Finally made it to the Ice!!!!

We spent about five days working in the Arctic and I just about thought I would never get to see any ice. But finally the other day we went more north and there were patches of pancake ice everywhere! It was really great and I am especially very lucky because I get to work on the barge where we had an opportunity to get up close and personal with the ice. We went right up to the ice and took pictures touching it and fooled around licking it and inspecting it as if we have never seen ice before. But you know...how many opportunities will I really get to have this great experience so it sure did seem new and exciting. Plus after spending days in the cold open ocean without a sign that we were in the Arctic it was a blessing to have ice everywhere.

Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS Amundsen)

I made it to the ship and we are in the Arctic! Things have been hectic and I hope to have more time soon to share this experience and to make sure I document it to remember everything. Below are a few pictures. We took the small place from Inuvik to Sachs Harbor, and then the Canadian Coast Guard Helicopter to the ship. I sometimes work off of the barge which is about a 25 foot barge that is attached to the ship when not in use. When we are ready to go take the optical measurements of the ocean we deploy the barge into the water and walk down a ladder onto it from the main ship. I will show more pictures soon, but because I am on the barge I am able to take pictures of the ship, The Amundsen just like the one below.

More to come soon. I need to get some sleep!!!!!!

Jimmy Adams Peace Trail

This part of the Trans Canada Trail is very close to my hotel (http://maps.tctrail.ca/). It surrounds Boot Lake and also has views of the Mackenzie River. I am surprised at all the wildflowers. It has also been so warm here, and when I talk to the locals they say that the summer has been very cold but this week was the first week to have warm weather. Lucky me!










These are the tall skinny trees that are seen everywhere here. Flying into Inuvik there are forests of these trees that go on for miles. To me they look like something out of a Dr. Suess book.








Inuvik Cemetery

Stumbling upon this was quite a surprise. I spent a lot of time exploring the cemetery because I was so interested in it. Instead of walking past many sites belonging to people who have lived a long life, I was walking past so many young deaths. Babies, children, teenagers, and young adults. I am still trying to understand the deaths and asking questions when I get the opportunity. Looks like a lot of people drown in the river or there are a lot of problems here with mental disease, alcoholism, and drug abuse. I notice in the grocery store how sad the very young girls that work there seem to be. I can't seem to figure it out yet and I want to simply ask one of them why they look so sad, but I don't seem to have it in me. This is their place and I am a visitor. I am enjoying this opportunity to be apart of such a different kind of place.

I made it to Inuvik!

My hotel. Notice it is not built directly on the ground but rather up a little on stilts. This is because Inuvik is mostly permafrost (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permafrost) and all structures need to be above ground to prevent excess heat from warming the ground too much which can have many consequences to the structure of buildings and even the environment. Below is a picture flying into Inuvik.




Summer wildflowers growing alongside the roadway.


Inuvik is not quite what I expected. I was envisioning a small village with a few quaint restaurants and market. Sort of like the kind of place you stumble upon on a long road trip and you are delighted to see people and unique stores, bars, and restaurants. There are restaurants (3 of them to be exact and 2 are inside of a hotel) and a market here, but the look and feel of it wasn't expected. Not to say that I don't like it, because I always love to check out new places. I just know that I would never be able to live here, which is probably the first time I have thought that before. Maybe I will change my mind once I get a chance to explore more. I can't wait to see the countryside and the river delta and hopefully some more wild animals!


Here are a couple houses in town. A lot of them used to look like with with all of the bright colors, but now there are not as many left. I thought they looked really interesting.


This truck is a Fresh Produce Store. You can see the sign out front. This guy drives the produce all the way from Edmonton, which is about 2000 miles away! He comes about once every few weeks. I didn't get a chance to go in the truck store yet but I went into the grocery store and the produce was really really bad, old, and expensive. For dinner tonight I grabbed a salad from the carry out pizza place and it cost $14.00. The things we take for granted!


A famous church here in Inuvik.


I was told by the cab driver not to eat at this restaurant. So that leaves what...only two places to get food? haha. I am thinking of upgrading my room to a suite so that I can buy some groceries and make dinners. This place has poutine (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poutine). It looks like something I would only want after a long night out!

Leaving Edmonton

This morning I left a place that felt so familiar and comfortable. I would love the opportunity to come back and explore more and I am grateful for the day I was able to be there. I have been to Canada in the past once to Montreal and to Vancouver. Both of which felt like Canada I suppose one would say. I definitely knew I wasn't in a US city when visiting either. However, something about Edmonton was as if I were in a city in the US with only one difference of course, the currency. It was a really cool town and the area of Old Strathcona was exactly my kind of place. All sorts of people and styles blending together making the community jive. There was definitely a cool music scene going on and I wish I made it to see Steve Bays of Hot Hot Heat do a DJ show at a local bar for only 5 bucks! I went to the National Park instead and loved that equally as much. I needed that sense of relaxation and aloneness. In a few days I will be living on a ship with 40 scientists and the ships' crew!

Edmonton, Alberta

Flew into Edmonton, Alberta yesterday. I am staying in the neighborhood called Old Strathcona. It is an area with boutiques, bars, and bistros! Spent the afternoon walking around town in the warm weather. It has been very warm here this weekend, just how I like it!




Today I walked to the city center and went to the Taste of Edmonton. I had a garlic tomato salad, Canada Maki, and a Rickards White Beer. Then I walked to the Muttart Conservatory to check out all of the flowers and plants. I spent time taking lots of pictures and my favorite ones are of the orchids. I walked back to the hotel and by now it was about 5:30 pm. Just in time for the hotel's free wine and cheese happy hour so I had a few glasses of wine made in British Columbia.










Because it stays light out here longer (sunset at 9:45 pm) I figured I would take a drive to the Elk Island National Park. It was a good choice and I was definitely impressed. I drove to a sandy lake beach and watched the sunset. One of the best I have seen in a long time and reminded me of when I would watch the sunset in California. On the drive back out of the park I assumed I would have been through it without seeing a buffalo. But sure enough as I approached a curve in the road a huge buffalo was about eight feet away from me! It was so cool to see him just chillin out and eating the grass. He didn't even seem to care one bit that I was taking his picture.