A Day in the Life – Working at York Factory

For the Wapusk Resource Conservation Team, no two days are ever the same. When going to one of the most remote national parks in Canada begins to feel a little too commonplace, a trip to a York Factory is an exciting opportunity. A remote piece of Canadian history, visitors to the site must arrive by helicopter, boat, canoe or kayak to experience the wealth of relics and stories found on the shore of the Hayes River.

A massive white three-storey Hudson’s Bay Company building standing solitary on vast, empty tundra makes a great office-for-a-day for Nicole Rogowsky, Visitor Safety and Fire Operations Coordinator.

Factory jobs

A day at York Factory comes with an interesting set of roles and responsibilities. Assisting with maintenance, performing visitor safety duties and polar bear guarding were all on the docket. Like its subarctic neighbour Wapusk National Park, work at York Factory requires the vigilant eye of a polar bear guard when outside. This can be when walking between buildings and fenced areas, grass cutting or during inspections at the visitor compound.

Essential to work in the subarctic, polar bear guards are trained to ensure the safety of the team by constantly surveying the surrounding areas for bears that may wander onto the site. This way, the group can move to safety should the need arise.

Indoors at York Factory, Nicole had the unique and surreal experience of working on a laptop in a building that was constructed more than 180 years ago. While physically isolated from the nearest towns (160 kilometres from Gillam and 250 km from Churchill), satellite technology keeps them connected to the outside world.

A workday with a view

The workday isn’t complete without waking up to a foggy landscape or watching the river rise and fall with the Hudson Bay tide throughout the day, creating a truly special experience.

The area surrounding York Factory contains wetlands, trees and willows, and is a transition zone from boreal forest into the tundra. After leaving York Factory and returning to Churchill, the next day may be totally different! The Wapusk Resource Conservation Team may find themselves traversing one of Wapusk’s 10,000 thermokarst lakes, solving aquatic mysteries using eDNA or corralling a gaggle of geese.