Risky Ice Conditions for Whaling

Observation: Ice conditions prevent whale harvesting due to consistent westerly winds pushed sea ice shore-ward this spring creating a whaling season without open water and limited opportunity for the whaling crews to hunt. Also frustrating was the poor ice conditions which consisted of young ice that would not support a whale for butchering and transport, and made for risky travelling on the ice. A whale was finally caught on June 27, 2013 in Barrow, and the whale was butchered on land, as opposed to on the ice as usually done in the spring. We are concerned about a combination of unusual wind and ice conditions and the effect on spring whaling. Heather Dingman