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Interest is growing about how groundwater supplies will shift in warming northern terrains. We evaluated the seasonal and spatial pattern of groundwater flow in a wet meadow bordered by a late-lying snowbed and tundra ponds at Polar Bear Pass, Bathurst Island (75.7°N, 98.7°W). A water budget approach signalled the relative importance of groundwater inflow to tundra ponds. Groundwater flow across the wet meadow was estimated using a modified Darcy's equation, which requires information on both water and frost tables, and hydraulic conductivity. These data were obtained from 2007 to 2009 along a series of water wells extending from a late-lying snowbed across the wet meadow to a nearby study pond. Groundwater fluxes across the wet meadow were limited in magnitude and duration in a warm/dry year (2007), when the late-lying snowbed was the main external water source, a response differing from rainy/cool years (2008 and 2009). Overall, seasonal water budgets indicate that groundwater fluxes were minimal in the wet meadow and an adjacent tundra pond. Late-lying snowbeds play a limited role in sustaining wet meadows and ponds here. Summer precipitation and evaporation continue to drive wet meadow and tundra pond hydrological response in low-gradient wetlands, especially in the post-snowmelt season. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]