Expedition Update # 9 - Direct from the High-Arctic! These updates are composed on our sub-notebook computer, which is powered by solar panels courtesy of UNSW, then sent using software from Global Marine Networks, over a satellite mobile phone provided by Landwide Satellite Solutions. Thanks very much to all involved! Date: 26/7/05 Time: 11:00pm Position: 69.114 Deg N, 105.055 Deg W Summary: Time is ticking past... Location Map: Click the map to the left and a new browser window will open, directed to Google's new satellite maps feature. The map view will be centred on our current location. Zoom in for more detail. Weather: Cold, windy & rainy. Temperature: -2 to 6 deg C Message: Frustration regarding not having our kayaks is gradually mounting, with our hopes rising & falling with each passing day. We have now been in Cambridge Bay 15 days, and our kayaks are still in Vancouver. We have, however, had a major victory in that area - thanks SO very much to a great deal of patience, dedication & understanding from the lawyer representing the striking truckers, Mr Craig Patterson, Jannine from 'Eculine Canada' - a carrier company, and Paul Mahal at Black Swan Trucking Inc. who have been working tirelessly to free our kayaks for us & organise their transport - our kayaks are no longer stuck on the wharf in Vancouver! By the time this rescue squad swung into action, our shipping container was buried beneath 6 others stacked high on the now clogged wharf. These 6 containers were moved, ours extracted, put on a truck, driven through the picket-line and delivered to our container handler. As this was going on I was interviewed live by CBC Radio (Equiv of ABC National Radio in Australia) with their introduction of "Vancouver businesses are losing $30 mill a day from this truckers strike, touring performers can't get to their instruments, etc etc, but it looks like an exception is being made for two Australian Kayakers, one of which we have on the phone...." Awesome. =) We can't believe how lucky we are. Thanks again to those mentioned above. Our kayaks are unpacked, and just this morning Nancy Curry from 'Diamonds North' back in Vancouver very kindly made an appointment with Canadian Customs and went down to have our kayaks cleared. Thanks! They are now on a truck heading to Edmonton! The next available plane to deliver our kayaks here from Edmonton is Thursday 28th July, and we want two days to pack & re-pack, so we are looking at Saturday 30th July as our starting date... Suddenly it seems very close! What have we got ourselves into? We just spoke with Bob - the pilot who's going to pick us up from our endpoint - and he said that end of September (65 days from now, our expected duration), will be fine for him to pick us up using a twin otter on 'tundra tires' (big wheels that let him land on the tundra). So at this stage we intend to follow our intended route, take the same 65 days, and all this two week delay should mean is that we will be facing somewhat harsher conditions in the last few weeks than we had anticipated. But then it never was going to be easy, so we're up for the challenge. =) In sympathy some friendly locals have offered to sew on some wolverine fur around the hoods of our jackets to keep us warmer. As always, we've been having an amazing time here these past few days - so many dinner invites that we need a social calendar to keep track of them all! Next dinner in 3hrs (and lunch is only just cooking... this whole 24hr sunlight is still messing with us.) We've been to a few parties & met some people our age, and even though this is a 'dry town' meaning no alcohol, magically there has been plenty flowing.... It's amazing how quickly you can sober up after a in a quick swim in the arctic ocean at 2:00 am! Good fun! When we hit lulls in our social-calendar we've been sleeping on the tundra out of town, further acclimatising & testing our gear. We awoke warm & cosy a few nights ago to find a layer of ice all over our sleeping bags (we didn't use a tent)! We were also investigated by 3 baby weasels - about 20cm long. They were so agile - leaping right up to us and then vanishing again only to re-appear 1/2 sec later from behind another rock 5m away. Take a look at the pic - so cute! Further building our confidence we managed to make a fire using dried musk-ox dung & dry arctic heather (no trees around here!), so all is not lost if we run out of fuel out there... All this outdoor behaviour has managed to leave Clark with a whopper blister on his heel - nearing the size of a small lemming, this blister has to be seen to be believed! He's been hobbling 'round like an old man. Yes, we are the two ultra-fit elite athletes from Australia going to walk across this island.... We brought 2 Frisbees with us to give as gifts to the kids of the community here as we left, but we couldn't hold out any longer and gave one to Erica yesterday - the little girl next door - now we need to show her how to use it =P At dinner the other night we met Yvonne, a lovely girl who turned out to be an amazing 'throat singer' - a traditional form of Inuit singing using the back of the throat - producing a very unique sound. After we listened in awe she agreed to visit our cabin so we can film & record her singing for use as a soundtrack for our doco - We feel very privileged! And at last - closure to the chocolate block issue - having tried to cut our 5kg blocks with an axe, a hand-saw, a jig-saw, banging it against rocks, hammer & chisel, biting, abusing, calling-names, and everything else short of drilling a hole and inserting a small explosive charge in the centre... Helen - A very friendly local Inuit lady lent us an Ulu (a traditional curved Inuit blade), and, to our amazement, it worked! We now have 130 little bags, each individually tied, containing 124 grams of chocolate - one each for 65 days. Yum! So we're lapping up the last of civilisation (Daily showers etc), kayaks on their way... and all is well! More later. Bye! (left - curious young weasel, right - ice forms on Clark's sleeping bag & mat as we sleep out on the tundra) (Clark sheltering from the snow & wind, crouching in the doorway to our tent, just 5m out of Cambridge Bay - testing out our new Exped tent for the first time) Back to updates list To send us a message, please contact us anytime!