Arctic exploration Aug 20-25

NOTE: Internet is pretty dismal. I have lots to share but the majority of the photos will have to wait til I get home – sorry!

The last 5 days have been a nonstop tsunami of wildlife experiences, stunning scenery, visits to local communities, a back of the house tour (how do you keep salad greens fresh for 3 weeks?!) and more information about what we’ve been seeing than I can absorb. 

For those who haven’t been on an exploration type cruise, schedules are, shall we say, fluid.  In between zodiac trips there are 2-4 talks a day by the dozen naturalists on board that cover every aspect – biology, geology, cultural anthropology, history, etc.  when there isn’t a sighting of a polar bear, a narwhal, a beluga, walrus, etc.  Yes, we’ve gotten to see them all.  

There are only 102 passengers on board (and 98 crew).  When the captain or one of his officers or a naturalist or a passenger see something of interest, chances are very high that we stop, slow down, or at least get an announcement about it.  A crew member runs a camera on the bow that tracks whatever we’re viewing and the feed comes onto our big screen tv’s in the cabins.  (And, each cabin has an iPad mounted on the wall with the current nautical map that shows where we are at all times.). The result of a sighting announcement is that the majority of 102 passengers head to the doors and windows.  Based on the ship’s design, there is ample viewing opportunity for everyone at all times.  

BTW I am VERY impressed with the above and beyond adherence to the Arctic Exploration rules

One indicator of the uniqueness of an experience is how many of the crew (waitstaff, housekeepers, etc.) also head outside.  Meals stop, talks go out the window, and an occasional robe is seen.  Joe, the earth sciences professor, keeps informal track of the indicator – one of our high points he counted 10 staff.  And these are a crew that have been with Nat Geo/Lindblad for years.  

In no particular order, here are the highlights from the last 4 days:

A mother polar bear and cub (who played with a chunk of ice) who kept approaching the boat close enough we could watch them without binoculars

Narwhals (Ron was able to capture their tusks in a couple of his photos)

Belugas – and a polar bear that tried to catch one

Walrus swimming with narwhals

A talk, with video, of the Nat Geo/Lindblad trip of Aug 2014, where the ship (The Explorer) on our same trip had to call for an icebreaker to continue her voyage

A night in an “igloo”

A visit to a community (Pond Inlet – population 1700) where the residents demonstrated some of the dances and competitive games they enjoy all year round but especially during the 3 or so months of complete darkness.  This was the first such “cultural” visit I can ever remember where it was clear it wasn’t strictly a performance for tourists – they had such fun it didn’t matter that we were there or not

The burial site of the first 4 members of Franklin’s crew who perished – btw there was agreement that these 4 were the lucky ones

A fascinating and poignant talk by Mary, an Inuit resident who traveled with us for a few days

A visit to an untouched 450 year old archeological site where the homes were built using whale bones

A talk by one of the Nat Geo photographers on his Meet the North project with a journalist (meetthe north.org) which covered their excursions to several Arctic communities (non-Google-able stories up until their reporting)

A zodiac trip through the Canadian arctic fjords

We’re at sea now on the way to Greenland.