Coral Harbour

Info

Inuktitut name: Salliq (Large flat island in front of the mainland)
Population: 834 (2011)
Time zone: EST
Website: www.coralharbour.ca
Interpretive Trail: Fossil Creek
Climate Data
Sunrise Times

Overview

The Coral Harbour area has long been an important meeting place for Inuit, as it is home to an amazing variety and abundance of sea mammals.  There are numerous archeological sites in the area that indicate that people have inhabited Southampton Island since 500 BC.

European explorers and whalers have been visiting the Coral Harbour area since 1613.  The contact between Europeans and Inuit led to a strong entrepreneurial spirit amongst local people.  The modern community of Coral Harbour was formed after the Hudson’s Bay Company opened a trading post in 1924.  During World War Two, the American military constructed an air base at Coral Harbour as a part of the “Crimson Route”- a string of air bases used to ferry aircraft from the United States to Europe. 

Today the community remains a strong and vibrant one, with an economy centred on Arts and Crafts, Tourism and hunting.  Local outfitters provide some of the best wildlife viewing in the Arctic, with tours to view Walrus, Polar Bears, Whales and migratory birds.

The landscape at first appears to be bleak, but upon closer inspection one will find that the flat, sandy island is filled with fossils, plants and animals.  Wildlife is readily accessible with numerous trails and roads. 

Local Parks include: The Fossil Creek Trail, Harry Gibbons Migratory Bird Sanctuary, and the East Bay Migratory Birds Sanctuary.

Full Community Profile: www.nunavuteda.com/community/coral-harbor