No more boats this year?

It's December 1st in Moosonee and it feels cold outside where the wind chill is minus 12C. Mind you this is warmer than normal but it seems frigid to me after all the warmer weather we have been having where the temperature got above freezing almost every day.

I went out yesterday and got some pictures of taxis boats on the river. These run back and forth between Moosonee and Moose Factory. There are lots of them in the summer. Some of the passengers are tourists but most of them are local people going back and forth, commuting to work, shopping or visiting. By yesterday there were only three or four boats left but not much in the way of ice.

Last night it got colder and there was a fair amount of ice by morning. I walked down to where the docks are installed and saw no boats; just a few people coming to check to see if they could get a ride across.

I spoke with a taxi driver later in the day who told that one person had put a boat in the water but gave up. Last evening there was some ice and the trip to Moose Factory took one person three quarters of an hour instead the usual few minutes.

Now that the boats are gone the only way to get across the river for a few weeks will be by helicopter. The fare is $35 a person each way and there are only three scheduled trips a day. But, soon enough, the river will be frozen enough for first skidoo taxis and then for cars and trucks.

For most people, winter is the easiest time to get around. No more walking or taking a taxi to the boat docks, getting in a boat and then finding a ride once you get to the other side. In winter, you can drive from where you are to where you want to go in either community. Very handy and makes a lot of things much easier.