Youth travel to Pond Inlet’s floe edge from home

Children in Pond Inlet are being encouraged to go fishing from the comfort of their couch, thanks to a new virtual app that mimics local topography and waterways.

Children must check their supplies before embarking on a snowmobile journey in the Ingirrattiarissi game, which is available on desktop and as an app. (Screenshot courtesy of SmartIce)

“There’ll be certain landscapes that the local people here will notice,” said Andrew Arreak, Nunavut operations lead with SmartIce, which developed the app, Ingirrattiarissi, which translates to Safe Travels.

To develop it, he partnered with Ampere, an organization with hubs in Iqaluit and Cambridge Bay that that blends education with technology.

The game offers two modes. One involves an eastbound snowmobile trip to the floe edge, or Sinna, in Inuktitut.

The second offers a journey west from Pond Inlet, to an inland fishing spot residents refer to as “Iqaluit,” the Inuktitut term for “where the fish are.”

In either option, players are required to prepare the appropriate amount of supplies, check tides and wind conditions, and measure ice depth before embarking safely on their journey.

“It’s very educational for the younger generation because not every young person has a father figure who can show them how to read the conditions,” Arreak said.

“The weather can change dramatically.”

The Ingirrattiarissi app is based on a desktop computer version that was released last year. It is available in Inuktitut and English on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.