Through the NW Passage & a small aurora

Sadly the sea-ice is now well behind us, but we still have lots of exploring to do! Yesterday as I ate breakfast looking out at the eastern shore of remote Banks Island, I realised that very few people have stood on this island. In a couple of hours, we would join those in history who have done so.

The skies were a mix of puffy white and streaky grey clouds with some blue sky visible – temperature was around freezing and there was a strong wind driving a few white caps on the sea. The land around these islands is quite shallow, so we were anchored about 1.5km off-shore – a long zodiac ride with quite a bit of spray. But that’s why we’re wearing waterproof jackets, pants and muck boots whenever we’re in the zodiacs, along with our life-jackets, hats, gloves and backpacks!

Our landing in Jesse Bay was a shallow, pebbly/small-rock site with the land stretching out on either side along the shore and ahead of us towards gentle hills – all sprinkled with a light dusting of snow. Each time we land we remove backpacks, take off our life-jackets, put them in a large bag and put our backpacks back on. Then we head off in groups according to how fast or slow we want to walk.

Our very large & unwieldy “contemplative” group from the day before, was now a manageable 12-15 people with Dutch leading (with firearm & polar bear scarers) and Cecilie coming along behind.

As we walked up off the beach we could see a small frozen lake ahead, and beyond that an inlet. Beautiful grasses, plants heading into dormancy and goose tracks surrounded the lake. In the distance we could see white geese and goslings on the edge of the distant inlet. Later we saw them take to the skies – honking as they flew south. We also heard a Loon – a beautiful haunting sound.

We walked up the hills – the ground was “gently” frozen mud, firm and easy to manage. Dutch pointed out lemming burrows and as we climbed higher, we saw tracks and scat from musk-ox, caribou & geese. I saw an unusual clump of rocks above us – in fact there were two when we climbed higher. They seemed to be placed there deliberately, possibly as a “meat locker” to preserve food high above the swampy lower-lying land – normally there’d be an Inukshuk visible as a marker below this site, but this might have been knocked over or worn down over the years.

As we started down into a small valley we could see large mounds of clumps of soil surrounded by snow - each large mound was about 4-5 meters long and maybe 2 meters wide. The clumps are formed by small plants growing with soil around their roots, and retaining this form through the winter freeze despite the plants becoming dormant. It’s a fascinating phenomenon – more easily described with photos!

It was a beautiful walk, and soon time to head back to the ship ahead of our afternoon excursion and briefings. I chose to stay in for the afternoon, relaxing while doing some photo editing & processing. However I did notice a very localised snow storm hitting the next section of Banks Island that we were due to visit – it was nice to stay inside.

The evening sky was clearing – perhaps, just perhaps we might see an aurora. Of course my “Aurora app” is not functional at the moment, so it was back to the old technology of going outside and looking at the sky!

Around 11pm, my cabin-mate came in to tell me that the moon was looking magnificent. Hmm – not good for seeing an Aurora – but we were stationary and would be until around 4am. I dressed, put parka, hat & gloves on – grabbed my very small tripod, set the camera with “aurora settings” and went out the back and up to deck 7. I could see a white streak across the sky – definitely not cloud, but the moon and the ship’s deck lights made photographing it very difficult.

So to the Bridge, where I surprised the crew – they kindly turned off the deck lights outside the rear of the bridge, but by now clouds were coming across the sky. I managed some shots; not great, but definitely a low level aurora. We’re hopeful that as we travel further west, we will get better views. But so far this evening clouds are totally covering the sky.

Today we left Prince of Wales Strait behind us, and travelled to Sachs Harbour in the Amundsen Gulf – we are essentially through the NW Passage now! Yay!!

Sachs Harbour is a small Inuit community of around 90 people. They welcomed us very warmly, and it was a treat visiting various parts of their village, spending time with them at their Rec Centre and doing a little retail therapy. I haven’t yet looked at photos – but I hope to have captured some of the flavour of their town. Then it was a long, cold zodiac ride back to the ship and to the warmth of the KK.

During our “recap & briefing” this evening, our historian, Huw, provided an update from the eastern end of the NW Passage. I expect you’re aware that the HMS Terror has been found after 169 years. This, together with the relatively recent discovery of the HMS Erebus, will help answer many questions about the lost Franklin Expedition. Huw showed us photos released today by the search team – it’s an amazing to see the ship so well-preserved – what an extraordinary time to be in this part of the world!

Tonight is an “in-cabin” evening for me – sometimes it’s nice to have a quiet evening away from the bustle of others on the ship. Of course, if the sky should clear, I will be out Aurora hunting!

We are crossing the Amundsen Gulf right now, gently rolling with the wind and the waves. Clocks go back another hour this evening, and tomorrow we’ll be at “Smoking Hills” in Franklin Bay. Then we head west across the top of Canada.