoise braids of the Cunningham River paint the vast landscape with colour and the white heads of beluga whales can be seen from the dining room window. It’s 5 pm but the day is not done. The faint hum of a Twin Otter breaks the otherwise silent landscape of the High Arctic. Seven eager fishermen, already wearing waders, take their seats aboard. With minds on the thrill of a 20lb arctic char hitting the orange streamer at the end of their eight-weight line, the plane pulls upwards into the sky.

Creswell Bay has long been regarded as one of the best Arctic char runs in the High Arctic. Nomadic Inuit families traveled extensively along the Arctic coastlines in search of food and the means to survive in the harsh Arctic environment. Not only the Inuit but also their Thule and Dorset predecessors chose Creswell Bay as a summer fishing camp due to the abundance of sea-run arctic char exiting Stanwell-Fletcher Lake. By request, we offer guests to Arctic Watch the opportunity to experience world-class char fishing on a one-day fishing adventure to Creswell Bay.

The forty-minute Twin Otter flight departs Arctic Watch at the north end of Somerset Island, along the Northwest Passage, and heads south providing spectacular views of the uninhabited island. By Arctic standards, Creswell Bay is lush. Relative to the barren expanse surrounding Cunningham Inlet, the nutrient-rich soil of Creswell Bay envelops bedrock and the area teems with life.

Available during our six-week operating season, each week offers its unique benefits. Early July ensures high catch rates given the spring run, while late July to early August offers the added bonus of possibly observing narwhal as they travel the western coast of Somerset Island. Interested? We would love to chat about how to build a trip to Creswell Bay into your trip to the High Arctic.