In Fort Simpson, the weather is still not cold enough to open the community's ice rink. Young athletes in the community say they are struggling to adapt.

Wildfire smoke has been blasting much of the N.W.T. lately, with air quality advisories in nearly every community Tuesday morning. Meanwhile, much of the territory is also coping with record-breaking heat.

Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) has issued heat warnings for Yellowknife and many communities in the South Slave, Sahtu and Beaufort Delta regions — where day time temperatures near 30 C and overnight lows near 20 C are expected in the coming days. People are urged to seek out air conditioned spaces to seek relief.

This is Hay River's warmest May 3 in 125 years. The previous record high was set in 1898.Temperatures in the community reached 30 C, three degrees warmer than the previous record high for the day. Overall, the southwestern N.W.T. is experiencing an abnormally warm spring. "We're talking, eight to up to 20 degrees above normal," said Jesse Wagar, a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada.

Newspaper of record for Nunavut, and the Nunavik territory of Quebec

In Yellowknife, the territorial capital, temperatures climbed above zero over the weekend, breaking a record high on Sunday with a temperature of 3 C.

From the thickness of the ice to moose migration and pelt quality, hunters and trappers say the late arrival of cold weather in the N.W.T. is "going to have effects, down the line."