How Inuit Knowledge and Tasiujaq Could Rewrite Canada’s Tide Map

In Tasiujaq, people have always known the tides are high. You can see it in the fast current where Leaf Basin narrows, in the thick bands of seaweed that line the rocks, in the way boats move when the water rises and falls. When the tide goes out, it reveals stretches of seabed that seem to go on forever, dotted with rocks. And when it comes in, it rushes back with force, changing the whole landscape.

For many in the North, these tides are just part of life. But now, Inuit divers and researchers are putting that knowledge into numbers and the results may soon change how all of Canada sees our coastline.

Thanks to data collected by community members in Tasiujaq, it has been proven that Leaf Basin has the highest tides in the world, even higher than the famous Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia. That would mean a big change in how maps, books, and tourism guides describe the natural wonders of this country.

But for the people doing the work, it’s not just about records. It’s about reclaiming what they already knew and showing the power of Inuit knowledge. In September 2025, Makivvik put out a press release with the headline: “Leaf Bay Tide Research Project Proves Once Again World’s Highest Tide.” The announcement came after a year-long effort based in Tasiujaq to record the exact height of the tide in Leaf Basin. It was a quiet project, without much media attention, but the resulting numbers were big.

In 2024, Makivvik’s Department of Wildlife, Environment and Research (DEWR) organized training for a group of local divers, to install scientific equipment on the sea floor and collect it again after a full year. Two gauges were placed far apart near the mouth of the Leaf River. These measured the water’s rise and fall through every tide of the year.

When the data was collected and checked this past August, the numbers showed a maximum vertical tidal range of 16.81 metres, notably higher than the known readings at Burntcoat Head in the Bay of Fundy. The official Canadian Hydrographic Service measurement for Burntcoat Head is 16.42 metres. This confirms what Elders in Tasiujaq and nearby communities have said for generations: these Northern tides are extreme.

Tasiujaq’s James May captained the boat used to install and collect the sensors. Speaking on the water in 2024, he said he’s familiar with the stretch between the town and the deployment site and knows from experience it’s a place where the water really moves.

As a fisherman, he sees what the high tides bring in. “It’s different, hard to explain. But you notice the species that show up only during those big tides. Mussels, clams, seaweed, they’re all part of it.”

Does it matter to him whether the tides here are officially the highest in the world?

“Yes, I think it’s important that it’s recognized, he said. “Nunavik is unique, just like the North. People always talk about polar bears or muskox, the usual tourist stuff, but not many come here just to see the tide. I don’t think they realize that there’s such amazement when it comes to newcomers seeing the tides.”

He’s seen how visitors react. “A lot of people don’t expect to see that much of a difference. It’s not just the water rising and falling. It’s the ice, the tidal currents, even tidal rapids.”

Still, it means something different when it’s measured, recorded, and shown to the world.

Behind the headlines is the hard work of people in the community. The tide project didn’t start with perfect conditions. It took patience, training, and a second try.

The first year, Makivvik brought in instructors and gear to train divers from Tasiujaq. But the compressor had to be upgraded, and the training didn’t go well. “It was a bit of a disaster,” said Adamie Delisle Alaku, Makivvik’s Vice President of Environment, Wildlife, and Research. “But we didn’t give up.”

Instead, they sent four participants to Nova Scotia in 2025 to complete cold-water dive training in a better environment. Three of them completed the full certification, including James May, Charlie Angnatuk, and Lazarusie Angnatuk.

Laz Angnatuk remembers his first dive in Tasiujaq in 2024. “The first time in the water it was hard to balance at first. It’s the weights. I’m not used to swimming with them, so I was tilting on one side, but I got the hang of it,” he said. “The most challenging thing was getting the water out of the mask because we have to blow the water out when we’re in the water and the water kept trying to go up my nostrils.”

These divers became the core team for retrieving and redeploying the tide gauges and will be responsible for their maintenance going forward. It’s risky work, but the team takes it seriously. Makivvik is currently working on training three more locals that have showed interest after the success of this study.

This isn’t the first time people have talked about the world’s highest tides being in Nunavik. In fact, there was a time when it was already official.

In 1953, a Canadian government report recorded a tidal range of 18 metres in Leaf Basin, making it into the Guinness Book of World Records. But over time, the Bay of Fundy became better known, with more tourism and more measurements, while Leaf Basin was mostly forgotten by outside researchers.

In June 2001, the Nunavik Tourism Association, along with consultant Dave DeWolfe embarked on a tidal study in the vicinity of Nuvukutaak (Gauge Point), a few miles out from Tasiujaq, the same site used for measurements taken by the Canadian Hydrographic Service in 1953.

Over a year later, the two instruments were recovered and the tidal data collected was analyzed and compared with previous measurements made in the Leaf Basin, as well as in the Bay of Fundy. In an October 2002 report, results showed that even though the tides of Tasiujaq and the Bay of Fundy are considered to be equivalent because of the very small difference in the results, the then highest measured tide had been recorded in the Leaf Basin of Tasiujaq on March 31, 2002, at 16.1 metres.

But people still equate the world’s highest tides with the Bay of Fundy. That’s why the new 2024–2025 readings are so important. They are complete, recorded with modern equipment, and they were collected with help from local Inuit.

“This time, we did it right,” said Oumer Ahmed, of Makivvik’s DEWR who oversaw the project, again using consultant Dave DeWolfe. “Everything worked. And the data is solid.”

He said the full data is now with the Canadian Hydrographic Service, the government agency that officially tracks tides and ocean conditions. They will double-check the accuracy before confirming the record.

Some newspapers in the South have already picked up the story. In September 2025, The Guardian published an article titled: “Whose tide is highest? Canadian towns battle it out over Guinness World Record title.”

It described the situation like a competition between the Bay of Fundy and Nunavik. Some people from Nova Scotia have defended their title, saying they believe their tides are still the biggest.

Delisle Alaku says that’s expected. “They’ll try to say it’s not real, or not measured the right way,” he said. Anecdotally, while joining the Nunavik Tourism Association in New Brunswick in October for a tide festival, Delisle Alaku said there were many heated debates on world’s highest tide title.

“On one occasion a tour bus operator said, ‘Until I see raw data and proof I will not be dismissed.’ So, I showed him our research data and he answered, ‘Yeah, but we have the Moon!’”

Based on local knowledge, the sensors were redeployed in a slightly different location this August, to attempt measuring even higher tide levels. Makivvik will continue recording the measurements, with the help of the local divers. There’s also talk of building a real-time tide display in the community, so people can see the water levels change live, and visitors can understand what’s happening beneath their feet.

Makivvik President Pita Aatami said this project is about more than numbers, it’s about reclaiming knowledge and creating opportunity.

“The Leaf Basin tidal study confirms what our Elders have always known: that Nunavik is home to some of the world’s most extraordinary tides,” he said. “This knowledge strengthens our vision for the future: to protect our environment and way of life, while also harnessing these natural wonders to create meaningful tourism opportunities, showcase our unique culture, and generate lasting economic benefits for communities across Nunavik.”

Right now, thousands of people go to the Bay of Fundy every year to walk on tidal flats and take pictures of dramatic tides. If the world’s highest tides are officially in Tasiujaq, that could bring new visitors, jobs, and awareness to the region.

Delisle Alaku said the tides are another of many natural features for Nunavik to be proud of.

“This adds to the list of items that we want to showcase to the world,” he said. “We have beautiful wildlife, we have world class scenery, mountains, and we have national parks. This just this adds to the list of wonders that are there to be seen and to be discovered in Nunavik.”