The islands in the area of the magnetic north pole are very low, with the land rarely rising to more than 450 ft above sea level. For the melting snow and ice in summer, the distance to the sea is short, and so are the rivers. All lakes and rivers freeze over during the winter, but are generally ice-free during the summer, except for some in the Far North that may retain their ice cover. Permafrost prevents infiltration of river water into the ground and this contributes to rapid runoff of fresh water each summer.

Icebergs are numerous in the coastal waters along the Baffin Bay coast. The largest ones stem from tidewater glaciers on Greenland. After breaking off from the glaciers, the icebergs drift north with the West Greenland current and, as it turns at the head of the Bay, flow south along the Canadian side. Some eventually reach the Grand Banks off Newfoundland, more than 2,175 miles to the south.