Rankin Inlet (July 19/06) - Patrick Karlik had his pick of the litter. Well, make that the herd.

The Rankin Inlet hunter was among dozens who made a beeline towards the tundra last week as thousands of caribou passed through the area on their annual march south.

Dozens of hunters from Rankin Inlet filled their freezers with caribou meat after thousands of the animals crossed the Meliadine River last week, some just 10km from the hamlet. - Andrew Raven/NNSL photo

"There were so many," Karlik said July 12 with a freshly-butchered bull lashed to his Honda. "I was able to get really close (and) pick the one I wanted."

News of the caribou sparked a hunting bonanza; an almost never-ending train of Hondas and trucks plied the gravel road that leads from Rankin to the tundra.

The animals were spotted last Tuesday afternoon near a recreation area about 15 kilometres from Rankin. The next morning, a group of roughly 2,000 mostly females and calves crossed the Meliadine River valley, coming within 10 km of the hamlet. By the afternoon, what hunters described as "thousands and thousands" more, poured through the valley, touching off a harvesting fest.

"It was a little bit crazy out there," said Karlik.

"There were people everywhere. I hope that nobody gets shot."

Picture takers, tourists and kids joined hunters on the gravel road that extends from Rankin. And while gun blasts rang throughout the valley, there were no reports of accidental shootings.

Wesley Innukshuk, a member of the Rankin Hunters and Trappers Association, said the caribou could be coming from the Baker Lake area.

He believes they were heading towards the blustery Hudson Bay coast to escape mosquitoes and other flies.

There were reports another herd would be passing through the area over the weekend.

"People are happy," said Innukshuk. "We (missed) the taste of caribou meat."

While dozens of hunters filled their Hondas with meat, the harvest could have been greater. Elders recommended limiting the catch to two animals per person because of problems with the community freezer, Innukshuk said.

"I would have had four of them," he told Kivalliq News. "(The elders) didn't want the meat to go to waste."

The freezer has been on the fritz for three or four months, Innukshuk said.