Anyone booked on this tour with the Toronto add on?

I've read the reviews from SallyC and 1981Kedi which are great.

However, I'm struggling to come up with how much money to take - something I've never had problem with before - so help from others on this would be great....!

Sylvia

Thanks for your advice re Cuba. Hopefully my fellow Polar Bearers will help me out but as I recall prices in Canada are on a par to the the UK. Apart from a few meals and the odd souvenir there isn't really much opportunity to spend too much money. The evening meals at the Lazy Bear went on your room which I paid for by credit card. They don't serve alcohol at the lodge but they will take you to the local off licence if you want to buy a bottle or two of wine or beer, and let you use the fridge in the lounge if you need to. There is a bit of free time in Churchill to shop and also on the last morning in Winnipeg. The Inn on the Forks is opposite a covered craft market which was quite good for souvenirs.

I hope you have a fabulous time - I am thinking of going back to Churchill in July to see it without snow.

Sally

Thanks for your reply. I must admit to being tempted to return to Churchill in the summer despite not having been there yet...!

Regards

Sylvia

Hi Sally

Thanks for your reply. I must admit to being tempted to return to Churchill in the summer despite not having been there yet...!

Regards

Sylvia

Hi Sylvia

I am booked on this trip and doing the Totonto add on. I haven't thought about how much money to take yet. At the moment I am making sure I have enough warm clothing to take. I am not sure how cold it will be, but want to be prepared.

Jennie

Lovely to hear that I am not going on my own!

I am following the weather forecast for Churchillf, Winnipeg and Toronto and currently the temp is erratic with sun, rain, cloud, snow, so plan for a very cold minus temp with added wind chill. I've invested in a new pair of boots which are good for minus 20. I've been on cold/winter holidays before where five layers top and bottom was the norm to keep warm.

Now turning my mind to the money, credit card etc.

I'll see you in the lounge on the 25th.

Sylvia

I did this wonderful trip last November. It was seriously cold at -31C degrees! Somewhere on the Forum I have advised on what clothing to take - I thought I had gone over the top with what I took, but no, I hadn't! I took a North Face Arctic Parka, Sorel boots (which are fantastic in the snow and ice and which Yvette the Tour Manager was also wearing!), Icebreaker thermals (in different weights), two pairs of thermal gloves, fleece hat (I had to buy another one in Churchill - rabbit fur with ear flaps!), merano wool scarf (Buff), ski trousers, thermal socks etc. etc. You cannot be too warm!

I too did the Toronto add-on but I actually extended my stay to stay with family for 10 days. I actually found Canada quite expensive, but I guess you can eat/do things cheaper than I did!

Enjoy and have a fantastic time!

Cheers,

Hils

Hi Jennie

Lovely to hear that I am not going on my own!

I am following the weather forecast for Churchillf, Winnipeg and Toronto and currently the temp is erratic with sun, rain, cloud, snow, so plan for a very cold minus temp with added wind chill. I've invested in a new pair of boots which are good for minus 20. I've been on cold/winter holidays before where five layers top and bottom was the norm to keep warm.

Now turning my mind to the money, credit card etc.

I'll see you in the lounge on the 25th.

Sylvia

Hi Sylvia

I have not been on cold/winter holidays before. Most of my holidays are to hot humid places so it will be a bit different. I am stocking up on warm clothes.

I normally work out how much money to take by working out how many meals to pay for plus extras and spending money and also bearing mind what money you might need for Toronto, and then also taking a card that you can use.

See you on the 25th.

Jennie

Sally and Hils are both correct the prices are on a par with the UK. When you stay in the lodge in Churchill you will only need to buy your evening meal and one lunch . Breakfast is included and they provide you with sandwiches and soup on the tundra.

It is an amazing experience you will have a great time. Just wrap up warm.

Regards Julie

http://explore.org/live-cams/player/polar-bear-cape-churchill-cam 

Also, to add to Hils clothing suggestions - do take a large pair of (polarising) sun glasses - good to fill the gap between your pulled up scarf (buff) and hat, especially when it is windy - also the polarised lens helps with picking out the difference between polar bear rocks and actual polar bears!! ;)

It was an experience of a life time. You will all have a wonderful time - fingers crossed for some 'close up' experiences.

Slightly off topic BUT the Polar Bear live web cams are back! This is just one, which was apparently showing three bears at one stage today

http://explore.org/live-cams/player/polar-bear-cape-churchill-cam 

OK so I post this and then go back to looking at the bears - its gone back to a recording - 😞 - I promise the live bears were there! The only web cams working at the moment are the ones with 'Wapusk National Park' in the title. They have had problems with the camera freezing (literally!). Hopefully the Tundra Buggy ones will come on line as well as the season gets underway.

If you click on the Wapusk/recorded Bears and scroll down below the rows of webcams you will see the comments (with screen shots) section for the live cams - just to prove the bears were really there today, starting to gather for the coming of the ice.

Thank you for this link...I am completely addicted to watching the polar bears now!!!

So, if anyone needs me I'm afraid you'll have to catch me whilst the polar bears are sleeping,

Kindest Regards,

Monty

A couple of things I forgot! Make sure you have a camera with at least a 300mm lens, and also take binoculars (which I forgot!). I took the wrong camera and really regretted it as the bears were so far away when we went in November last year, but I think the fact you are going a week earlier than we did, should be good.

Enjoy!

Cheers,

Hils

Thanks so much for all the advice.

Kedi, I've been looking at the web cam since last week and did see the polar bears live this morning - super and I'm so excited!!

And Monty, don't you want to come with us?

Sylvia

Best wishes,

Bob

Hi Sylvia,

A couple of things I forgot! Make sure you have a camera with at least a 300mm lens, and also take binoculars (which I forgot!). I took the wrong camera and really regretted it as the bears were so far away when we went in November last year, but I think the fact you are going a week earlier than we did, should be good.

Enjoy!

Cheers,

Hils

We went in early November when we did it with TS and the bears were playing / nosing around a few yards from the tundra buggies.

Mind you that was about 10 years ago, maybe we were a novelty then and now they keep their distance, or it might just be, as with all natural events, we just hit really lucky

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-34490185 

There is also a site which shows the daily progress of the sea ice

http://www.ec.gc.ca/glaces-ice/default.asp?lang=En&n=CE69E4DD-1 

I so wish I was coming with you! Would love to have a closer encounter with the bears - the group the day before us had wonderful close up experiences. Also spectacular Northern Lights whilst 'out of town' on the dog sled evening.

Incase you haven't found all the hints and tips on last years threads - do take a couple of spare camera batteries as well as the charger - the cold can drain the power more quickly than 'normal' conditions.

I would also love the chance to go back and see the polar bears up close. Maybe one day in the future I will return.

Regards Julie

For the rest of us there are the Polar Bear cams from Hudson Bay. All the cameras are live now and will be accompanied by on line chats about the bears and other wild life.

Webcams on 'explore'

http://explore.org/live-cams/player/polar-bear-lodge-cam 

Message from the operators:

Hi everyone, it's polar bear season again in Churchill, Manitoba! We've been working on getting our live cams up and running and as you can see, we have been successful as of today. We'll be playing with settings and running the cams all weekend, then starting next week we will be broadcasting live chats from the tundra.

We will be hosting live chats between Mondays and Fridays with experts and interesting people from all over the world. Please join these chats to ask questions and let us know what you want us to talk about.

We will also try to have some impromptu narration with headset mics if something of interest is happening on the tundra. You never know when a fox, owl, or even wolverine might show up, or when a couple bears might decide to start sparring!

We look forward to the next few weeks of polar bear viewing, it's shaping up to be a great season. See you soon!