Snow in July

(inset: Me at Killinek July 2nd, no I didn't slip on the snow!)

I'm up here in the Arctic. I'm posting this from Iqaluit now (N 63 44 49.44 W 68 31 36.36 enter this in Google earth!)

This is my third Arctic trip up here and it has been quite the journey this year! It all started with boarding the CCGS Pierre Radissson in Quebec City. All I can say about spending three days in Quebec City is WOW! I have a new favourite city in North America.

I was a little worried about sailing since it was my first time aboard a ship on the open ocean. So I stocked up in Gravol and prayed that it would not have to be used. We sailed June 21st at 5 AM and it was smooth sailing till we arrived near the Straight of Belle Ilse that the Gravol was needed. I didn't get sick, thank you Gravol! Managed to get my sea legs and the next time the ship was rockin' and rollin' it didn't bother me that much. After Five days of sailing, three through ice, we finally arrived at Killinek ( 60°25'31.74"N 64°50'43.68"W).

I saw a Polar bear and a Seal on the ice when the helicopter was flying me back to the ship at days end. We had a Caribou come into the site at Killinek and was just lying on the snow, so I run back into the building and grab my camera to take some pictures. As I was walking up to the Caribou it got up and started walking away, then it stopped , turned toward me and started walking towards me! The first thing in my head was "crap, do they charge?" because I was about a hundred feet away from it and it didn't look like I could make the building if it did. Thankfully it stopped and I was able to take a few shots and a movie of it.

Well after six and a half days and fourteen helicopter rides at Killinek the work there was done and it was time to sail to Iqaluit. Now I understand why people pay thousands of dollars for a curise in the Arctic! Frobisher Bay was spectacular, the water was smooth as glass, the iceburgs, the mountains and the pack ice, spent hours just looking at it as it passed by the ship.

So, on July 4th one last helicopter ride from the Pierre Radisson and I'm in Iqaluit. Actually it was weird because the town (pop 6000+) is clean for a change. My normal trips to the Arctic is mid May to mid June, the snow has just finished melting and there is garbage all over the place. The weather is very nice +22C and I'm melting! Iqaluit hasn't changed, dirty, dusty and nasty as the last two times, if I wasn't saving money for the house you'd never see me here again. The weather is quite good and sunny, but the mosquitoes are nasty, it is like being gang tackled by a black cloud. Thank the Lord for bug Dope! One nice surprise was the Sylvia Grinnel park. Wow what a beautiful place.

This year I'm in Iqaluit to backfill for the guy here while he goes off to Coral Harbour to start it up for the season. It is a nice break in the 12-14 hour days that I normally do up here. It gave me time to scope out the bars for carvings and I bought four at a great price! I finished up here July 22nd for a nine day break, which wasn't much of a break. I drove 946KM in two days on my Motorcycle then of to Kapuskasing for five days with my wild friend Palmer and a few others. Back for a day to pack my stuff and I was back up here Aug 2nd!

This time it is an antenna replacment project at the transmitter site. The winters are very hard on equipment up here and breaks things all the time. The project went well, other than the contractor cutting the feed to another tower, but that was minor.

I will post my pictures on this Blog as soon as I can figure how to!