Toronto - Reykjavik, Iceland

Apologies blog readers, if you are getting this a couple of days later. It's been... hectic, to say the least. But it wouldn't be an SOI expedition if it wasn't! Saturday was travel day for almost all students and staff. My role was on the Meet and Greet team (an awesome team, if any of you read this later) at Pearson International, greeting all the students arriving by plane. All told, about 25 students flew in between 3pm Friday and 4:30pm Saturday and I'm happy to say I was one of the first SOI faces they met when they arrived... well, those that DID arrive, anyway. Despite all attempts to make everything go smoothly, delays, lost luggage, and scheduling issues make things interesting. Happily thought, all but two students (from Tennessee) arrived on time for the early evening group check-in. (UPDATE: both are now here, having arrived on later flights!)

The flight was uneventful, and most people slept, or chatted quietly with the people in their rows.

As with my previous expeditions, it was fascinating to see how quickly this diverse group of teenagers can bond together so quickly.By the time we arrived in Reykjavik, it was like some of them had known each other for years.

Sadly, I'm going to end things off here. Sorry, it wasn't an interesting update - I promise I'll do better next time! But just wanted to let everyone know I've arrived safe and sound, and expect to see more in the next day or so!

Photos by Lee Narraway / Students on Ice

A whirlwind of activity

Hi everyone.

My apologies, blog readers. As I mentioned to a few of you, I had fully intended to send out a blog entry every day of the expedition. Well, my best intentions have quickly fallen to the wayside through the whirlwind of activity that is a typical SOI adventure.

Saturday the 23rd was the arrival day for most of the students. As a member of the meet and greet team, I was tasked with greeting all of the students arriving by plane at Pearson International Airport. As you might imagine, getting 70-some teenagers and 50-some adult staff to the airport at one scheduled departure time is not an easy task. But there we were, at 6pm all gathered at the Icelandic Air counter, checking in. Well, minus two students from Tennessee who were re-routed due to flash floods in Chicago. (UPDATE: they both caught flights and have joined us safe and sound!)

The flight to Reykjavik, Iceland was relatively quiet (except we never really seemed to fly through darkness) and we arrived early Sunday morning. Admittedly, it was my first time in a foreign country (other than the US) in a LONG time, and it didn't take long for culture shock to set in. Different style washrooms, different traffic signs, different daily habits - it all took getting used to. And if I had trouble, I can only imagine what it felt like for some of the students who were travelling out of their home town for the very first time!

We got through Customs easily enough, and stepped outside into the cool Icelandic air (a balmy 12 degrees, although the strong wind made it feel much colder!). Strangely enough, even though it was 8:30am (3:30am Winnipeg time), we headed for the Blue Lagoon spa - a geothermally-heated outdoor mineral spa. This was a strange experience to say the least. Even though it was a chilly day, the temperature of the water was beautifully warm. But the winds were so strong, they actually created whitecaps on the water! And there was something slightly unnerving about the lifeguard wearing a full-body haz-mat suit while patrolling. You can check out a picture of me in the spa on the Daily Journey Updates on the SOI website.

After breakfast, we headed to the Keflavik Viking Museum for lunch and an overview of Viking history. They had a replica of a Viking longboat that sailed on a recreation of the Viking expeditions across the Atlantic. It reminded me (in some ways) of the Nonsuch at my Museum. The smell of the pine tar was like a soothing reminder of home. The Museum itself was fascinating, and definitely worth the visit.

With our first Museum visit behind us, we headed to the main part of Reykjavik, capital of Iceland. Our hotel was sparse, but comfortable (communal showers and toilets). Since we were given some free time, some of the students asked to walk to the center of Reykjavik. I came along as a chaperone plus the chance to check out the city.

Following our informal tour, the group got back together for some more presentations and talks before heading to bed for some much needed sleep.

And that ended Day One in Iceland. Obviously more has happened since then, but the hour is late and it's time for me to catch up on sleep. If I do some more updates, they'll be coming from our ship, the Clipper Adventurer!

Thanks for reading!

Once more unto the breach, dear friends...

When does “once-in-a-lifetime” become… routine?

Two years ago in the summer of 2009, I was given a great opportunity to go along with an organization called Students On Ice, taking 60 students to remote Canadian Arctic locations aboard a refurbished Russian icebreaker to learn about the effects of climate change on that region.

It sounds so clinical to sum it up like that, yet its effects on me (and the students who went) were far from that. It truly was a life-changing experience and opened my mind to a new-found passion for the environment and environmental education.

It was… once-in-a-lifetime.

Then, in 2010, I was given a second chance to participate. Although very much different from ’09, Arctic ’10 was no less of an experience. Not many people could consider themselves similarly lucky. It furthered my passion for the environment, and sent me on a life path that has made me happier than I have been in a long time. Surely, for those reasons, I could still call it “once-in-a-lifetime”.

And now, here I am. About to embark on my THIRD expedition with the amazing staff of Students On Ice, merely 36 hours away from meeting a whole new set of 70 young people who I’d have the pleasure of getting to know over the course of 18 days. Like last year, I go into this journey with no expectations, no preconceptions of how things will go.

But how will this expedition… feel? Will I fall into familiar habits of previous years, overlook things because I’ve seen them before, or not be surprised by anything because it has become… routine? How long can “once-in-a-lifetime” last?

Well, one thing’s for sure, the itinerary will be different. Some of you may recall the ship we travelled on for the past two years, the Lyubov Orlova. Well, sadly, sometime after Arctic 2010, she was impounded for some financial reasons and her crew sent home. As far as I know, she sits empty in St. John’s harbour.

So, SOI had to find a new vessel for this year, and they found her in the Orlova’s sister ship, the Clipper Adventurer. With somewhat newer refurbishing, the Adventurer also has a different itinerary – departing from Iceland, travelling along the southern tip of Greenland and over to Labrador and the northern Quebec coast.

And of course, other than travelling outside Canada, the other difference will be the students. In both ’09 and ’10 we had a few students from the U.S. and Monaco joining us Canadians. But this year, we’ve got people joining us from 13 countries, including South Korea, Viet Nam, New Zealand and Russia. All told, over 12 languages will be spoken by our participants. And we have a burgeoning staff – over 53 scientists, educators, chaperones and explorers.

Over the next two weeks, I hope to introduce you to some of them, as well as the sights we will see. And no doubt, you’ll get a bit of insight into what I’m thinking – these expeditions tend to make me even more verbose than usual. I even get into icky things, like emotions and crap like that.

So it shouldn’t be boring. But will it be another “once-in-a-lifetime” experience? Time will tell. No expectations, right?

The adventure… continues.

Stay Tuned for Arctic Adventure 2011

Hello everyone!

Thanks for choosing to follow my blog. I hope to update it everyday, starting tomorrow (July 21st) but in the meantime, you can look back at my PREVIOUS blogs for Arctic 2009 and 2010!

Blog you soon! In the expedition spirit,

Mike

Day 16 – Akpatok Island and Ungava Bay heading towards Kuujjuaq

Today marks the start of our long goodbyes and farewells, as we end our last full day on the ship. It’s a day of highs and lows as we all come to the realization that our long journey is about to come to an end.

The morning started with a refreshing zodiac cruise around Akpatok Island. Akpatok is home to the largest seabird colony in the Arctic, numbering over a million. But it was seven polar bears that highlighted the visit, lumbering along the shore, including three cubs.

The island itself has towering steep cliffs made of limestone, which reminded me of the quarries of my hometown, Stonewall. It seemed a fitting way to end our last cruise – a sight that made me look forward to returning home.

The rest of the day flew past and before long it was time for the traditional final briefing and talent show. To give you an idea of the talent of our students and staff, here are some examples of what was said and done:

Geoff Green introduced and thanked the Captain of the Orlova, along with its staff and crew. All of them received a standing ovation. Geoff then gave some more details on our expedition – it was the longest SOI trip ever done, with 14 cruises and landings. We’ve traveled 2160 nautical miles on our journey from Kuujjuaq and back. According to the kitchen, we ate 200 dozen eggs, 5 kg of dark chocolate, 140 litres of milk, 50 kg of sugar, 100 lbs of pasta, 400 loaves of bread, 100 kg of onions, 100 kg of potatoes, and an amazing 80 lbs of cheese.

The rest of the talent show was made up of students and staff reciting poems, singing songs, playing instruments (guitars, harmonicas, violins, and an accordion). There was a lot of laughter, some bad singing and some great performances. It truly was a fine way to wrap up our diverse and unique excursion.

It’s after midnight, and the talent show is winding up. As usual, our plans have changed for tomorrow. We arrive at Kuujjuaq early in the morning, but instead of getting tours of the town, we have to head straight to the airport to catch our flight, which had changed from early afternoon to late morning.

It seems surreal that things are coming to an end for another SOI expedition. Tomorrow will start the tears and hugs, as we begin to say farewell to some members of our family. If it’s anything like last year, it will be an emotional time…

See you all back in civilization!

Day 15 – Day at sea along the south east coast of Baffin Island

I’ll actually start this entry with the moments just after submitted last night’s entry. As we headed out of Cumberland Sound for the Davis Strait, the swells started to pick up, along with one heck of a good wind.

Since we had a few minutes before student curfew, I grabbed my windbreaker and headed out to see what a true sea wind felt like. I could come up with all sorts of clichés to describe it (takes your breath away, sweeps you off your feet), but it still wouldn’t do it justice.

Just another experience on my second Arctic expedition that I can’t put into words.

It’s pretty obvious that there’s a lot to the Arctic that can’t be put into words. That’s why a big component of our voyages is documented on video. We have two videographers on board – Alex Taylor and Pascale Otis. Both are Arctic explorers in their own sense, but have temporarily given up those titles to record our exploits for posterity.

The journey of how one of our videos is made is quite extraordinary. Both Alex and Pascale head out with the students on landings and zodiac cruises. One usually captures the candid moments and reactions of the students, while the other makes sure to film all the sights that we get to see. Together, with a bunch of interviews with staff and students, they gather all the raw footage they need.

If our landings or cruises took place in the morning, Pascale would then hibernate into her cabin-turned-editing-suite for the afternoon, barely coming out for air and food. It would seemingly be a daunting task to edit the enormous amount of footage taken during our always-eventful excursions.

Yet somehow, in time for our daily briefing in mid-evening, in would walk Pascale with a thumb drive in hand and a tired smile on her face. And then we would sit in awe as she paraded her five-minute masterpieces on the large screen in front of us.

As always, thunderous applause resounded through the ship as the credits flashed on the screen. But Pascale’s (and often, Alex’s) job was far from done. Next up is the arduous task of getting the video out to the world via satellite transmission.

This involves climbing up to the top deck of the ship, no matter what the weather or sea conditions. Often it takes multiple attempts to successfully send the videos, photos and our journal entries (including the one you are reading), before it’s received by the Students On Ice head office in Ottawa and uploaded to their website.

If you haven’t already checked out these great videos, please do so. Because if pictures really do say a thousand words, then you are in for a one heck of a long novel…

Tomorrow, we race towards Ungava Bay to start our journey home. In the morning, we’ll stop for a cruise around Akapatok Island, home to a large collection of seabirds. Then it’s back to the ship to begin a long period of celebration as we wrap up our time on the ship.

LAST MINUTE UPDATE! Northern Lights! As we ended our evening briefing, word got out that there were some aurora to be seen. I quickly grabbed my warm weather clothes and headed out to the bow of the ship. There, I saw one of the most spectacular displays of northern lights that I have ever seen!

Curtains of green and white, tinged with purple, danced across the sky above our heads. As people gazed with awe, the astronomer in me came out, and before long, all sorts of constellations, planets (well, one anyways) and other nighttime sights were getting pointed out.

Alas, curfew hit and the impromptu astronomy workshop was put on hold for a while. Who knows, maybe I’ll get another chance before this expedition is over.

Day 14 – Kingnait Fjord

So the morning started with a 6:55am announcement from our fearless expedition leader, Geoff Green, that there were bowhead whales off the port bow. Now normally, this would have me racing for the upper decks in eager anticipation of seeing these majestic creatures of the sea. But instead, I turned over and studied the inside of my eyelids.

Now this might seem to be to antithesis of what I should be doing, and in fact, if Geoff read this, he’d probably kick me off the ship. And don’t get me wrong, the opportunity of seeing bowheads is one that no one should miss. They are truly one of the highlights of any Arctic trip.

But as Geoff continued to crow about the dozens of bowheads that were appearing on all sides of the ship, I kept turning over and tuning him out. Here’s the thing. Bowheads whales, among other creatures, have been hunted by ships for decades. They have an instinctive fear of these vessels and always seem to give us a very wide berth.

So I knew fairly confidently that the best view of the bowheads that we would have, would be of a distant dark spot on the horizon, the occasional spray of a blowhole, or if we were lucky, a distinctive fluke arching above the waves.

They’re the same pictures I got LAST year. And I was tired. So, forgive me if I didn’t race out of my room to do some early morning whale watching.

Next up, was a trip to Kingnait Fjord, another encore SOI stop for me. Last year, we hiked to a beautiful waterfall, and this year we did the same thing. But in addition to that, we also had a BBQ on shore, our 2010 group picture AND the Arctic swim. All of those went fairly successfully, especially the swim – which I managed to again join.
But once again, the best part of the day was the UNPLANNED part. For the second day in a row, we experienced an unusually quick receding tide (at our daily briefing, we were told it was a 9-meter tide, instead of the expected 4 meters). As a result, the zodiacs were once again hard put to make it out of the rendezvous spot to deep waters.

So, off we trotted to a location farther down the shore (thankfully, the BBQs that had been brought to shore for lunch had left on an early zodiac). It was a wet, muddy and tiring trek to catch up to the tide with 80 or so people, but in the end, all returned safely to the ship.

It sure punctuated one of our mottos on expedition – flexibility is the key.

Tomorrow, because of our delayed departure this afternoon, we will be hard-pressed to make it to our planned destination – the Lower Savage Islands. At the very least, we’ll have a full day at sea, with lots of workshops and activities to fill the time.
P.S. As I type this, two of our staff, Matty McNair and Remy Rodden, along with one of our many talented students, Khloe Heard are jamming in our presentation room with two violins and a guitar. I don’t know what they are playing, but it’s just one of many moments I will never forget about this expedition.