Lake · Canada
Baker Lake
Baker Lake is a big lake on the tundra of Nunavut in northern Canada, about 150 km west of Hudson Bay. Its Inuktitut name, Qamani'tuaq, means 'where the river widens'.
Picture credit: Ansgar Walk (CC BY-SA 2.5) · Freddie,Oovayuk (CC BY 3.0) · Wikimedia Commons
Where is Baker Lake?
Countries on its shores: Canada.
Middle of the lake: 64.18° N, 95.45° W
The story behind it
Baker Lake lies in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut. Its water surface measures 1 783 km²; counting its islands, it covers about 1 887 km². Although it is far from the sea, its surface is only 2 metres above sea level. The Thelon River flows in from the west and the Kazan River from the south. The lake empties through two wide channels into Chesterfield Inlet, a long, narrow arm of Hudson Bay. At the western end, near the mouth of the Thelon River, lies the hamlet of Baker Lake. It is the only inland community in Nunavut; all the others lie on the coast. An 8 km road leads from the village to a monument that marks the geographic centre of Canada. Big herds of caribou roam the land around the lake, together with muskoxen, Arctic hares, wolves and geese, and lake trout swim in its water.
Find it on the globe
Baker Lake is there as a small blue dot with its name, right on the water. From far away the planet is only a blue ball; detail arrives as you zoom in, and this one appears once you are close enough. Open it on the globe.
It sits at its real coordinates, not near them — the same numbers listed in the facts above. Switch off the layer for this kind of place and it disappears again; the buttons for that are down the right-hand edge.
Questions children ask
How big is Baker Lake?
Its water surface is 1 783 km². Together with its islands, the lake covers about 1 887 km².
Where does the water of Baker Lake go?
It flows out through two wide channels into Chesterfield Inlet. This long, narrow bay leads to Hudson Bay.
What is special about the village of Baker Lake?
It is the only community in Nunavut that is not on the coast. Close by stands a monument marking the geographic centre of Canada.
Where these numbers come from
Every figure on this page was checked against public reference sources before publication. Where sources genuinely disagree, the text says so.
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