Auyuittuq National Park, National park in Qikiqtaaluk Region, Canada
Auyuittuq National Park is a protected area on Baffin Island's Cumberland Peninsula featuring fjords, glaciers and the expansive Penny Ice Cap. The terrain covers more than 21,000 square kilometers (8,100 square miles) of Arctic wilderness with deep valleys running between tall granite peaks.
The area was created in 1972 as Baffin Island National Park and received its current name in 1976. Full national park status was reached only in 2000 after land claims with Inuit communities were settled.
The name comes from Inuktitut and means "the land that never melts", referring to how ice covers the terrain year-round. Inuit have traveled through these valleys and passes for thousands of years, leaving behind traces of seasonal camps and travel routes.
All visitors must register at Parks Canada offices in Pangnirtung or Qikiqtarjuaq and complete a safety briefing before entering. Most hikers need several days to cross the main valleys, with trekking poles and waterproof gear essential for river crossings and changing conditions.
Mount Thor in the park shows the highest vertical rock face on Earth with a 1,250-meter (4,100-foot) drop. Nearby Mount Asgard has an 800-meter (2,600-foot) vertical granite wall and was used in a James Bond film for a parachute jump scene.
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