Every year in the fall, polar bears converge on the small town of Churchill in Manitoba, Canada. They wait in Churchill until the water in Hudson Bay freezes so they can begin their winter journey out on the ice to hunt for food. The Trip Nahnook Took is a story about a young polar bear's life after leaving his mother at age two and a half as is the tradition among polar bears when they become adults. Nahnook begins his first hunting season alone waiting on the tundra until the ice forms. Nahnook encounters many other animals on his travels during his first winter on his own. Some interesting polar bear facts: Polar bears are the largest bears in the world; males can stand ten feet tall and weigh 1,400 pounds. Polar bears can swim up to one hundred miles. Polar bears can run twenty-five miles per hour and swim six miles per hour. Polar bears can smell prey one mile away. Polar bears' front feet can be as wide as twelve inches. Their front feet are used for paddling, and rear feet are used as rudders for turning when they swim.