Smoking Hills

The Smoking Hills on the east side of Cape Bathurst in the Northwest Territories are coastal cliffs where hydrocarbon-bearing layers such as sulfur-rich lignite and oil shale have ignited naturally and burned for centuries. First recorded by explorer John Franklin in 1826, the persistent fires are sustained as erosion exposes fresh mineral strata, while iron-rich materials turn parts of the landscape red. The smoke and sulfur dioxide have transformed nearby tundra ponds and surrounding soils, creating highly acidic, metal-rich waters unlike neighboring Arctic alkaline ponds. About 105 kilometers east, Paulatuk, traditionally Paulatuuq, means place of coal, reflecting this mineral-rich coast.

Northwest Territories · Canada