Baffin Island

Baffin Island is in the Canadian territory of Nunavut, located in Arctic Ocean of Northern Canada. It is the largest island in Canada and the fifth largest island in the world. Its area is 507,451 km2 (195,928 sq mi) and its population is about 11,000 (2007 estimate). Named after English explorer William Baffin.

Baffin Island is extremely remote, with most of the island's population living in the capital Iqaluit. Baffin Island offers visitors such unique experiences as viewing polar bear, the Northern Lights, and kayaking between ice flows.

Baffin Bay and Davis Strait, to the east, are often open during the summer, but the western side is typically closed by ice year-round. The topography of the island is highly varied, ranging from the most rugged mountains to the flattest lowlands of the Canadian Arctic.

The highest peak of Baffin Island is Tete Blanche (7,074 ft./2156 m). However, perhaps the most famous is Mount Asgard (6598 ft./2011 m). The best climbing is June through August, during which the rock is relatively snow-free, and a few weeks of fair weather are possible.

Polar bears can be found all along the coast of Baffin Island.

Nunavut's capital, Iqaluit is located on Baffin Island.