Manitoba
Lords of the North: Ecology of Hudson Bay's Polar Bears
Program No. 6290RJ
Learn about the ecosystems of Hudson Bay from a polar bear expert, enjoying lectures and seeing unique Arctic species in their natural habitat.
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9 days
8 nights
22 meals
8B 7L 7D
2
Manitoba Museum, Assiniboine Park Conservancy
Winnipeg, MB
3
Fly to Churchill, Polar Bear Conservation
Churchill, MB
4
Polar Bear Viewing, Tundra Buggy, Climate Change
Churchill, MB
5
Current Research, Dogsledding, Polar Bear Conservation
Churchill, MB
6
Polar Bear Viewing, Cultural Presentation
Churchill, MB
8
Fly to Winnipeg, Farewell Dinner
Winnipeg, MB
9
Program Concludes
Winnipeg, MB
At a Glance
As autumn fades, the polar bears of Hudson Bay gather to await the sea ice that signals winter’s return. Alongside a leading authority on this precious population, journey onto the tundra aboard specially fitted vehicles to observe these majestic creatures in their natural habitat. Lectures, field trips and museum visits will help you understand not only the life of the polar bear, but also the challenges of global climate change, local conservation issues and the future of the arctic ecosystem.
Activity Level
Keep the Pace
Walking up to two miles on frozen terrain.
Best of all, you’ll…
- Take part in a dog sled adventure and look out for Arctic foxes, snowy owls and other Arctic species.
- Examine research and conservation efforts conducted by the new International Polar Bear Conservation Centre.
- Go behind the scenes at the Manitoba Museum to view pieces from the Inuit collection and discover the history of the Hudson’s Bay Company.
General Notes
This program stays in unique accommodations. Be sure to review the Lodging description for the Churchill Northern Studies Centre. If you enroll in a Single room, it is only available for the two hotels in Winnipeg but not in Churchill.
Featured Expert
All trip experts
Martyn Obbard
Dr. Martyn Obbard is a research scientist for the Canadian government and a professor of environmental and life sciences at Trent University. He has spent much of his career studying the effect of sea ice distribution and duration and its effect on polar bears. His current project includes researching polar bear populations including the Southern Hudson Bay, one of the most southerly polar bear populations in the world. Dr. Obbard remains active with the International Union for Conservation of Nature polar bear specialist group.
Please note: This expert may not be available for every date of this program.
Martyn Obbard
View biography
Dr. Martyn Obbard is a research scientist for the Canadian government and a professor of environmental and life sciences at Trent University. He has spent much of his career studying the effect of sea ice distribution and duration and its effect on polar bears. His current project includes researching polar bear populations including the Southern Hudson Bay, one of the most southerly polar bear populations in the world. Dr. Obbard remains active with the International Union for Conservation of Nature polar bear specialist group.
Suggested Reading List
(5 books)
Visit the Road Scholar Bookshop
You can find many of the books we recommend at the Road Scholar store on bookshop.org, a website that supports local bookstores.
Lords of the North: Ecology of Hudson Bay's Polar Bears
Program Number: 6290
Arctic Dreams
NATURAL HISTORY, 2001, PAPERBACK, 417 PAGES , FAVORITE
One of the best books we've read on any destination, this celebrated meditation on the Arctic draws on Lopez's travels throughout the North, including Baffin Island, Siberia and Greenland. A dazzling writer and compassionate observer, Lopez weaves biology and history into his storytelling, including extended chapters on the polar bear and narwhal. (ARC11, $16.00)
Ice Walker: A Polar Bear’s Journey through the Fragile Arctic
Author and geographer James Raffan invites us to inhabit in Ice Walker. In precise and provocative prose, he brings readers inside the polar bear Nanu’s world as she treks uncertainly around the heart of Hudson Bay, searching for nourishment for the children that grow inside her. She stops at nothing to protect her cubs from the dangers she can see—other bears, wolves, whales, human beings—and those she cannot.
Ancient People of the Arctic
Traces the lives of the Palaeo-Eskimos, the bold first explorers of the Arctic. Four thousand years ago, these people entered the far northern extremes of the North American continent, carving a living out of their bleak new homeland. From the hints they left behind, accessible only through the fragmented archaeological record, Robert McGhee ingeniously reconstructs a picture of this life at the margins.
Churchill Hudson Bay – A Guide to Natural and Cultural Heritage
This publication contains various aspects of the natural and cultural heritage of the region. It’s focus is on various themes including aboriginal history, the fur trade, the Hudson Bay railway, geology, paleontology, atmospheric science, flora, Hudson Bay, and the abundant biodiversity of life.
Never Look a Polar Bear in the Eye
Zac Unger takes readers on a spirited and often wildly funny journey to a place as unique as it is remote, a place where natives, tourists, scientists, conservationists, and the most ferocious predators on the planet converge. In the process he becomes embroiled in the controversy surrounding "polar bear science" -- and finds out that some of what we've been led to believe about the bears' imminent extinction may not be quite the case. But mostly what he learns is about human behavior in extreme situations . . . and also why you should never even think of looking a polar bear in the eye.