Skip to main content

Site Banner Ads

Site Search

Search

Up Here Publishing

Mobile Toggle

Utility navigation

  • Shop
  • Contact Us

Social Links

Facebook Twitter Instagram

Search Toggle

Search

Main navigation

  • Magazines
    • Latest Issue
    • Past Issues
    • Up Here Business
    • YK Guide
    • Move Up Here
  • Sections
    • People & Places
    • Arts & Lifestyle
    • History & Culture
    • Travel & Tourism
    • Nature & Science
    • Northern Jobs
  • Newsletters
  • Community Map
  • Contests
    • Arctic Adventure Sweepstakes
  • Subscribe
    • Magazine
    • Digital Edition

A Champion Of The North

October/November 2018

Meet Pangnirtung’s Amka Aliyak—Marvel’s newest superhero, Snowguard

By Jessica Davey-Quantick

COURTESY JIM ZUB/LINE ART SEAN IZAAKSE, COLOURS MARCO MENYZ, MARVEL COMICS

COURTESY JIM ZUB/LINE ART SEAN IZAAKSE, COLOURS MARCO MENYZ © MARVEL COMICS

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. A Champion Of The North

It’s been a busy year for 16-year-old Amka Aliyak—better known as Marvel superhero, Snowguard—who in April joined the Champions, a crime-fighting squad, alongside Spider-Man and the Hulk. Up Here was lucky to catch up with Snowguard when she wasn’t busy fighting bad guys, thanks to the help of comic book writer Jim Zub and Nunavut-born virtual-reality artist Nyla Innuksuk, who have brought her story to the world.

Up Here : What’s it like to be a superhero?

Amka Aliyak: My friends and family are still trying to get used to it. To be honest, I am too. Don’t get me wrong, it’s great and really exciting, but I just want to do a good job and not embarrass myself, you know? The community seems really happy. Some school kids have sent me handwritten letters asking how my powers work or what my favourite foods are. It’s cute.

UH: Let’s talk about your powers. Who gave them to you? What can you do?

AA: I rescued a great spirit of the North named Sila and they gave me some of their energy, which turned me into...well, I guess into a superhero, though it sounds a bit weird saying it out loud. But, it’s true.

Sila’s energy connects me to nature so I can sense the soul of the land, the earth, and the air. It connects me to wildlife and even the plants around me. I’m still figuring out exactly how it works, but I can change my shape to become an animal—so far I’ve been a wolf, an owl, an eagle, a bear and a couple weird animal combinations too.

I can make the Northern lights appear anywhere I go, and use that light to create visions of almost anything I can imagine. No one would mistake those light illusions for real things, but they’re a good way to show people stuff I’ve seen or enhance the stories I tell.

UH: Is it important for kids in the North to see a hero like you?

AA: I think so. I feel a lot of responsibility and don’t want to let anyone down. Heroes don’t just come from America and they’re not always from big cities. Everyone needs to know they can be a hero, no matter who they are or where they’re from.

UH: Do you always feel like a superhero with superpowers? Or do you have doubts?

AA: Sometimes, when I’m flying through the air or fighting bad guys, I wonder how this all happened and where my life is going. I get scared, just like anybody else. Sila’s energy flows through me, but it doesn’t change who I am deep down. I’m still Amka Aliyak, a 16-year-old Inuk girl doing the best she can.

UH: What was it like to come back to Pangnirtung after spending time in the south?

AA: It was harder than I thought it would be. I didn't realize how much I'd missed it until I was there and realized that months had gone by and people's lives were continuing on without me. I'm having my adventures and they're doing their thing too.

I'm famous in Pang, but I'm still me. My cousins still give me a hard time and my Mom is still my Mom. That never changes. I try to help out more and use my powers to keep the community safe, but I also just want to spend time seeing friends and hanging out like I used to.

UH: Did people in the south understand what your life is like in Pangnirtung?

AA: I get the impression they thought we all lived in iglus and had snow all year round, but that's a pretty common misconception, even with people who live in Canada. People tend to ignore the North.

I've been showing the Champions photos and telling them stories, getting them up to date. I want to show them that, although there are some cultural differences, we have a lot in common too. Kids are kids and teens are teens, wherever you go, right?

UH: Who have been your role models?

AA: My uncle told me stories of Silap Inua when I was young. He taught me a lot about doing what's right and keeping your word. My mom has always believed in me and encouraged me to do what I think is right, no matter what anyone else thinks.

Beyond that, I grew up seeing Alpha Flight, Canada's superhero team, on TV, and I thought they were really cool. I call myself "Snowguard" as a nod to two of my favorite Alpha Flight heroes— "Snowbird" and "Guardian." I hope they don't mind.

October/November 2018

Bear Aware

The hair necessities of tracking grizzlies on the tundra

By Elaine Anselmi

Photo Courtesy Diavik Diamond Mines

May 17th, 2022 May 17th, 2022

October/November 2018

Lorraine Raymond and James Harry on the steps of the John Wayne Kiktorak Centre. “Once we’re out of here, I’m going to work my ass off to keep us out of here,” says Harry. “Right now, a priority is finding a place to stay. And getting a ring for her.”

Coming In From The Cold

Inside an Arctic emergency warming shelter

By Weronika Murray

Photos by Weronika Murray

May 17th, 2022 May 17th, 2022

Related Articles

Up Here Magazine - May/June 2022

A promotional shot of Open Pit Theatre's "Radio Silence."

Wordless Wonder

A new mask and puppetry show out of Whitehorse gives the Yukon’s aviation history a decidedly whimsical twist.

May 17th, 2022 May 17th, 2022

Up Here Magazine - May/June 2022

NuBrew offers a sample of some of their craft beer.

A Thirst for the Craft

From pleasing the Budweiser crowd to craft brew lovers who crave the newest and punchiest beers, Northern brewers face the tall task of making everyone happy.

May 17th, 2022 May 17th, 2022

Up Here Magazine - May/June 2022

Yellowknife hosts a farmers' market every summer with fresh vegetables on hand.

It's Not Easy Eating Green

Across the globe, veganism is seen as an ethical choice aligned with saving the environment. But in the North, bringing up fresh vegetables and niche items createsa large carbon footprint, while hunting and fishing provides locally harvested game for food insecure communities. Is veganism the right choice for the planet in the North? It depends.

May 17th, 2022 May 17th, 2022

Up Here Magazine - March/April 2022

Iqaluit residents filling up water buckets.

Iqaluit’s Water Crisis

When the tap water in Nunavut’s capital became unsafe to use, community members swung into action to help those in need.

May 17th, 2022 May 17th, 2022

Up Here Magazine - March/April 2022

Arsaniq Deer modelling her tattoos and gold paint

Golden Girls

With glimmering paint and her artist’s eye, Cora DeVos reminds Inuit women of their beauty and resiliency.

May 17th, 2022 May 17th, 2022

January/February 2022

Inhabit Media founders.

Telling Northern Tales

Where publishing options are limited, writers take matters into their own hands and get resourceful when it comes to sharing their stories.

May 17th, 2022 May 17th, 2022
November 2nd, 2018 July 15th, 2020
Newsletter sign-up promo image.

Stay in Touch.

Our weekly newsletter brings all the best circumpolar stories right to your inbox.

Up Here magazine cover

Subscribe Now

Our magazine showcases award-winning writing and spectacular northern photos.

Subscribe

Footer Navigation

  • Advertise With Us
  • Work With Us
  • Write for Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Disclaimers & Legal

Contact Information

Up Here Publishing
4510-50th Ave., Ste. 102
Yellowknife, NT
X1A 1B9  Canada
Phone: 867.766.6710
Fax: 867.669.0626
Email: editor@uphere.ca

Social Links

Facebook Twitter Instagram
Funded by the Government of Canada