Image - Zak ShawSunset whilst crossing Davis Straight.
Back into it! My 2006 arctic season had begun in such a rush, it was one of those oportunities you just have to take. From California I had flown within a 36 hour period of being offered the job to a small airbase and the settlement of Resolute on Cornwallis Island. The two voyages went by quickly and before I knew it my focus was suddenly all directed towards Tibet and our Parlung Tsangpo descent.
I didn't have alot of time to look back and reflect on my time in the Arctic.
This year Im in the Arctic with Peregrine for two months running a sea kayaking program off an expedition cruise ship called the Akedemik Ioffe.
"Zak's work area" Ive been out on deck alot the last few days making repairs to the sea kayak fleet. Its sporadic though as our wildlife sightings have been exceptional.
Heavy ice restricted our planned route. An Inuit town by the name of Pangnitung on Baffin Island has a big reputation for fine art and local crafts but our hopes of getting ashore were shut down by a large band of sea ice in Cumberland Bay.Image - Male Polar Bear on a small ice flow. We have seen 10 bears like this one in our first six days in the 07 Arctic season.
Image Zak Shaw"Crusin" amazing sunset are certainly common in the Arctic
Humpback WhaleImage Zak Shaw
After crossing the Arctic circle we arrived at Greenlands coastline late last night. At 6am we steeped down the gangway a few miles outside of a town called Aassiat. Calm sea conditions meant we could load into the kayaks from a small rocky beach. A few large bergs sat in the small sheltered bays around us. We paddled for an hour before receiving notice that Humpback whales were in the bay. The sound of whales surfacing and spurting plumes of spray from their blowholes indicated their position. For the next hour they surfaced many times around us!
