Cultural Activities

JANUARY

  • Trapping continues
  • Seal hunting
  • Seal skins prepared for bleaching
  • Polar bear hunting
  • Build/repair skin boats

FEBRUARY

  • Trapping continues
  • Caribou skins drying outside
  • Seal and ugruk skins also drying/bleaching
  • Seal hunting
  • Continue build/repair skin boats

MARCH

  • Some polar bear hunting
  • Seal hunting
  • Trapping continues for fox, wolf and wolverine
  • Women sew ugruk skins for skin boats
  • New skins put on boat frames
  • Hunting tools repaired
  • Female polar bears bring out their young

APRIL

  • End of trapping season
  • Whaling season begins
  • Caribou and ground squirrel hunting inland
  • Time to clean cellars if not done during winter
  • Birth of young seals

MAY

  • Whaling continues
  • Geese/ptarmigan hunting inland
  • Duck hunting on ice
  • Ice breakup on rivers
  • Seals on ice at Qaaktugvik
  • Ugruk have their young

JUNE

  • Caribou fawning period
  • Nalukataq in the whaling communities (Kak, Nui, Brw, Am, Pho)
  • Going off to Summer camps
  • Fishing on rivers and lakes begins
  • Seal hunting
  • Fishing in Qaaktugvik

JULY

  • Camping and hunting continues
  • Fishing continues
  • Caribou hunting
  • Gathering eggs in Pt. Hope
  • Ugruk and walrus hunting
  • Drying meat and making seal oil
  • Preparing ugruk skins for boats

AUGUST

  • Caribou hunting by boats, some by snow machines
  • Ugruk and aiviq hunting continues
  • Ugruk skins prepared for boat bottoms
  • Some people still in their summer fishing and hunting camps.
  • Duck hunting at Pigniq.
  • Some fishing with nets at Pigniq
  • Boat frames built
  • Geese hunting in Wainwright
  • Tuktaq making time
  • Fishing on the rivers
  • Berry picking inland

SEPTEMBER

  • Panmaksrak coming through
  • Some duck hunting
  • Beginning of fall bowhead whale hunt
  • Moose hunting
  • Whaling in Kaktovik/Nuiqsut/Barrow

OCTOBER

  • Fall whaling continues
  • Ice fishing on rivers and lakes
  • Caribou hunting first part of the month
  • Ice fishing along coastline for cod fish

NOVEMBER

  • Polar bear hunting on the coastline
  • Seal hunting
  • Some hunters still at fish camps
  • Traditional Thanksgiving Feasts

DECEMBER

  • Trapping season for fox, wolf, wolverine
  • Seal hunting
  • Polar bear hunting
  • Traditional Christmas Feasts
  • Traditional games of skill and endurance
  • Time to clean ice cellars and houses for the new year