On Friday, we woke up early for a delicious breakfast of bacon and
egg sandwiches. Afterward, we went to the nearby rocket range, where from 1957
until 1998, 3,500 sounding rockets were launched to test the upper atmosphere
and investigate the mysteries of the Aurora Borealis, more commonly known as
the Northern Lights. One of the features of the range was the Aerobee tower,
which is a large building used to prepare and launch rockets.
This building protected the rocket from
the harsh Arctic winds. After visiting the rocket range, we went back to the research
centre to eat lunch and to clean out our rooms. This was followed by a trip to
the Eskimo museum in the town of Churchill.
In the Eskimo museum, there were many
soapstone carvings and stuffed animals, such as a polar bear, 3 polar bear
cubs, a musk ox, and a walrus. Its gift shop contained many jams, jellies,
postcards, and books. After many purchases and putting our coats back on, we
clambered onto the bus and headed to the train station. The train station is
also a Parks Canada post where they have many artifacts dating back to the time
of the fur trade.
These artifacts include a cannon,
multiple cannonballs, and a musket. In addition, it has several furs of animals
such as the ring seal, both the Arctic fox and the red fox, and the mink.
We then proceeded to do some shopping at
a nearby store before heading off to the Northern store. The Northern Stores, previously known as the Hudson
Bay Company Stores were renamed in 1990. Northern Stores/Hudson Bay Company
Stores have been providing food and general merchandise to people of
Churchill and other remote Canadian communities for over 300 years.
The Northern
Store Manager in Churchill, Mr. Gary Rea gave us a tour of his store. He was very
kind, friendly and eager to talk about his job.
Prices
on everyday essentials such as milk, meat, veggies, fruit, bread and canned
goods at the Churchill Northern store can be two to four times higher than the
price of the same item in a Winnipeg grocery store.
As
there are no roads into Churchill, supplies have to be shipped via train or
plane. The weight of the items affects the cost of the product.
We
were very surprised to see all the variety of foods available. A big challenge
for Gary is to provide yellow bananas to his customers. The bananas arrive
green and stay hard and green.
Besides
food, you can also purchase clothes, furniture and skidoos
at the store.
We walked to a restaurant where we had a scrumptious dinner before
going to the airport to take off for Winnipeg. We all enjoyed and learned many
new things during our trip to Churchill.
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