The Great Arctic Air Adventure Blog

The weather was fair today. The gusty Arctic blast that has been pummeling us for two days gave way to a steady but cold 15 knots out of the North. The sun made a surprise guest appearance.

Having made the decision to forego the Pole for now, and still waiting for our friends Dan Noble and David Good to show up here in Resolute, today was a free day of sorts. We spent much of the morning editing film, repairing film equipment, saying goodbye to our new NASA friend, Sarah Thompson (who headed out to the airport to catch her Air National Guard C-130 ride home….those NASA scientists travel in style) and re-routing Segment 3, trying to minimize the use of car gas. If Dan and David show up tomorrow as scheduled (even the scheduled carriers don’t keep a perfect schedule up here), and the good weather holds, our departure and route from Resolute will be as follows:

Sunday, August 24th, AM departure back to Cambridge Bay, refuel and camp south of Cambridge Bay near the Kent Penninsula.

Monday, August 25th, Cambridge Bay to Baker Lake.

Tuesday, August 26th, Baker Lake to Coral Harbour.

Wednesday, August 27th, extra weather day.

This puts us back on schedule, if it works out.

We spent the afternoon refueling the airplanes. With the weather inviting, we couldn’t resist the temptation to go fly and get some footage. Eric parked himself on a rise overlooking the lake with his telephoto zoom lense to record the take-offs and landings, while Jim worked the smaller camera and looked after the stationary float cam from the right seat of 2SF. Doug and Mark just goofed off, flying low formation along barren Cornwallis Island shorelines riddled with small ice bergs, snow-lined bluffs and frozen lakes, while Jim filmed.

A large berg was spotted west of the airport about a mile offshore in Barrow Strait. The flyboys couldn’t resist a couple of low fly-bys, finally landing next to it. While taxiing around the enormous, 100 foot high pinnacle (keep in mind, app. 7/8ths of the mass of ice bergs is under the ocean surface) we found ourselves awestruck with its beauty and majesty. I have felt this way before, in the close presence of other behemoth natural wonders such as montrous rock walls, waterfalls, moose and whales. The ice berg was a first however, and not an experience we will soon forget.

While we were loitering around the berg, one of the Borek Air pilots off the airport, heading to remote points North in one of their many recognizable red and black DeHavilland DHC-6-200 Twin Otters, couldn’t resist a berg top buzz job and wing wave to his smaller Beaver brethren, bobbing in the light swell. It was a classic Canadian Arctic moment.

With Eric and Jim satified with the day’s footage, we strolled down to the beach to conduct a scientific test of the 7/8ths theory regarding ice bergs. A couple of boulder-sized ice chunks were found on the beach and tossed into the surf. Sure enough, approximately 1/8th of the chunks’ surface area remained above water. We decided to test the theory on cameramen. Poor Eric was involuntarily picked for random testing. After a brief malay, he was properly corraled and we began the swinging accompanied by a raucous chorus of “ONE, TWO, THREE”. As “THREE” approaches, the victim invariably goes through that startled stage of uncertainty where he wonders if his tormentors are really crazy enough to go through with it. Ummmm…..I wonder.

To Mrs. Theodossiou’s 8th Grade Earth Sciences Class in Duxbury, MA: NASA’s Sarah Thompson gave us a shatter cone from the meteor impact site on Devon Island where she was testing the drill designed for the surface of Mars. These rocks have the distinctive shear marks of a destructive meteor impact, and are a geologist’s proof positive of such an event. We understand that they are only found at meteor impact sites. We will send you Sarah’s sample for your review and study, so you may confirm her claim that it is a shatter cone. We look forward to hearing back from you.

Allison’s Ornithological Report: No new ID’s today. Confirmed ID’s include arctic loons, glaucous gulls, and a very cold and hungry looking raven, who as we pass by, squawked “…nevermore.”

All the best to everyone.

The GAAA Team

I am flying low over the ice pack with jasmine walled icebergs towering on either side. Down below, a hungary Polar Bear stalks an unsuspecting Ring Seal…, BEEP BEEP BEEP, an alarm goes off in the cockpit. I quickly scan the instruments for the source, but all seems normal. Finally, my eyes creep open and I identify the annoying beep of my wristwatch alarm. Having been grounded for the last three days, flying is restricted to our dreams. With twenty four ours of light, we pull the shades or wear blinders to sleep, depending on sound rather then light to wake us.

A quick glance out the window confirms the status quo: low ceilings, driving snow, & thirty knot winds will most likely prevent any forward progress for the GAAA team today. Not to worry, there are lots of interesting folks traveling trough this remote gateway to the high arctic, so we’ll use the time to make some new friends and listen to their stories of the far north.

First off, we met Sarah Thompson, owner of a fine English accent leading us to believe she was a lot brighter than us – which not surprisingly turned out to be a correct assumption. Turns out this Oxford educated scientist works for NASA, and is here in the arctic developing an extraterrestrial drill that can drill holes in out-of-the-way places like, well, Mars. This high tech drill uses a series of sensors including lasers and accelerometers as feedback, adjusting the downforce and drill speed to optimize the drilling process all while using less then 200 watts! Ladies, this is going to be a hot item on every handyman’s Christmas list, so get your orders in early. Anyway, seems that NASA has identified a meteorite crater on adjacent Devon Island (east of Resolute) as the ideal test site for the new drill, which explains Sarah’s presence. The camera crew talked her into an interview – of course making her stand out in the driving wind as a proper backdrop. Sarah, thanks for being a good sport and teaching us more about this amazing place.

After Sarah tired of us and retreated to her room, we turned out attentions to three Frenchmen, Pierre, Frederick, and Francois, who have just completed an extensive canoe trip through Somerset Island to the south. This amazing trio have been coming to the high Arctic since the eighties, completing a variety of expeditions using modes of transportation from antiquity including dog sleds, kayaks, and horse drawn sleighs. Through the course of their travels they’ve had sixty eight Polar Bear encounters, yet have skillfully avoided being eaten. Always open to a good Polar Bear story, we listened as they related an incident from a previous trip. Seems one of the party was stalking a Walrus in his kayak, and did not notice a Polar Bear sneaking up from behind. Finally, one of the other members noticed the impending attack and whacked the bear on the nose with his paddle, to no effect, as the bear was now gnawing at the back of the kayak in an attempt to drag it under. A well aimed binocular got the bear’s attention, and the team was finally able to drive it a way with bear bangers. (Bear bangers are a hand held devices that launch a flare and with an accompanying bang.) And they keep coming back – these guys are tough. See www.polarlys.asso.fr for more information about their amazing adventures.

Sadly, the GAAA team finally accepted the obvious and abandoned the attempt to fly over the magnetic north pole. With the ice still firmly ensconced at Eureka, we are unable to reach our fuel, and there is no other practical way to get there. After considering several impractical solutions as discussed in our last blog, we decided that with an early winter setting in and the pressing schedule of the trip we will turn south as soon as the weather improves. With hearty shouts of “we shall return”, we turned our attention to getting out of here before we are iced in for the winter.

Until tomorrow,

Doug and the GAAA Team

It’s snowing and blowing in the Arctic. Today is one of those days you are glad that you are not flying in a small aircraft. Thank goodness for our hosts at the South Camp Inn here in Resolute, Ozzie Kheraj and his wife, Aleeasuk Idlout. They provided us a safe place to park the Beavers in the howling Arctic winds, and warm accommodations. Thanks also to Ludy and Doris for checking on our planes.

Ozzie immigrated to Canada from Tanzania when he was a teenager, and moved to Resolute when he was 24. That was 30 years ago, and he has never left. As near as we can tell, very little goes on in Resolute without some input from Ozzie. He runs a construction company, the fuel company and the main hotel. He and Aleeasuk are often there at the airport to meet guests staying at the Inn. They will even look after your sled dogs for you, as evidenced by a string of dogs howling outside, owned by a famous Japanese musher. They are friends to virtually every major Arctic explorer that has used Resolute as a jumping off base (thus the name ‘South Camp’ Inn) during the last three decades. They and their staff, including the amazing cook, Randy, have been a big help to us as well.

Aleeasuk is an Inuk who when she finds spare time from running a hotel and raising a gaggle of kids and grandkids, is one of the top producing polar bear guides in the world. You would not have guessed it to look at her, with her petite stature and unassuming nature, but after talking to her a bit about polar bear hunting, I think I would avoid her if I were a polar bear.

Jim spent most of the day editing. Doug, Eric and Mark went out to the airport to try and solve the Magnetic Pole puzzle. We had planned our schedule to arrive at our most northern fuel cache in Eureka in the middle of August, a time that traditionally offers a high probability of providing open water. It is a balancing act, because as the ice moves out in mid to late August, the weather starts to change from summer to fall. (Or as near as we can tell, it goes right straight into winter!) Last summer it would have been smooth sailing. However, this is a different year. A couple of days ago the wind shifted, pushing the ice pack back into Slidre Fjord where Eureka is located, making it impossible to land the Beaver there. For now we are cut off from our fuel cache.

We stopped by the Canadian Ministry of Natural Resources office of Polar Continental Ice Shelf Project Base Manager Tim McCagherty. Tim, a big affable guy who was quite gracious with his time, must be one of the best logisticians anywhere in the world. His job is to coordinate several airplanes, helicopters, crews and other equipment in support of virtually every Canadian sponsored scientific research expedition in the Arctic. There are many, going on year round, spread out over an area twice the size of the state of California, in some of the most forbidding country and weather conditions on the planet. If Tim couldn’t find a solution to our challenge, no one could.

We discussed many options. Some of the lakes up near Eureka are still open. If we could somehow get our fuel to one of these lakes, we could land there and refuel. Transporting the fuel from Eureka to an open lake may take a helicopter (none are available right now), or a Twin Otter on tundra tires which will need a lake near a tundra or esker landing strip. We even considered using four wheelers, carrying drums of fuel on a wild cross-tundra ride, which would probably take several days, depending on the location of the lake we find.

We could also cache fuel in the Beavers from here in Resolute and abandon our fuel in Eureka. Carrying three drums per 720 nautical mile round trip ferry, it will take two of the drums to get back to Resolute. That means that we could cache one drum per Beaver per ferry. We need at least six drums for one Beaver to make the pole run and return to Resolute, so six ferry flights, or three good flying days, plus two more for the pole and return to Resolute. Five good flying days.

So you see the process. It is still a work in progress, and as of this writing it is still unresolved. For now we remain undeterred and will continue working on it tomorrow. Meanwhile, a severe low pressure system is bearing down on us from the Boothia Peninnsula, 500 miles south. I’m sure glad we are well tied down here.

Allison’s Ornithological Report:

There are not many birds up here in this place we are affectionately calling the gravel pit. But we finally figured out that the bird making the low honking sound we’ve been hearing for the last week is an arctic loon, as one flew right over us this afternoon.

Thanks to all for tuning in, and so long for now.

The GAAA Team

The time has come to start my journey to meet up with Doug and the GAAA! So tomorrow morning, my wife Carol and I will travel by ferry to the mainland. There we will meet up with Doug’s wife Robbi to pick up 100 pounds of provisions for the next legs. From there we will make our way to Vancouver, then I am off to Yellowknife and points, yet finalized, beyond.

The bags are packed, and to be honest, I did not make the 40 pounds (but close..), BUT I am carrying a replacement computer, data connection components, and another satellite phone…. so maybe I will still be allowed aboard.

Please understand that with my departure, updates to the website will have to wait until I return. EXCEPT for updates to this Blog, which Carol will maintain in my absence. She wants you to know that she is not an expert, and please bear with her.

In case you can’t tell by looking at your computer screen, I am EXCITED and can’t wait to join the group.

Till later,

Dave

After breakfast this morning in Cambridge Bay, Eric and Jim visited an archaeological dig with Brendan Griebel. Brendan is a warm and energetic student at the University of Toronto, working on a graduate degree in archeology. The Thule Inuit campsite dates back to the 14Th Century and has spurred debate about the reasons for an eastern migration of Thule Inuit across the Arctic. Some of Brendan’s colleagues speculate that the search for precious metals such as copper and gold, which were valued as currency during that period, sent these hearty people on their journey. Thank you Brendan, for your time and for sharing your passion with us. Good luck with your thesis.

Meanwhile Doug was busy with multiple expedition related chores including more needed repairs to that darn camera equipment. He twice again proved his indispensability to the team with a quick troubleshoot and repair of a binding elevator on 67DN and a masterful field soldering job on a camera connector with a nice assist from Jim.

Mark slept in 2SF again for security reasons. Not to be out-gunned, this time he enlisted the help of one of Canada’s finest, RCMP Con. Greg Deagle. Con. Deagle came down to survey the scene at the seaplane base and graciously promised to patrol regularly, which allowed Mark to get some sleep. Con. Deagle has only been in the North a few weeks, having transferred from Merritt, BC. He is adapting well however, and looks forward to reuniting with his wife and three kids soon, as they start their new life in Cambridge Bay. We are impressed with the commitment to duty of these fine officers of the RCMP. Especially the friendly and professional way in which they connect with the residents and visitors in the communities they serve. They provide a safe presence all across Canada. Thanks again to Greg and Sgt. Louie Jenvenne, the station commander, for all their help.

Mark spent the morning tending to airplanes beached at the mouth of the river which had to be moved every few minutes because of the full moon flood tide (app. 6 feet), while catching up on paperwork and checking the weather in Resolute.

It was mixed news. While the ceilings were the best we had seen in the last four days, the occasional low ceilings and visibilities in mist and snow could make for some troublesome VFR (visual flight rules) flying. Winter is arriving in the Arctic. After some well thought-out risk analysis with spirited and honest debate, the decision was made to press on for Resolute.

These are not easy decisions. Wait or go? Wait for how long? Hours? Days? Do we really expect it to get better? When? If we go, go for how long? And into what kind of conditions? Will there be unfrozen lakes in which to land in the event we run into un-flyable weather? The only two reporting stations for nearly 400 nautical miles are Cambridge Bay, our departure point, and Resolute. We knew little of the conditions between the stations. What we did know is that this leg would be our longest to date, would include three pack ice choked open water crossings of between 20 and 45 miles, would be flown into a sub-freezing northerly head wind, stretch the fuel limits of our machines as well as the physical limits of our team, over some of the harshest land we will encounter. And so our five hour odyssey began.

Donning dry suits and life vests, with the survival raft within easy reach (in the unlikely event of an uncontrolled ditching), we broke water just before 3:00 local. Dipping the wings one last time to our good friends at High Arctic Lodge, John, Fred and Bill, we headed NE across the char invested lakes region of the south end of Victoria Island.

We had planned our route of flight not in a direct line, but in a line that would minimize the time over open water. At Pelly Point (70d.35m.N, 100d.30m.W) we started our first crossing to the SW corner of Prince of Wales Island, via Gateshead Island at 4500 feet. McClintock Channel was a spectacular patchwork of floating pack ice. While it was beautiful and at the same time a bit ominous, the ice actually interrupted the channel’s fetch, making most of the open water quite land-able for the mighty Beaver. We could take some comfort.

Prince of Wales Island was long and flat, with the odd musk ox and snow flurry. Low ceilings required some tundra running at 1000 feet. The highlands of Young Bay and Pandora Island (there must be quite a story behind that name!) were amazing, and warrant a visit on another trip.

The 20 mile crossing of Peel Sound from Pandora Island (72d.55m.N, 96d.40m.W) to Somerset Island was the wild one, flown at 1200 feet. The ice was cleared out and the great Northerly combined with a 60 mile fetch down a 20-30 mile wide slot made for some great Straits of Juan de Fuca-like rollers. Eric and I diverted our attention by discussing whether or not his odd behavior could be explained by a bad case of hypoxia brought on by the tight fitting neck line of his dry suit. We both agreed that at whatever the cost, it was quite a fashion statement and would be a hit on the Santa Cruz waterfront.

Somerset Island was another outer-worldly place that made our jaws drop. As the pesky snow flurries pounded the landscape and the airframe, high rocky cliffs, deep cut lakes and two large pods (50 to 100 whales each including several small calves) of belugas, feeding feverishly in shallow water off the rocks, slid by underneath the EDO’s. (EDO is the brand of floats that we use on our Beavers.)

At the north end of Somerset Island, 48 miles out, we made contact with Resolute Airport Radio. They were expecting us. The final crossing of Barrow Strait was back to a patchwork pack ice, intermixed with small bergs and our nemesis, snow flurries. We sighed with relief as we rounded snow-capped Griffith Island and spotted the village of Resolute.

While Mark and Doug always keep in close communication while flying, this leg had an unusually large amount of quiet time over the radio. Perhaps keeping track of each other is becoming second nature. Or perhaps our close-knit team of four was taking time out to individually contemplate our reasons for this undertaking, at this special place and time. The combination of the reliable drone of the Pratt, the new (to us at least) natural wonders, the ominous weather with harsh landscapes, and maybe even a little bit of fear, set our minds at work in introspective, perhaps healthy ways. Did we all take a step forward today?

It was at this point, rounding Griffith Island, with our objective securely in sight, that our plane to plane chatter increased. The excitement of arriving at this remote place and the realization of what we had just witnessed interrupted our quiet musings. We were happy.

We were pleasantly surprised to find Resolute Lake deep and sheltered, the perfect place to park the Beavers. We touched down gently, closed our flight-of-two flight plan and taxied back to a grand welcoming committee of Ozzie, Aleeasuk, Tony, Tagga and Ludy waiting to help on the beach. (More on our Resolute friends later as it is now 1:30 AM.) Smiles were exchanged, hugs and handshakes all around. Weary and hungry, Ozzie and Aleeasuk arranged for a late night meal and some warm beds. Thus ends another astounding day on the GAAA trail.

This just in from Norma….

A local Eastern Washington Internet Newspaper caught up with Vince at Edmonton Alberta Airport for a live interview of his experience over the last 10 days and being part of the Great GAAA team. Click on http://www.golakechelan.com/?%20name=News&file=article&sid=7525 to hear the interview.

A very special thank you to the crew of the Eureka Weather Station for sending us pictures of the current ice conditions at the station. This view is of the station shoreline. A picture is definitely worth a thousand words. The remaining pictures will be posted on the “Picture Library” later today

Dave

As we reluctantly unzipped our less-then-toasty sleeping bags and poked our heads out into the vast arctic we were dismayed to find our carefully engineered shelter blown down and scattered over the tundra. Seems the shelter was built to survive winds from the east, but when the wind changed to the west it fell like the tower of Babel. Another lesson we’ve learned in the arctic: the winds change both frequently and unpredictably.

Unfortunately, the weather to Resolute continued to be hostile, so we stood around and exchanged ideas on how to keep warm as we considered our options. In addition to the normal VFR flight planning process, we consider other factors including:

- Since there are no intermediate fueling locations, if the wind changes to the worst case condition can we still make the destination with adequate reserves? In many cases this requires us to take extra fuel in Jerry cans that we can use to refuel. (Requires setting down on a lake)
- For ocean crossings, what is the water condition in case of a forced landing? If the seas are too large for landing, what is the ceiling and how high can we fly to minimize the exposure?
- If we are crossing the open water for any distance, all crew members must have their dry suits on, and the life rafts must be readily accessible.
- For ocean landings such as those at Resolute and Cambridge Bay, what is the tide condition, and how does it affect the landing zone?
- We are finding that the arctic lakes, though numerous are very shallow, so surveying the lake closely before landing is a must.

So today, after evaluating all of these factors, we decided to follow the lead of all brave men and retreat to Cambridge Bay to fly another day. Sadly, we said good bye to Vince, who returned to the lower forty eight today. Vince was a tremendous contributor to the flights, a great chef, and kept us thoroughly entertained with his humorous comments. Vince, we will miss you!

In a strange development, Mark’s hair dryer has become one of the most popular items on the trip. Given Mark’s buzz cut, we are not quite sure why he has chosen to bring this styling appliance, but it has been very useful as a heater to dry one’s boots, clothes, and body while in the cabin of our beached seaplanes. (We have a portable generator for a power source.)

As we packed up to leave, a flock of hearty Glaucous Gulls skulked about in hopes that our vacated campsite may render some meager scraps of food for their consumption. Speaking of birds here is our list of sightings so far: (This is for you, Allison Schoening)

Tundra Swan
Canada Goose (No, the Canadians have not exported all of them to the states)
Brant Goose
Bald Eagle
Red Tailed Hawk
Sanderling
Snowy (?) Owl
Peregrine Falcon
Cormorant
Glaucous Gull

Our shout out tonight is to Dave Good, webmaster, engineer, planner, and general renaissance man who has done a fantastic job of keeping the technology end of the undertaking ticking. As I say this, Dave is frantically trying to find a replacement for our blogging laptop which got dunked (complete with Sat phone modem) In the meantime, our blogs may be less frequent, giving you all a chance to do something useful with your time.

Signing off from Cambridge Bay,

Jim

The fact that I am “hunt and pecking” this blog with stiff index fingers
inside wet gloves may give you some idea of our current weather conditions.
Throughout the night the wind continued to blow, and as we crawled out of
our tents this morning we were greeted by our nemesis: low ceilings and poor
visibility. In an effort to raise spirits and body temperatures, Vince
assisted by the GAAA crew cooked up a hearty breakfast of eggs, bacon, and
oatmeal.

Through the course of the day, temperatures dropped to slightly above
freezing, and the wind increased to 20 knots, with occasional light snow and
rain showers. Next on the agenda was to build an impromptu shelter from the
wind and driving rain. Here is our recipe:

(2) camera tripods
(1) camera monopod
(1) fishing rod case
(2) Paddles from the Beavs
(1) tarp
Miscellaneous pieces of rope and twine

Lash paddles together, suspend between tripods, place fish rod case and
monopod forward as pillars, lash together with rope and cover with tarp.
Presto, instant shelter, which works well enough but does require frequent
shoring up as the wind speed increases. Upon completing this marvel of
modern day engineering, we sat back to enjoy the view, and we were not
disappointed. Presently, two Caribou wandered by a couple of hundred yards
from our vantage point. Mark set off on a flanking maneuver to move them
closer to our waiting lenses, but to no avail. The wary creatures quickly
ascertained his strategy and fled to the north.

Around mid-morning, Mark, Doug, and Eric departed for a mission to access
the depth of a nearby channel we will need for take-off. Along the way we
threw a line in the water and landed two very large Arctic Char, which is to
say that Mark hooked them and let Eric and I reel them in. We ended up with
well over ten pounds of fillets, which went on to provide several hours of
entertainment as we gorged ourselves on various preparations, including
garlic Char, brown sugar Char, Johhny’s Seasoning Char, Lawrey’s seasoning
char, butter Char, olive oil Char, and lemon char. We then waddled to our
tents to warm up and catch an afternoon Arctic nap.

As I am writing this, the weather is clearing as the temperature continues
to drop. Vince and Jim are entertaining us with their corny Irish accents
with one liners such as “It’s a fine day in the Arctic, Lads”. I can’t quite
get the juxtaposition, but strange things go on in the arctic.

Our shout out tonight is to Robbi DeVries (me wee wife – the Irish thing is
spreading), for her fantastic job at keeping us well fed through her well
planned food logistics.

Doug & the GAAA Team.

The most recent ice report received from Eureka:

“Updated conditions. Winds have become light from the north. This has caused the fiord to fill with ice. There is no place to land off shore.”

Hopefully this will change for the better as Doug and Mark get closer…..

Dave