Toonik Tyme tees off with ice golf

Toonik Tyme started with a hit Friday afternoon when Iqalummiut teed off for some ice golf.

Toonik Tyme is the annual event in Iqaluit that celebrates the beginning of spring with games and events, from snowmobile races to cake decorating. Organized by the local nonprofit 123Go!, the festival will run over 10 days until April 14.

Ice golf was one of the first scheduled events this year, and it started quietly.

A couple of people on the Arctic Winter Games lake joined in, and golf clubs and orange road hockey balls were provided, although one group also brought its own golf balls.

Vance Fok, Valérie Beaulieu Blanchette and Martin Sichinga were the first to tee off.

With the playing surface a mix of snow and ice that could be chippy, the game presented a different challenge from traditional golf.

“That’s part of the joy,” Fok said of golfing in a different environment.

More people gradually stepped onto the frozen lake. Alex Martin and Brandon Trevors were next up to give it a try, with Trevors admitting “I never thought I’d play golf on ice.”

However, it was “very fun,” he said.

When the plastic orange balls broke because of the cold — it was around -9 C at tee time — Martin and Trevors tried their luck with a traditional white golf ball. That proved to be a challenge too — when their shots hit the snow.

“It’s hard to find a white golf ball with all this ice and snow,” Martin said with a laugh.

For the other Toonik Tyme activities, Blanchette said she’s excited to attend the dogsled races being held over several days and the snowmobile races on April 14.

Martin said he is also looking forward to the snowmobile races, while both he and Trevors said they would like to try the fishing derby on Saturday.