Students on Ice: Day 1 & 2: Ice Breakers & Breaking the Ice
While there were a few still to arrive, it seems like friendships are already forming and excitement was racing as we discussed the adventure that lies ahead.
(C) Carolyn Dawe, WWF-Canada
Today, we flew like rock-stars. Our buses pulled on to the tarmac, and out we went to our private First Air flight to Iqaluit. As we began our descent, I got my first images of Nunavut, The landscape is scattered with lakes and rivers, and it was different than I imagined, though I can’t explain why. Rocky, and hilly, blue, brown, and green. So very alive. There are beautiful purple flowers lining the roads of the city (one of the staff botanists identified it as Dwarf Fire Weed), though we are waiting to find out the local Inuk name for it.
(C) Carolyn Dawe, WWF-Canada
Johnny Issaluk (aka. Johnny Awesome), a past Students on Ice alumni came and demonstrated the impressive art of Inuit High Kick. We also heard from Madeleine Redfern, the Mayor of Iqaluit, and a participant on this year’s trip, who spoke to us about the history of Iqaluit and some of the joys and challenges of living in the North. Tomorrow we will hike, tour the city, and begin the first of many workshops.
The ship-based portion of the trip is due to start Wednesday, though Frobisher Bay, the launching point for our trip, has been frozen over later than normal this year. While the bay normally is free of ice by July 6th, this years ice-pack has yet to dissipate. This could mean trouble for us, but late this evening we received the good news that our ship, the Akademik Ioffe, is currently being escorted in to the bay by the Terry Fox, a Canadian Coast Guard Ice-breaker. Hopefully tomorrow this time it will have arrived, and our ship can set sail!
