Bellot Strait, Canada: August 26, 2026

Bellot Strait is 25 km/15.5 mi long and 2 km/1.2 mi wide at its narrowest point. It will take about 1.5 hours to pass through. The most northerly point of continental North America is in this passage (71°58’N 94°57’W).

The tide through the passage is tricky and while in the past several ships tried it, it wasn’t until 1937 that the Aklavik, a Hudson's Bay Company boat, successfully sailed through the passage. Hudson's Bay Company had a trading post at the eastern entrance of Bellot Strait on the southeastern end of the Somerset Island from 1937 to 1948.

• 

• 

The morning's sunrise was beautiful with low fog on the sea. A chunk of sea ice went floating by just before entering the passage. The ship entered the east side (between Somerset Island and Boothia Peninsula) at slack tide about 7:00 a.m.

Sea birds were enjoying the ride on the west to east current flowing out of the passage. A pod of bowhead whales came our way as did a couple groups of narwhal and a group of belugas. I saw the back of the bowhead (the line below that looks like a crocodile is a bowhead back) but the narwhal and belugas were too far and to quick for me to see.

• 

• 

The rock on both sides of the passage are some of the oldest in the world. The steep walls consist of Archean-Paleoproterozoic metamorphic rocks and date from between 4 to 1.5 billion years ago.

• 

• 

The western end of the Passage was in sight. A tanker was waiting on the other side for the tide to work for it.

Tomorrow: Gjoa Haven