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Good morning, Thunder Bay — and welcome to issue one hundred and forty-eight. Mainly sunny, with a high of 7°C. It's Monday, and it's election day: polling places and online voting both close at 8 p.m. In today's issue: first-time voters and the last hours of voting, a Highway 11/17 walk over nuclear waste transport as a federal comment period closes, the Thunderwolves' second straight overtime win, and a new wildfire training model for First Nations. Plus eight things to do through Friday.
In this Harbour Beat Issue…
Trivia: A honey fungus in Oregon's Malheur National Forest is often cited as one of the biggest living organisms on Earth. About how much ground does it cover — roughly 10 square kilometres, 100, or 1,000? (Answer at the bottom!)
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Thunder Bay Events
From election day and a JUNO winner at Magnus to a country night, a Mediterranean guitarist and free open-mic comedy, here's what's on through Friday.
Monday, October 26
OCT 26 · 2026 Municipal Election Day — 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; online voting also closes at 8 p.m. · 📍 Your ward's polling place, named on your Voter Information Letter · Questions? Call the voter help line at 807-622-VOTE (8683). · 📅 Add to Calendar
Tuesday, October 27
OCT 27 · Hawksley Workman Duo — 6:30 p.m., tickets $53.85 · 📍 Magnus Theatre, 10 Algoma St. S. · The JUNO Award-winning singer-songwriter brings an evening of theatrical glam and indie rock. · 📅 Add to Calendar
OCT 27 · Free public lecture: Chronicling McVicar Creek Through Art — 7:30 to 9 p.m., free · 📍 Thunder Bay Museum, 425 Donald St. E. · Betty Carpick presents "A Record of Time" in the museum's 2026–27 lecture series. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Wednesday, October 28
OCT 28 · Owen Riegling — 7:30 p.m. · 📍 Thunder Bay Community Auditorium, 1 Paul Shaffer Dr. · The country singer-songwriter and 2022 Boots & Hearts competition winner plays the Auditorium. · 📅 Add to Calendar
OCT 28 · Catch the Ace at The Proz — draw at 7 p.m., $5 per ticket · 📍 Westfort Prosvita, 721 West Gore St. · Weekly charity draw; tickets are sold at the bar through the week and you don't need to be there to win. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Thursday, October 29
OCT 29 · Pavlo — 7:30 p.m., tickets from $64 · 📍 Thunder Bay Community Auditorium, 1 Paul Shaffer Dr. · The award-winning instrumental Mediterranean guitarist and recording artist in concert. · 📅 Add to Calendar
OCT 29 · Open Mic Comedy Thursdays at Campfire Comedy — doors 7 p.m., sign-ups 7:30, show 8 to 10 p.m., no cover · 📍 117 Cumberland St. N. · Weekly open-mic night with touring comedians and rising stars, open to newcomers. · 📅 Add to Calendar
Friday, October 30
OCT 30 · Friday live music at Bar Polonia — 8 to 11 p.m., $10 cover · 📍 Polish Combatants' Association Branch No. 1, 209 N. Cumberland St. · Weekly live music night; everyone is welcome, call 807-345-1861. · 📅 Add to Calendar
✅ NO WEATHER ALERTS IN EFFECT
Environment Canada has no alerts posted for Thunder Bay at the time of this update. Monday looks mainly sunny and cold, with a wind chill near −8 overnight.
☀️ Monday, October 26 — Thunder Bay
7°C
Overnight low −4°C
Mainly sunny, with a high of 7°C and a low UV index of 2. Clear overnight, becoming partly cloudy in the evening, with a low near −4°C and a wind chill of about −8.
Tuesday is cloudy with a 60 per cent chance of rain and a high of 7°C. Wednesday is a mix of sun and cloud with a 60 per cent chance of rain and a high of 14°C. Thursday is sunny with a high of 11°C. Forecast from Environment Canada.
Newcomers cast their first Thunder Bay ballots as voting wraps up at 8 p.m.
Several residents who are new to Thunder Bay will be casting their first municipal ballots today. Naila Ghazi, a wellness navigator at the Thunder Bay Multicultural Association, told CBC she hopes the next council focuses on affordable housing, public transportation, safety and services for newcomers and families. Mark Haldar, who manages End of the Roll Flooring Centres and has lived in the city for two years, says voting for the first time feels "very special" and that he wants candidates with realistic plans who will be accountable and listen. If you haven't voted yet, polling places and online voting both close at 8 p.m. tonight; the City's voter help line is 807-622-VOTE (8683).
🗳️ Your call: Have you voted in the municipal election?
Have you voted in the municipal election?
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Hundreds walk Highway 11/17 as the nuclear waste comment period closes
Hundreds of people walked along Highway 11/17 toward McVicar Creek on Saturday for a water ceremony, in a gathering organized by the Indigenous-led collective Niniibawtamin Anishinaabe Aki. Co-organizer Sarah Siska said the route was chosen to show how close the proposed transportation corridor for used nuclear fuel would run to Thunder Bay and its waterways, and that the project would mean about two trucks a day for at least 50 years. The Nuclear Waste Management Organization is proposing a deep geological repository between Ignace and Dryden, and the organizers say Fort William First Nation has passed band council resolutions opposing the transport and storage. The federal comment period on whether the project should be designated a project of national interest closes today.
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Thunderwolves sweep Windsor with a second straight overtime win
For the second straight night, Lakehead's men's hockey team gave the Fort William Gardens crowd extra hockey and sent them home happy. Caden Drury scored the overtime winner in the final minute of the three-on-three extra frame on Saturday, giving the Thunderwolves a 4-3 win over the Windsor Lancers and a weekend sweep. The win evened the OUA team's record at 2-2-0.
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A new wildfire training model aims to build First Nations' own capacity
At Kab Lake Lodge in Gull Bay, 25 recruits from communities across Northern Ontario took part in a new wildfire training model between Sept. 28 and Oct. 2. It is designed so First Nations can train and support each other. Lead instructor Simón Bermudez of Carmanah Wildfire, a partner of the International Wildfire Alliance, says the aim is to give communities more wildfire knowledge so they are better prepared if an emergency comes, not to turn them into instant firefighters. Experienced firefighters will lead the work until the model can become fully Indigenous-led.
Meme of the Day
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Trivia answer: Roughly 10 square kilometres. The honey fungus (Armillaria ostoyae) spreads underground across about 9.6 square kilometres of the forest, and it is thought to be thousands of years old.
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