Arctic/Antarctic Travel - Not for Fun Seekers!

Hello! After a month of some real fun I'm back with another post, not before happily sharing with my readers that I have been granted three more awards, this time at the Better Photography Photo of the Year competition - One Silver Award and two Bronze Awards. I'm very happy and will show all those pictures in a future post.

So, I think I have managed to convince a few people who follow my writing that there could be some form of fun on Arctic and Antarctic expeditions. Yet, most people, when I tell them about my Arctic Fever, immediately look for signs of toughness - strong muscles (which I'm always happy to show off); rough voice (only before I clear my throat); and a very manly attitude (you'll be the judge).

So I guess my campaign to convince all of you that there is a huge aspect of fun in all this is still going on! In this post, we will try to validate this claim. (click on any photo to enlarge it)

1. Arctic travel is tough, long, physically challenging, and you get no afternoon naps!

Think of it this way: you have 24 hours of light. You can kayak for 12, hike for 5, take a nap for 1 hour, and still get a good night's sleep!

2. Canoes are for carrying people, and not the other way around!

Not on Bowron Lakes Canoe Circle, where you start and finish at the same point. Unless you're Escher, you must climb a bit before you set down the river and the lake, don't you think? And so portage is an essential part of the trip, where your canoe gets to be the spoiled one.

3. There are no Mosquitoes in the Arctic (or sub-Arctic) because it's all frozen up.

4. Nobody in their right mind will jump from a ship into a Zodiac over the Arctic Ocean

Oops - I missed the Zodiac!

5. There's no Joe's Cafe on Ellesmere Island

But there's Jaw's Cafe! What else is a whale's jaw good for, if not decorating an Arctic cafe?

6. Can't fall asleep without reading his five pages - Even in Antarctica? No problem

7. The crew and guides on Arctic trips are those tough, rough, crazy Russian or Canadian Macho Males

Read books I recommend about the Arctic by clicking here

Diving Into The Arctic Ocean: Should You?

Let me put it this way: if your friends did not get the message, and did not in fact think you're crazy by going to the Arctic Ocean aboard an old Russian icebreaker on a kayaking trip; and if you desperately want to rectify this and make sure they think you are indeed out of your mind - Then the answer is YES. Same answer if you like seeing raised eyebrows.

Look at this photo below. We were returning from a long paddle to our home ship during a kayaking trip around Svalbard (Spitsbergen) and decided that it would be really cool (what a choice of word!) to dive into the water from the deck. Obviously, the Arctic Fever bug had us by then! This is my friend Steve practicing his Yoga on the way to the water. Although I suspect his Om turned into Oye, my very talented finger captured him at just the right moment:

By the way, this was a moment that showed me how much digital photography had changed the world: just a few years back, people would look at a nice Photoshop work and comment "it looks like a real picture!"; when people see this photo above, they usually comment "it looks like a real Photoshop work!". Oh well. For the record: no Photoshop work on this one.

Was it cold? The Arctic ocean (as well as the Antarctic one) is at roughly 31F (0C). It only freezes at 28F because the water is salty. Thank God it wasn't too cold that day - Can you imagine diving like that into a sheet of ice? Was it painful? Let's look at how happy and groggy I looked when jumping off the deck:

(again, no Photoshop on this pic) and how I looked when my feet, hands and head realized that scientific fact of 31F:

For sure, with the little blood in my brain that was still liquid, I could ponder "am I stupid?" The truth is, the water  IS cold. But look at it this way: no sharks; killer whales really like plankton better; and polar bears would shy away from a thin person like me. Besides - I got my chance to convince some people I must be crazy!

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