A shotgun blast and celebrations mark final day of Nunavut Quest

People at the final camp Thursday were excited to run the eighth and final day of the Nunavut Quest.

Tom Naqitarvik stands on the sea ice with his dog team, surrounded by other teams and the Nunavut Quest support crew Thursday, on the final leg of the Nunavut Quest. (Photo by Kelsey Kanatsiak, special to Nunatsiaq News)

It was cloudy and a bit of snow filled the air at Aulattivik, 50 kilometres out from the finish line.

Nine dog teams and their support group, made up of roughly 60 people of all ages, had been on the 500-kilometre trail since April 9, making their way from Igloolik to Pond Inlet.

Thursday morning started differently from the others. Instead of the support drivers leaving before the mushers, the mushers left first. Normally, they leave one by one but Thursday they all left at the same time at the sound of a shotgun blast.

Shortly after that, the support drivers left too, on a trail parallel to the one taken by the dog teams.

Roughly 50 kilometres later, everybody arrived in Pond Inlet, a community surrounded by beautiful mountains. Instead of just driving into town, the support drivers meandered in like a parade before doing a big circle around the large crowd gathered on the sea ice to welcome the group.

Some on the trip remarked it was the best day of their lives, experiencing the end of the journey to Pond Inlet along with the Nunavut Quest.

It was a tough go this year for the annual dogsled race. Several weather delays hampered progress, including a two-day delay to the start of the Quest and a delayed start on Day 2.

Mushers did not race on Day 4, again because of weather. Instead, they loaded their dogs into their qamutiit and travelled on their snowmobiles. The teams took shelter from high winds on Day 6 as well, instead of racing.

Lee Inuarak crossed the finish line first Thursday, followed by Jinneal Nanuraq Uttak and then Tom Naqitarvik. The rest of the mushers came in the following order:

1. Lee Inuarak (#1)
2. Jinneal Nanuraq Uttak (#5)
3. Tom Naqitarvik (#2)
4. Daniel Inuarak (#8)
5. Owen Jaworenko (#3)
6. Donovan Qaunaq (#7)
7. Peter Henry Arnatsiaq (#9)
8. Roland Taqtu (#6)
9. Natalino Piugattuq (#4)

In the afternoon, the Quest participants had the chance to explore Pond Inlet, visit relatives, and make new friends.

Everybody was very welcoming.

The racers’ official times will be announced at the 2026 Nunavut Quest closing ceremony in the coming days.