Cape Dorset hunters get their bowhead
Nunavut community’s first legal bowhead in more than 100 years
Cape Dorset bowhead whale hunters pose for a picture while standing on the big bowhead whale they landed Sept. 29., about 40 km east of the community. (PHOTO COURTESY OF JOHN CORKETT)
About 500 Cape Dorset residents gathered by the beach in front of Cape Dorset late on the evening of Sept. 29 to watch hunters bring in the community’s first legal bowhead whale in more than 100 years.
The hunt crew, led by captain Qimmiataq Nungutsuituq, killed the whale around 3:00 p.m., only 45 minutes after sighting it about 40 km east of Cape Dorset.
But it took the crew between seven and eight hours to tow the whale back to their community.
A Cape Dorset resident told Nunatsiaq News the whale was “well over 50 feet” in length and that the hamlets’ two large front-end loaders, a wheel dozer, and a Cat D7H couldn’t pull the dead animal past the high-tide mark, since the lines they used kept on snapping.
Crew member Egeevadluk Suvigak is credited with the catch because it was he who first wounded the animal.
The lead harpooner was Daniel Taukie, who handled the penthrite grenade device.
The legal hunt period had been extended for one week because of bad weather over the past two weeks that caused the Cape Dorset hunt to be repeatedly called off.
(7) Comments:
Wow!! That must have been exciting and scary at the same time while trying to catch it. It’s nice to see that the whole community will have some muktaaq. Tusuu….
What an exciting event for the community. Wish I had been there.
That was so awesome, by 2:30 pm, it was so hard for us to concentrate at work! So excited!!!! Mattaq was so yummy! Excellent job!
I didnt even get to touch it, they couldnt get it up shore. Unfortunate for us, they had to pick an uphill spot. There is a Polar Bear walking around Cape Dorset every night, and has been here for not sure, a week now, so it’s pretty worrying it might get to it. Although it may already have. The polar bear is waiting for the ice to freeze up in this area. It walks around the town everynight. But hopefully, he wont finish the whole whale!! LOL Cheers.
It was awesome, overwhelming experience for the whole town. When the loaders were pulling the whale on shore, one couldn’t believe the massive size of this whale. Great teamwork, and the thought of taking the whale close to town to butcher it was even an excellent idea, as it gave everyone a chance to see the huge whale. And it was an honour to have my son participate in the killing of the whale with the grenade gun. It is so worthwhile, and surprisingly the whale tasted really good. I feel honoured just to even eat the mattak.
Haha, they just shot the polar bear.. in the water. Good news for us!
WOW!!! that was an exciting day for everyone here in Kinngait! a huge whale and that same day my new born nuakuluapik (niece) slash my atiapikuluk came in.. AND I GOT TO BE ON TOP OF THE WHALE!!! i was talking to one of the Wild life Officer’s and i told her i wanted to go on top then i went to go take some close up pictures and i went on top! she said to me “you got your wish!” it was an awesome experience… CONGRADULATIONS TO THE GUYS WHO cought the whale