Jun 20, 2010 - Namibia

June 11, 2010 Namibia is a land of sun and desert. It has a desolate beauty that is moving in ways I wouldn't expect. There is so much sand, and rock, and grass that blows in the wind and shines in the sun. Running Our morning runs have become some of the best moments of each day. The first time in Namibia, we were running from our campsite outside of Fish River Canyon (which happens to be the second largest canyon in the world, second to the Grand Canyon). As we ran, several herds of springbox and orynx gazelle ran ahead of us. But the...

Apr 19, 2010 - Leaving Nunavut, and a short trip home...

Time is just flying... It's with mixed feelings that we prepare to leave the North for warmer destinations... We have had a great final month here. The days are now long and the weather less fierce now. We've had a few days where we haven't needed our parkas and have enjoyed the sunshine and bright skies in jeans and hoodies. We've been dog-sledding with Paige (the mayor's wife) who is training her pups for the dogsledding races coming up. It was such a great experience to help her feed and harness the pups, and then to watch them "learn"...

Mar 28, 2010 - Shaun sees polar bears

Yeah, so Shaun was keen to go up to Repulse Bay when he heard they were short a nurse. It's only for a week, and he can now say he has been within the Arctic Circle. On his first day he saw 3 polar bears!!! Here's an email he sent yesterday: Yeap, up here in the Artic Circle, -45 w the wind shield factored, snow limiting visibility.....I am going for a walk :) The Co-op is the closest store in Repulse Bay, with a population of 900 people. The cool stat is there are three "machines" (snow mobiles) to every truck (no cars). I will attempt a...

Mar 17, 2010 - Chesterfield Inlet

Chesterfield Inlet is the oldest settlement in the Kivalliq region of Nunavut. Although it was named after the 4th Earl of Chesterfield in 1749, the Inuktituk name is Igluligaarjiq, meaning "Place of a few houses". And few houses it has! With only 267 residents, this community is small and quiet. The people are really really gentle and friendly though, and I've been enjoying my time here immensely. The Hudson's Bay Company was established here by 1911, and by 1930 a "large" three-story hospital had been built in this little hamlet...

Mar 4, 2010 - Shaun's new skates

Shaun got new skates for his Birthday, and today was his first time trying them out. Shaun hasn't skated in Dogs Years! We're in the small hamlet of Chesterfield Inlet, population 267 in the flatlands of Nunavut. They DO have an arena, though, and Shaun and I joined in for "Public Skate" tonight. We were the only people over the age of, um, thirteen... and the kids were really quite taken with Shaun. He's good at skating forward, but needed a little work on his stops. The kids helped him out with this, and we all had a good laugh. He ended...

Feb 21, 2010 - Baker Lake and looking back at Rankin

February 21, 2010 It's the little things that are different here. Take pedestrian safety, for instance. The first thing I was told when I arrived in Baker Lake is to always walk facing the direction of skiidoo traffic, because you can't hear them from behind. Or "if you're ever being charged by a polarbear, just stand your ground until the last moment, step aside and hit the bear on the head with a rock" (apparently they can't turn very quickly). I've actually met an Elder here who has survived TWO polarbear attacks, based on this advice...

Feb 9, 2010 - Aurora Borealis

Feb 9, 2010 The Northern Lights were AMAZING tonight. They've been incredible the last six nights in a row, as a matter of fact. But tonight, we drove out of town and saw the green and blue lights just dancing - and at one point, it was like a green fireball blazing through the sky. According to Inuk legend, if you whistle at the Aurora Borealis, they will come down closer to you and dance. However, you mustn't whistle TOO much at them, or they will come right down and touch you, and you'll die. I have to say I found this to be true on...

Jan 26, 2010 - Arriving In Rankin Inlet

Jan 26, 2010: Life in Northern Canada is an experience that is so drastically different from my southwest home in BC, that it's hard to believe it's the same country! We arrived in a storm - not a full-fledge blizzard or anything, but winds were over 70km per hour in -39* temperatures (which feel like -50 when you factor the wind in). The flights were delayed (but not cancelled), and Shaun and I spent some time waiting for a connecting flight in Churchill, Manitoba. Churchill is known as the polar-bear capital of Canada, and I heard some...

Jan 4, 2010 - DREAM

DREAM Shaun and I have been "dreaming" and planning for a "year of travel" for over 12 months now, and it's hard to believe that this dream is becoming a reality. Taking a year "off" is no small undertaking, and has pushed us beyond our comfort zone on many fronts. I was granted a rare one-year Unpaid Leave of Absence from my job (which I love), but was prepared to lose my job to go on this adventure. Shaun had to quit his full-time line and go to a Casual position. Even now, it is the first week of January, and we still have not found...

Sep 1, 2008 - Welcome to Tent City, Cambridge Bay, Nunuvat

Well, Changing lights in a warehouse in the middle of Toronto may not have been a bad idea! No, just kidding but woah, I'm in for an experience! We are literally at the first stage of building a gold mine in the middle of nowhere in the Arctic. At the moment I am at a place called Robert's Bay, about 80km south of Cambridge Bay. The current accommodation consists of tents that house four people each, and the particular camp I'm in, called Matrix camp, has about about 20 odd of these plus extra long tents for the showers, meal room, toilets...