Brent Reaney
Northern News Services

Pangnirtung (Aug 15/05) - Less than 12 kilometres outside town, an annual spring camp provides a cultural getaway for the community's youth.

"It's quiet. No modern technology. We're just learning more about hunting and surviving on our own," says 19-year-old John Maniapik, who participated in his 13th camp this past May.

Teachers and volunteers travel to the site to set up the required 15 tents, two cabins and one kitchen the night before it officially opens.

"They learn how to hunt and skin caribou, and they learn how to fish and they learn how to spend the night in a tent and keep it warm," says teacher Rebecca Kanayuk.

Most people used Coleman stoves to keep their tents warm. By late April, Kanayuk says the weather around the Baffin Island community is not too frigid, but space heaters have been used.

High school students stay overnight in the tents, while younger students go for the day. This year, about 100 students made the trip.

A number of elders are also invited.

"(The elders) tell us stories that we learn so much from, like what happened to them when they were kids and they were hunting with their family," says Maniapik.

Although times are changing and he can not always relate to the elders' experiences, Maniapik still enjoys listening.

Last year, Kanayuk also brought elders into a sewing class she teaches.

"They first were quiet," she said of the students. "Then they got to know each other and the ladies told stories."

Unlike in some communities, Nakayuk says youth and elders are able to talk because Inuktitut remains strong here.

"We keep our language alive in Pang."