Darrell Greer
Northern News Services

Arviat (Sep 28/05) - It was meant to be a weekend of fishing and sightseeing on the land.

That's what the Mamgarks thought when they left Arviat earlier this month on their way to Turquitel, about 132 km from the hamlet.

Johnny, his wife Agnes, and their two sons, Detrick and Sebastian, were accompanied by Detrick's girlfriend, Saittuq Muckpah.

The group travelled to Maguse Lake by ATVs, where they were joined by John Kuksuk, Margaret Angakkaaq and Peter Iootna for the boat trip to Turquitel.

A strong wind blew in during their first day camping, so they decided to move to another area. They had to move quickly because Johnny had phoned for the forecast and learned the weather was about to become much worse.

After spotting a safe area, tents were pitched and tea starting to boil when Johnny decided they should head to the safety of the cove at Koovik.

But the weather turned bad much too quickly and the group had to retreat to a spot only a short distance from where they'd just left.

But, they tried to make the best of the situation by picking

When evening came, Saittuq went for a walk.

Detrick grabbed the binoculars and went out to look around shortly after she left.

Saittuq saw a pile of willow sticks and started towards them, unaware death was closing in on her.

Detrick felt fear grip his heart when he first saw the grizzly moving in on her.

He whistled to alert her and ran for his rifle.

Saittuq was puzzled by Detrick's action and started to walk back to the tent, still unaware of the danger. Johnny saw Detrick running and, when he looked towards Saittuq, spotted the grizzly.

He ran for his rifle and started after Detrick.

He quickly passed his son, running towards Saittuq who was between them and the grizzly.

As Agnes and Angakkaaq yelled and waved their arms for Saittuq to hurry, Detrick and Johnny were facing down the bear at close range.

Johnny kept aim on the bear as Detrick knelt to load his rifle.

With only 7 metres separating them, the bear rose on its hind legs before Detrick squeezed his trigger and brought the saga to a close.

The group took the bear back to Arviat, thankful to be able to tell the tale.