Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Welcome Ceremony

While we were sailing between Beechey Island and Prince Leopold, we were treated to not only experience, but a thorough explanation of, the traditional Inuit welcome ceremony, performed by Aaju Peter.


The qulliq, a boat-shaped base is used to hold seal-fat, while dried and treated vegetation such as Arctic cotton and peat moss, are used as a wick to light the flame.





Aaju (pronounced AA-you) is an esteemed Canadian who is not only an accomplished artist, musician and clothing designer, but a lawyer, a linguist, and a recipient of the Order of Canada! (Aaju was presented with her membership of the OC by His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, in December 2011, in recognition of Voluntary Service - her commitment to fostering the culture and language of the Inuit, and bridging the cultural divide between the people of the Arctic and those from The South).




Diminutive in stature, I felt that Aaju towered over us all. I didn't have much chance to speak to her one-to-one, but the next day when I had the opportunity to thank her for sharing the welcome ceremony with us, I felt an almost-overwhelming urge to bow to her as one would to the Dalai Lama. Her aura of strength, and calm, were inspiring. Her presence is as solid as the towering mountains and cliffs of the Arctic.


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Monday, August 27, 2012

Prince Leopold Island

Of cliffs and birds ... millions of birds!


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You remember my reference to this island in my "Wings over Nunavut" article? Well, here it is again, photographed from the surface (well, probably about 15m above the surface, on the upper viewing deck of the Clipper Adventurer!):




This is the one thing I regretted about this cruise - I didn't do the zodiac trip to get a closer look at the bird colonies on this island! My warm outerwear was all soaking from the rain on Beechey earlier that day ... what a pathetic excuse - I could've made a plan! (Learn this lesson from me so that you don't make it yourself when you're in a place where you're unlikely ever to return: Go and see as much as you can while you have the chance, no matter how cold, tired, or uncomfortable you are!)

So I remained on board and enjoyed the vista of the towering cliffs which were made up of almost perfectly horizontal layers of various sediments, wondering at the turquoise colours in the water and the hundreds of birds flying around us, and nesting in every nook and cranny! Apparently "the real colonies" were just around the tip of the island - I suppose they didn't want to take the ship around there for fear of causing a major disturbance in the nesting area, or it could just have been that it was too shallow and/or uncharted (lots of that, up here!).

The day was still dark and dreary, although the rain had stopped, and the light was still less than optimum, but I hope some of my photos capture the essence of the place!





Where's Waldo? (And Hundreds of His Closest Friends!)


The Zodiacs at the Foot of the Cliffs




And here are some photos I took of my fellow passengers on the high seas in their zodiacs (please let me know if I've got anything wrong, or if you know the name of people I've missed!):

Brad (orange), Jason (blue), Matthew James (red), Chris (red toque), Steve (in Castor)

Tom at the tiller, Jim (bears & ice - 2nd from left), Bob (camo)

Jason at the tiller, Gema (J's right), Allan (G's right), Jon the geologist (red/black toque)

Matthew James at the tiller

Tom at the tiller

Steve (birds) at the tiller, Yvette (yellow collar), Julia (videographer - blonde)

Matthew James at the tiller, Julie (green toque), Neil (J's left), Nick (army cap)

Dave at the tiller, Michael (beige toque)



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Sunday, August 26, 2012

Beechey Island - Franklin's Last Known Landing

I was up early this day, to find the ship already at anchor in the bay at Beechey Island.


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In keeping with the island's sad history, the sky was dark with low cloud, the fog rolled in and out, and a light rain added to the tragic aura of the place. It was windy, just a few degrees above freezing, and downright miserable at times. Some photos taken in the half-light give you an idea of the seemingly barren landscape, the isolation of the place.


The Remains of Northumberland House can be seen at the Foot of the Cliff


And yet, we were not alone. Beyond the point near which Northumberland House is located, another ship disappeared and reappeared between fog banks ... and a sailing sloop (?) showed up, too! Ashore were three tents where some scientists were spending the short summer months studying ... something.




As always, the Clipper Adventurer's intrepid gun bearers are the first to land. They go ashore to check that the areas that we soft tourists will visit are safe - ie: clear of polar bears! It has happened in the past that visitors have simply not been able to go ashore due to the presence of one of these unpredictable apex predators! {Many of the Clipper's team perform multiple duties - zodiac driver, gunbearer, life-jacket/safety police (you'd be surprised how many passengers were careless about this aspect of the operation), zodiac hands, etc - as well as educators and entertainers!}

One of our Gunbearers on the Ridge

Matthew James, Dave and Tom Agree - "It" is Somewhere Over There!

First, we visited the four grave sites - the known last resting places of three men of Franklin's never-again-seen expedition, and one of a sailor who crossed over during one of the Franklin rescue missions.

Two of Franklin's Men lie to the Right, One of the Rescue Team's Crewmen Rests to the Left

It was in the mid-1800's that Franklin set out in the Erebus and the Terror, to find a shorter route to the Orient. For two years, their ships were ice-bound and unmoving, and eventually abandoned as the remaining men set off dragging smaller boats, in an attempt at self-rescue - or at least to find help. No-one knows where Franklin and his men, or the Erebus and the Terror, ended up - no other sign has ever been found of the men, either.

The vastness of the land- and seascape in this part of the world is breathtaking. From the ship, trying to gauge the distance between the grave sites and the position of Northumberland House, which was set up at a later date as an emergency shelter and supply cache, didn't look to be more than 500m of smooth walking, but turned out to be between 1.5 and 2km apart!




The artifacts, which are protected now, that we saw strewn about the site were a stark reminder of the challenges that the first European explorers encountered - not least of which were their first attempts at canning food, inadvertently poisoning themselves with lead! Many of these cans can still be seen, along with the hoops and staves of barrels, a broken mast, and the remains of what appears to be a ship's decking.






As empty as this island seems, there's definitely life around (besides the ever-present threat of wandering polar bears!) - tiny plants that even in this climate can find the energy to provide some colour, even a flower or two - and smaller mammals, like Arctic fox. There was word that a walrus had hauled out nearby, but few people got to see it.




It is fascinating to watch more of the Franklin tale unraveling on CBC as a Canadian expedition tries to locate the remains of the Erebus and the Terror unfolds as I write this. For more information on the original expedition, the rescue missions, and numerous previous efforts to determine what happened to the Franklin expedition, follow along on CBC's website.

Heading To Shore

Dave Checks Out a Mineral Flow Passing in the Current

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