28 Jun Episode 58
IT BEGINS: With gear and food for 10 days on the land, Cory and Carl make their way toward Henrietta Neismith Glacier, but encounter a few challenges in the way....
27 Jun The Warm-Up
Today was a good warm-up, after orientation from Park superintendent Monty Yank, and sorting gear again. Carl and I headed out for a six and a half hour hike behind camp, with a partial load on our backs. There was a lot of stop and go along the way. We were both feeling it pretty good after the hike. Looking at the map again made us realize we"™d better alter our plan. That big loop we were planning on doing just got a whole lot smaller. No matter how much planning and research I do, it never quite matches up...
26 Jun First Day Out
Carl and I boarded the twin otter, the work horse of the North. With four others, park Canada staff, and volunteers. We began the flight to Quttinirpaaq National Park on Ellesmere Island. It was a mesmerizing three hour flight over massive and beautiful landscapes, full of mountains, glaciers, and ice. This brought us to the Park's camp at Tanquary Fiord. As the plain lowered to land we spotted muskox, grazing on the hills, and later more on the ground not far from camp. Here, we stepped off to take in the awesome mountains that surround the camp, and the fresh...
26 Jun Episode 57
FLYING TO THE FAR NORTH: Boarding a Twin Otter, Cory journeys further north over a mesmerizing landscape, to land near the top of the world at Lake Hazen in Quittinirpaaq National Park on Ellesmere Island....
25 Jun Polar Continental Shelf
Word this morning from Tim at Polar Continental Shelf is that the flight is being put off until our gear arrives. No-one goes into the field without their essential gear for safety. The PCS (Polar Continental Shelf) is the mother-ship up here, managing all flights in and out of the high arctic, and what a job that is. Researchers in remote camps, park staff, even artists once in a while, all separated by thousands of kilometers make for incredibly tough logistics, and even harder rescue operations if necessary. With a day in town to get acclimatized to the north, we...
25 Jun Episode 56
RESOLUTE LAYOVER: An extra day in Resolute Bay, due to baggage delays, leads to unexpected discoveries for Cory and Carl on their journey to the High Arctics Ellesmere Island....