Today our travel has been hampered by a
low pressure system that has brought gusty winds and unpredictable
seas, together with generally horrible precipitation. It hasn't
been too cold, it's just wet and gloomy and visibility was
minimal. Although the clock is ticking, and we are always
trying to stay ahead of the scheduled progress so that we have
margin for unexpected trouble. We chose to hole up in
Cambridge Bay for the morning, where the local community
looked after us with hot tea and big smiles. The Inuit people
across Nunavut have been truly gracious. They have
consistently helped us and made everything work. They've
carried 45 gallon barrels of gasoline down to the beach for
us, after bringing it to the seaside in a borrowed pick-up
truck. They've offered us gifts and stories and words
of warning. Folklore and story-telling are clearly
parts of the local culture. And everyone has been
wonderfully gracious to Bear, who is of course recognized
in every settlement we come to, as they know
him from TV and I think they feel an innate bond
with him because their lives are truly wilderness adventures in
their own right.
We left Cambridge Bay in mid-afternoon,
and took time out to motor over to the historic wreck of Amundson's
third Northwest Passage ship which is mostly submerged but still
visible at low tide on the Eastern shore of the harbour. We then
proceeded out into the open waters of Dease Strait, and put behind
us 90 nautical miles and the journey turned out to
be a really special time, with dramatic skies
and surprisingly tame seas. We made rendezvous with
the ice breaking vessel supporting us, which has
been attempting an East to West passage and has been
a huge friend to our expedition in so many ways. We spent
a few hours aboard, only to be confronted with building winds from
the West, causing the ship to drag anchor. We were forced
to set the RIB back out to sea in the pitch black of night, in
winds gusting to 35 knots, whilst the ship set course for
deeper waters and shelter on the northern side of the channel.
After the prospect of a night at sea in stormy waters, I'm glad to
report that we found safe anchorage east of the Richardson Islands.
We will be on shifts through the night as we may have
to set off at any time if the weather deteriorates
further, but for the time being we are enjoying safe haven
and enjoying a display of Northern Lights.
Tomorrow the wind is expected to
build, and forecast shows 40 kph gusting to 60 kph from the
northwest, which will make for some very
wet, slammy and hard travel. But then the weather is
forecast to clear, and we hope the sun should pop through the
clouds in 24 hours. We have set a goal to get to the appropriately
named Camping Island by tomorrow evening where we can drop anchor,
set camp and dry out our kit by the fire, if we can find some
driftwood, which is surprisingly hard to come by.
We spend many hours talking about friends
and family and longing for home, and we all feel truly privileged
to be able to participate in this voyage. Our team has really come
together as the warmest of friends. I know so many people have been
praying for God's favour on this expedition. Bear and I were
talking earlier today, and it struck us that in fact those prayers
are so clearly being answered. So thank
you!
More tomorrow....
Dave S