Auyuittuq National Park, Nunavut

Auyuittuq National Park is located on Baffin Islands in Nunavut. Due to extreme climatic conditions, only a few plants and animals are found here. On a visit, you'll see flora ranging from flowers such as Mountain Avens, Campion, Papaver and Saxifrage to shrubs like Dwarf Birch, Arctic Willow, and Heathe. If you want to see the Arctic, the Auyuittuq National Park is just what the doctor prescribed! What's more, adventurers will hike through one of the most remote trails in the world.

Established in 1976, Auyuittuq is home to the Penny Ice Cap, a 6,000 square kilometer ice cap that is a remnant of the last ice age! A huge portion of the park lies almost entirely within the Arctic Circle and, except for the 6000 square kilometer Penny Ice Cap, the park's landscape has been entirely glacier-formed.

This park is also home to Mount Asgard - a mountain, surrounded by glaciers, which can only be climbed for a short time each year during late summer. Mount Asgard was featured in a James Bond film. With the park serving as home to a number of different communities, you'll find an abundance of cultural resources that will enrich your awareness of the complex human history.

The most common backpacking route in the park is the Akshayuk Pass, which follows the Weasel and Owl Rivers via Summit Lake.