Into The Northwest Passage

Greenland & The Canadian Arctic Aug 27 - Sept 12 2024

I was not supposed to be on this voyage, but at the last minute, the Royal Canadian Geographical Society reached out to see if I was able to join Adventure Canada on their "Into The Northwest Passage" voyage. I had a hole in my schedule, so I jumped at the opportunity, despite only having about 4 days or so to prepare.   Many thanks to the expedition team, crew and passengers aboard the Ocean Endeavour. I had a great time, and I hope to be back on board again soon.   This was my 4th time visiting Greenland (the 2nd time this summer!) and also the 2nd time that I've gone through the Northwest Passage. The last time was back in 2013, on a different ship.

2024 08 27 - Toronto To Kangerlussuaq

Day 1 -Yesterday there was a registration & orientation session at one of the airport hotels in Toronto where I met up with the expedition team. Afterwards, I went home, then it was right back to the airport to catch the charter flight this morning.   When I went to check in, they accidentally had the wrong name on my boarding pass. I didn't even notice until after security. It was obviously a mistake, and as it turns out, I wasn't even listed as a passenger on the list. Obviously because I was such a last minute addition to this trip. We got it worked out eventually, and I was allowed on the plane for the 4 hour flight to Greenland.   Once we landed, we got onto busses and made a stop at the police station, where an officer got on and stamped our passports. We then went to the dock and took Zodiacs out to the ship. The last time I was on board the Ocean Endeavour was when Mark Robinson and I went to Sable Island in June 2016 as part of a filming trip for The Weather Network. Because of the time zone difference, we arrived late, and after the mandatory lifeboat drill, we were finally able to have dinner at around 11:00 at night. A long day, but it's great to be back in Greenland yet again.

2024 08 28 - Sisimiut

Day 2 - Grey and rainy, about 8 degrees. There was ship already in the dock space, so we had to take Zodiacs ashore. It rained pretty much the whole time we were in Sisimiut, but that's O.K.. I wandered around town, went to the museum & church, then took a walking tour with a young local woman, and visited some parts of town I've never been to before. During that, I took a side trip into the local butcher shop where there were bins of various meats & organs. There were no labels, other than prices. I figured it was mostly reindeer, but found out later that it was actually mostly seal meat.   Back at the museum, I went over to the “Taste Of” area that had been set up to have some of the local delicacies including musk ox sausage, crab, shrimp, minke whale (smoked & raw), and something I haven't had before… Seal soup. Not sure what kind of seal, (likely bearded or ringed seal) but it was good.   Filmmaker & expedition team member, John Houston shows up with a bag of seal meat from the same butcher shop I was at. He bought a whole bunch of seal and reindeer for an on-ship tasting he wanted to do. Included was some seal liver, which I look forward to trying raw. He actually had 2 bags of it, and he and I had a great chat as we walked back to the ship and waited at the dock for them to lower the gangway.   Sisimiut is a pretty town, with the typical Greenlandic style of corourfully painted houses. It is the only place we can currently dock, so we took on supplies, fresh water and fuel here today as well.

2024 08 29 - Akiliarusinnguaq (Nordre Isortoq)

Day 3 - We departed Sissimiut much later than we were supposed to yesterday (like 1:00A.M. or so), so that delay (from a German ship that didn't vacate our port space) that we were unable to reach our destination of Eqi Glacier today. Instead, we tucked into a fjord and anchored there. The plan was to go ashore and do some hiking. They had landed at a nearby spot before, but we ended up going to a different, never before landed site.   Before breakfast, the light was really good, with rays of golden light shining down into the fjord.   The day was a bit chaotic, what with all the last minute changes, but it went well. I went ashore for a “moderate hike” led by John Houston, and it was lovely. Soft moss to walk on, great views of the fjord, nearby lake, and surrounding mountains. We found reindeer scat, lots of antlers, & fur. The views were pretty great, and the weather was good.

2024 08 30 - Illulisat

Day 4 - Woke up early to overcast skies, but we were surrounded by icebergs. Of course lots of people were out on deck, as this was our first iceberg day of the trip, so everyone was taking pics. Illulisat is famous for its icebergs. In fact, the glacier in the ice fjord south of town is the most prolific iceberg producers in western Greenland.   Going ashore, it was pretty choppy in the Zodiacs, and the wind was picking up. I was in the first group to go ashore, and it was starting to get cold, waiting for some local tour boats to show up to take us to the icebergs. 7 of us got onto our boat, but the sea state was pretty gnarly now. We crashed through the waves as the boat heaved and bucked. There were some great bergs with multiple caves/caverns. Very photogenic, but the rain, wind and waves made it tough. A bunch of the boats gathered together in an area that was somewhat sheltered from the wind for a while.   As we headed back, the conditions worsened, and we were getting bashed around pretty violently now. I was keeping my eyes on the horizon the keep from getting seasick. The plan was to get off the boat, then take the bus to the Ice Fjord Centre. But as soon as we got off the boat, we were told that ALL operations had been canceled, and we were headed back to the ship. It was the right choice, for sure. Some of the other small boats had to turn around before even making it to the icebergs. The Zodiac ride back was a wet one.   One of the other ships in the area, a big one with 700+ passengers, had been in Illulisat for 2 days, and I heard that almost 200 of their people were stranded ashore and couldn't get back to their ship! I later found out that they likely used larger tenders to bring them back, but they were stuck for hours.   We eventually departed, but later I found out that someone had gotten a broken arm, and that we had turned around to bring her back to Illulisat to get off the ship for medical treatment. I don't know for sure, but suspect it was a fall in one of the tour boats.   After dinner, it even started to snow.

2024 08 31 - Disko Island

Day 5 - Skies were clear overnight, so I got up several times to look for northern lights. No luck. The snow from last night made the decks super slippery, and I almost fell a couple of times.   The 5:30 sunrise was very nice. Orange clouds over mountains with a fresh dusting of last night’s snow. We went ashore at about 7:00 at a hiking spot on Disko Island. I've d never been to this spot before, and it was great. The skies had cleared, and the sun was out. The hiking was great, along the very soft and spongy tundra, with so much moss, lichens, and other small plants. Renowned Canadian musician Barney Bentall was the polar bear guard on my hike.   What a difference a day makes, compared to yesterday’s windy chaos. I'm sure that everyone would have loved to have stayed longer, but we had to get going.   By 4:00, the weather had turned again with overcast skies and rain as we started to sail away from Greenland and out into Baffin Bay. Today was our last stop in Greenland.

2024 09 01 - Baffin Bay

Day 6 - Got up very early (5:30 ish) and was treated to a nice display of Earth shadow.   Because it was a sea day, there were a bunch of presentations and workshops. I went to a couple of them, but spent much of the day chilling and taking photos. There are quite a few journalists/travel writers on board, and I got to spend lunch with them. Cool folks.   The sea was crazy calm today, like glass. I couldn't believe it. I tried my hand at photographing some of the birds that were following the ship (with some success). The last time I crossed Baffin Bay, headed from Greenland to the Northwest Passage, back in 2013 the sea was incredibly stormy and rough. It couldn't be any more different this time.   At the evening gathering I gave a very short presentation on the Earth shadow we witness this morning. The sunset tonight was pretty great, some icebergs drifted past, and the sun behind the clouds made a face (pareidolia), complete with eyes and a smirk. After shooting that I went to the lounge where musician Barney Bentall was performing. He's really great, and a really nice guy too.

2024 09 02 - Pond Inlet

Day 7 - Woke up super early and was out on deck by 4:55 AM. A pretty nice sunrise, and nice pink light on the mountains and clouds of Baffin Island.   I have a presentation to give tonight, so I spent most of the morning finishing that up, then I went to watch one of the talks from Peter Soroye about biodiversity. During this time, the officials from Canadian immigration was on board, clearing us to enter Canada. They had to fly 2 guys from Thunder Bay-Toronto-Ottawa-Iqaluit-Pond Inlet to do this!! That’s crazy! There MUST be a better way.   After lunch we took Zodiacs ashore to town where we all went to the cultural centre for singing, dancing, Arctic Games demonstrations, and throat singing. We also dropped off 3 pallets worth of donated toys for Christmas presents. A couple of people outside of the cultural centre recognized me from TV, and we posed for some photos.   We all then took a guided walking tour of part of the town, up to a viewpoint, and over to the library where I ran into another person who recognized me. Levi was an Inuit guy from Arctic Bay who was trapped in town due to an airplane mechanical issue. He was super cool. We hung out, had some Bannock, and he walked with us back to the dock where he gave me a pair of hand-made beaded earrings.   We got lucky again in that it was 4 degrees, with only a few drops of rain. I had to strip down a layer because I was getting too hot. Back on board, there was some narwhal being sliced up on the back deck. A delicacy up here that is totally normal for the Inuit to eat. It tastes OK, but not one of my favourites.

2024 09 03 - Dundas Harbour, Devon Island

Day 8 - It was cloudy with light rain as we pulled in to Dundas Harbour. We went ashore in the morning, and I went on the moderate hike. Devon Island is so barren and other-worldly. Fun fact: Devon Island is the largest uninhabited island in the world. I love it. The terrain was a combination of rocky, tundra, and puddles. I shouldn't have worn my hiking boots, they got really wet. We hiked up a hill to an overlook viewpoint, then down along the beach where there were a few icebergs washed up.   All of a sudden, there was a thunderous roar that kept going and going as a huge rockfall ripped down the steep-sided cliff nearby. It was incredible. I knew exactly what it was right away, but the volume and duration were remarkable. Everywhere were traces of human existence. Lots of pieces of wood, tin cans, barrel rings, and quite a few old whale bones. People used to live here, but not any more.   We walked over to the old RCMP station houses, then up to the old graveyard. It was a great visit. I had a big smile on my face on the Zodiac ride back to the ship.   In the evening, a bunch of us played the bar game “How Big Is It?” where we had to p]guess the length of various things and put pegs on a length of rope. I teamed up with the travel writers on board. As we played, the sunset got amazing, with bands of orange light spanning the horizon.

2024 09 04 - Cumming Inlet & Powell Inlet, Devon Island

Day 9 - Cumming Inlet Up at 5:00, breakfast at 5:30, then out with the kayakers this morning. I subbed in for one of the kayakers who was sick. My paddling partner was Jane Alexander. I didn't know it at the time, but she's a celebrated actor, and appeared in many big movies including The Cider House Rules, The Ring, and she was nominated for an Oscar for her role in Kramer Vs Kramer. She was delightful, and we ended up hanging out quite a bit during the voyage.   We got suited up in our kayaking drysuits and headed out into the fjord. The weather was perfectly blue sky clear. A bit of wind. We took a Zodiac out to our start point, and as we paddled along, there were some walrus on the shore (about a half dozen or so). We stayed clear of them, but had to scramble when we got the call that some of them were in the water and were headed our way. We went out into deeper water and headed the opposite direction, it was into the wind, so that was more difficult, but it was glorious when the sun came up above the tabletop mountains.   We could see the brown blobs of walrus on the shore, but the sounds they were making were crystal clear. Lots of loud grunting. After a group photo, it was decided that instead of going straight back to the ship, we would do a beach landing. On shore, I saw a bunch of our group looking at something on the ground. Polar bear tracks! These were visible on one small sandy area on the rocky beach, and it had several BIG footprints.   I walked along the shore to the Zodiac landing area and returned to the ship, then it was announced that the ship was going to do a pass-by of the walruses. I managed to get a few shots with my long lens. A short time later, a polar bear was spotted on the shore. I got some photos from the top deck & bridge, but it was pretty far away.   Powell Inlet – We went to the next fjord over to the west and went north up into Powell Inlet. It was pretty choppy and splashy in the Zodiac ride over to shore. Once we got there, we found a group of Walrus swimming around and splashing in one of the little bays. I wish we were able to get closer to them, but there are restrictions on how close you can get to the wildlife here. There was a bear-guard perimeter set up, and I went all the way to both ends. The terrain is so alien like. Very little vegetation, and glacial deposits of what seemed like every kind of rock imaginable. Granite, Sandstone, limestone, you name it. Walking over it was challenging, but great fun. Some parts were pretty muddy too. The geology here is amazing, so is the sky. I was able to photograph some really nice, very colourful cloud iridescence as well.

2024 09 05 - Port Leopold, Somerset Island & Prince Leopold Island

Day 10 - Somerset Island – Port Leopold A 25 knot winds this morning canceled any kayaking possibilities. A polar bear was spotted on shore, so our landing was postponed. Apparently, it caused quite the disruption when it was spotted by the shore crew that were scouting the coastline, and plans had to shift quickly.   We were eventually able to go ashore, but the original plan was shortened & we were not able to go out to the Hudson Bay Company outpost building. We were restricted to an area along the beach, and the Thule archaeological site. There were stone foundation rings where their winter houses were that would have been covered in whale bone/driftwood frames and animal skins. I can barely imagine how difficult life would have been 1000 years ago, trying to survive here.   There were a bunch of cool bergy-chunks scattered along the beach, which made for some cool pictures. It was very windy and cold, but I was dressed for it. I really felt bad for the shore team and the Zodiac drivers who were out in it for hours.   Prince Leopold Island After lunch we repositioned to Prince Leopold Island. As we approached, the sheer cliffs were visible in the low clouds, which came about half-way down the 280 meter cliffsides. As we prepared for the Zodiac cruise, the cloud deck lifted, and we were able to see the entire island. What luck! The place is spectacular, but the number of birds was lower than my last time there. It's getting late in the season, and most had left. Everyone, including myself were really bundled up because of the cold earlier in the day, but now I was totally overdressed.   During the cruise, there was a small rockfall that dislodged a bunch of the snow that had dusted the area last night. Not long later, there was another, MUCH bigger rockfall. I managed to be perfectly positioned to snap a series of photos as it happened! What luck. I also just so happened to be sitting next to geologist Marc St Onge when it happened, the two of us were very excited about witnessing the event.   I was in the first of two sets of Zodiacs that went out. The second set missed the rockfall, but they were treated to a polar bear walking along the shore, beneath the cliffs. Apparently, Jackie, the ship’s photographer got shots of it eating a bird.   When we got back to the ship, I quickly scrambled to edit together a collage of 4 photos (while simultaneously attending Judy’s weather talk), and then arranged to do a really short presentation with Marc about it during the evening gathering. Once back on the ship, the clouds lowered again, and the island became shrouded once again. Such luck today.   After dinner, a bunch of the guys put on a musical show including Barney Bentall, J.R., Chris, and Jason Edmunds. A bunch of us stayed up chatting in the lounge and I went to bed way too late. Totally worth it.

2024 09 06 - Beechey Island & Cunningham Inlet Zodiac Cruise

Day 11 - Beechey Island. Despite the lack of sleep, it was great to get up early (about 5AM) and see another spectacular sunrise. Today was to be another long, 2 excursion day. This morning’s weather was good, with dramatic skies, nice temps and little wind. Beechey Island had a dusting of snow, and looked pretty.   Beechy Island is historically significant as a key site in the search for a route through the Northwest Passage. It's most notably associated with Sir John Franklin's ill-fated 1845 expedition. The remains of three crew members, buried on the island, were discovered in the mid-19th century and provided vital clues about the expedition's fate. These graves, along with other artifacts found on the island, have offered insights into the challenges faced by explorers attempting to navigate the treacherous Arctic waters.   We got ashore and broke into groups, no more than 20-25 at a time to protect the archaeological sites. Up first was the graves, where James Raffan did some interpretation. Then it was a walk along the gravel to the ruins of Northumberland House. I did most of the walk with actress Jane Alexander (4 time Oscar nominee).   The dilapidated building, rusted barrel rings, and monuments to the dead really showed how harsh this place can be. It's hard to imagine the Franklin expedition overwintering here.   In the afternoon, the Inuit folks on board prepared a huge traditional food buffet out on the stern deck including dried reindeer & musk ox, raw ringed seal meat, fat & liver, raw reindeer meat & fat, raw narwhal, dried cod, and a few other delights. It was pretty good, I really liked the pickled narwhal skin.   Cunningham Inlet Zodiac Cruise We sailed all afternoon, and then had an early dinner, in preparation for a sunset Zodiac cruise, with the plan to have everyone out on the water at the same time with all the Zodiacs launched together.   We were supposed to go into Cunningham Inlet on Somerset Island to cruise around & look for belugas in the shallows, but the sea ice was too dense for us to get into the inlet. We cruised around the ice, looking for wildlife, and spotted some seals, and a few polar bears, but they were too distant to get any decent photos. Interestingly, the young, 19 year old Inuit guy on board, Johannes, was constantly going on and on about how we were too close to the bears. We were SO far away, I could only get a 4 pixel shot with my 300mm lens! He seemed really paranoid and scared. Weird.   As we headed back towards the ship, the light was really nice as the sun got low on the horizon. The light in the Arctic is really something special.

2024 09 07 - Prescott Island

Day 12 - Prescott Island This was the first time the Adventure Canada team had stopped at this island, so it was a bit of a gamble, and boy did it pay off.   The day started with an early simple breakfast, then a few presentations, and a brunch. After that, the expedition team went ashore early to scope out the place. The wind was blowing, and there was a lot of chop, but it eased down just in time for us to go ashore.   The island was very barren with a red, sandy beach mixed with limestone rocks, and almost no vegetation. Very Mars-like. I was on the moderate hike, and when we landed , we were informed that there were belugas in the shallows of the inlet.   It was a long walk on gravel & stone with weather that kept changing. It was warm, then rained a bit, then got windy. I kept removing and adding layers the whole time. I managed to photograph a rainbow with a group of hikers and the ship in frame. As we got southwest, I could start to see belugas in the water with my polarized glasses, then more of them. We continued on, and got into a spot with less glare on the water, and we dropped down closer to the water’s edge. There were hundreds of them! So many. Adults, juveniles, and calves they were using the rocks to help them molt. They’d swim around, then surface, then circle back. The young ones seemed to be playing. They would sometime swim on top of or roll onto mom’s back. It was easy to spot the young ones because they are born dark and get lighter in colour as they get older.   We all just stood in stunned amazement. What luck to have come here for the first time and see this spectacle. Even Jason Edmunds had never seen this many belugas in one place. The estimate there were about 200 individuals in total.   I'm certain we all could have stayed there for hours, but time was running out, and we all quietly made the long walk back to the landing site. What a great shared experience.

2024 09 08 - Long Island & Bellot Strait

Day 13 - Long Island & Bellot Strait. The Bellot Strait is the narrowest point in the Northwest Passage, and many travellers look forward to sailing through it.. We took one of the other routes, that passed north and the west of Somerset Island. The plan was to give everyone a chance to experience it by passing through the Bellot Strait west to east in the middle of the night so that we could have a second passing in the daytime east to west and a landing at Long Island (which is east of the strait). Well, the weather didn't cooperate, and it was too foggy for us to go ashore and have bear guards. So, they took their plan of having on-shore workshops and did them aboard the ship.   Then it was time for the polar plunge. About 40 or so of us got ready and made our way to the gangway. They had music pumping and were handing out vodka shots. When it was my turn, I dove in head first. Yep, it was very cold, but I wasn't freezing when I got back on board (after I had a second shot of vodka). It was very... refreshing.   After that I had a quick hot shower, then went for lunch. There was a plan to have a bbq lunch on the back deck, but it was cold and kinda rainy, so the bbq food was served in the dining room instead.   Afterwards we started our way back west through the Bellot Strait, and we had a big group toast as we passed Zenith point (northernmost point of mainland North America) A big shot of rum this time… Then Melody the travel writer gave me her shot of gin… Then she gave me another one.   Later in the afternoon, a group of us participated in some Inuit games. I didn't do very well and lost all 3 events I tried (feet rope-pull, leg wrestling, and the stick pull). It was great fun, with lots of cheering and drama.   As we wrapped that up, there was a code blue announcement. Someone was sick or injured on the ship. They asked us to remain in the lounge for a while and Barney Bentall started an improvised set on stage. The situation was cleared up quickly (apparently the person was OK) but more people kept joining the jam, so I did as well, on percussion. First with some shakers, then with their cajone (A kind of box-like drum). It was awesome. Even Jaclyn the travel writer got up to sing. I hope we get more opportunities to jam later.   At the briefing, we were given our polar plunge badges. Despite the setbacks, we had a great day. You have to embrace the uncertainty on any voyage to the Arctic.

2024 09 09 - Pasley Bay on the Boothia Peninsula

Day 14 - Pasley Bay on the Boothia Peninsula It was very foggy this morning, and not looking good for going ashore. The expedition team went out and did some scouting, and there were numerous announcements about delays, but they did manage to put together a small shore excursion for us at Pasley Bay on the mainland. They had a perimeter of bear guards set up in the thick fog, and it was drizzling slightly, but it wasn't really cold. We quickly lost sight of the ship as we headed ashore in the Zodiacs.   As first glance, there wasn't much to look at, so I just did a long walk around the entire perimeter. Once I had done that, I concentrated on looking for interesting small things. Others had the same idea too, and there was a bunch of cool stuff to be found. Including A small egg A lemming burrow A dead, white large isopod of some kind Some wright whale skull bones that were estimated to be about 4000 years old! As the land rebounded from the last ice age, the uplift caused the beach to rise. The bones that were once on the beach or underwater were now several hundreds of meters inland.   Back aboard after lunch, JR made an announcement that there was good fog bow off the stern of the ship. I think I missed the best of it, but I did get some good pics.   There has been some confusion about the charter flights, but I'm working it out. I've now confirmed that I will indeed be continuing on to Calgary from Yellowknife, but I think they gave me the wrong date for me to get my flight home to Toronto, and I'll probably have to stay in Calgary for a night. I went ahead and booked an airport hotel in Calgary.   In the afternoon we had the charity auction in the lounge. I placed an early bid on steering the ship for 15 minutes but was quickly outbid. I was also interested in a sample of the world’s oldest aged rock, but with so many geology enthusiasts on board, it was too rich for my blood.   After the auction, we all went out to the stern of the ship to pose for the big group photo.   After dinner the expedition team all had to attend some mandatory training session up in the Aurora Lounge, so this was the perfect evening for me to host my “George’s Super-Fun, Ultimate, Kinda-Hard But You've Totally Got A Chance, Mega-Awesome Arctic Trivia Challenge!!”. It was great fun. I made the quiz kinda hard actually, with some tougher questions.   A good time was had, and the winner was the team of travel journalists with 16/25 points. Part of the “Insignificant Prizes” package was a pencil case with some key chains, and I added a few sugar packs, tea bags, an apple, and the best item was my gluten-free muffin that’s been sealed in plastic, sitting on my cabin desk since our boxed lunch in Illulisat.

2024 09 10 - At Sea

Day 15 - The plan was to go ashore today and visit the town of Cambridge Bay. However, the forecast is calling for strong crosswinds later this afternoon, which is a problem because we have to navigate a very narrow channel to get to the town, and there's a significant risk of getting stuck, which would be disastrous. At the morning meeting, expedition leader John Blyth suggested that there was a 95% chance of us not going ashore.   As expected, the shore landing was canceled, so we ended up spending the day at sea.   There were various talks and workshops offered, and in the afternoon Rogier Gruys organized a little get-together for the Explorers Club members that were on board, including JR, Jason Edmunds and even billionaire Frederick Paulson who was on board because he won the trip in an ECAD auction. He brought some of his own brand of whisky as well.   Plans were also made to perform a song at the afternoon gathering. Dan Freeze wrote the lyrics for a song about our encounter with the belugas at Prescott Island. Barney Bentall wrote the music. I played the cajone, and travel writer Jacqueline Kehd also sang. I was a good song, and it was a great honour to be asked to play on it. We opened the gathering with it.   For dinner, I was invited by Marissa the kayak guide to join the kayak team’s reserved table which was nice. Then for the evening’s entertainment, I sat in with the band. They named themselves “Wet Landing” Barney, JR, Chris, and Jacqueline. Jason took over drumming duties later in the set.   I stayed up for a while afterwards and finally decided to pack it in at about 11:30. When I got to my cabin, I looked out the window (starboard side) and saw stars. On a hunch, I went upstairs and sure enough, to the south, there were northern lights. I grabbed my tripod and informed the few folks I saw in the hallways. Eventually they got a bit brighter, and an announcement was made over the P.A. They didn't last too much longer before they got obscured by clouds.

2024 09 11 - Kogluktualuk (Port Epworth, aka Tree River)

Day 16 - Kogluktualuk (aka Port Epworth, aka Tree River) Our last full day aboard the Ocean Endeavour. Cloudy and foggy, but not bad enough to cancel the morning landing.   The Zodiac trip ashore was choppy, and I managed to get splashed while I was bending over to put the cover on my camera bag, and got cold seawater down my ass crack. Fun times.   They had set up a huge perimeter that extended up to a high ridgeline. I started to go up, and around, through the crazy terrain. It was a combination of spongy moss, wet areas, and lots of rocks. In fact, there was plenty of very sketchy climbing and scrambling involved, which was fun, but I was worried about some passengers that might slip and fall. At the top of the ridge, the view was amazing. The fall colours of the short Arctic willows took on awesome shades of red & orange, and I could see the winding Tree River in the distance. At one point, an Arctic ground squirrel ran past me, then stood up on its hind legs and looked right at me. Luckily, I had my camera ready. The weather continued to get better and better, from occasional drizzle to sunny patches. I did manage to slip on the wet rocks, and take a pretty hard fall. I was OK, but I managed to smash the lens hood on my telephoto. The camera itself seems fine.   As I got up onto the bedrock, groups of fossilized stromatalites started to become more and more common. These ancient colonies of organisms were 1.9 billion years old, and as I arrived at the spot where geologist Marc St Onge was, there was a big plateau that was FULL of them. Very dramatic, especially with the surrounding views. At one point, he and I were taking an RCGS flag photo and a big rainbow appeared behind us.   It was starting to get close to last Zodiac time, so I wandered down the rocky hillside, down to an old RCMP grave site, then down to the landing area. A bunch of us took a photo with the Explorers Club Canadian Chapter flag that Jason had with him, then I piled into the crew Zodiac and went back to the ship.   This was our last night aboard the ship, so the afternoon was filled with packing and a disembarkation briefing. After dinner, there was a musical variety show hosted by Barney & Chris, with all kinds of expedition team members, passengers and crew all taking turns on stage. Barney called me and Jacqueline back up to perform the beluga song again, and many stayed up late after the main show to jam with Jason strumming his guitar.

2024 09 12 - Kugluktuk

Day 17 - Time to go. After a morning team meeting, I gathered up my things and took a Zodiac ashore to the village of Kugluktuk. On the ride in, we spotted some nice Fata Morgana mirages on the horizon which was a great send-off.   Once ashore, we walked up to the community center for some bannock, some local folks selling crafts, and a bit of a drumming & dancing show. Then it was off to the airport for the charter flight to Calgary via Yellowknife.

2024 09 13 - Calgary, Alberta

I spent the day in Calgary today, waiting for my overnight flight home to Toronto. It's been a wild summer with so much ship travel to northern areas. I'm extremely grateful to Adventure Canada and the RCGS for letting me hop on to this voyage at the last minute.

 

---