I have to confess, I didn't really know what to expect when we started out on this adventure. I didn't know what the Arctic looked like. The immensity and grandeur of it surprised me. With binoculars we spotted bears jumping between the flat ice sheets of a hugh ice field and I thought, oh so this icy water is the Arctic. Yesterday we traveled up a fjord with mountains raising up from the open sea. We kayaked around baby ice bergs and chunks of sea ice, and I thought, oh, so this is the Arctic. Today we sailed up into Coutts Inlet and everything got bigger again. Jagged mountains rise out of the sea and huge glaciers are at work carving valleys. High water falls and tumbling cascades carry the cold glacier melt down to the sea, and I though, oh all of this icy, cold bigness is the Arctic.
Now that we've been on the ship and on a couple of zodiac excursions, we understand how these things work. We've become seasoned expedition adventurers. This morning, Michael, the leader of the expedition team announced over the ship announcement system that we would be making 2 landings one before lunch and one after. Being a seasoned expeditioner, we knew that meant we would be taking the zodiacs right up onto the shore and getting out for a hike. How exciting! As we were preparing for the first landing, a second announcement followed, a bear was visible on the starboard side of the ship. We hustled into our warm layers and headed to the observation deck. There on the shore was a small creamy white spot.
While it was exciting to see a bear, the zodiac plans had to be modified. The landing that was supposed to take place on the starboard side was cancelled. We took off our layers and waited for an update. When it came we learned that we would landing on the port side and hiking to a glacier, but first, the bear team would have to check the area for bears. We watched and waited, and waited some more. We watched the zodiacs go up and down the shoreline at the base of a glacier. We watched the expeditio team scurrying around like ants before a storm. They needed to check and recheck the area for bears before we could go ashore. So we waited. Finally, we received the announcements that the first zodiac group should proceed to the mud room. Yay, we were off like a heard of turtles (what's the Arctic equivalent to a turtle?). The zodiacs ferried us over to shore where the expedition team had set up flags marking the trail to the glacier. It wasn't far, but it was uphill and rocky. The wait was well worth it!!
When we told our grandson Owen that we were going to the North Pole, he ask if we would seeHOHO? We did!!
It's 12:30 at night and I can still see mountains on Baffin Island in the distance, but we've left the protection of the inlet and the slow rocking of the ship is putting me to sleep. Good night from the Arctic.
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