The Stanley Cup Visit

April 29th was a special day for the people of Arctic Bay.  The Stanley Cup was coming to town.  The event was part of a larger northern tour organized by Project North, "a non-profit organization whose focus is to improve the lives of kids in the North through literacy and recreation."  The funding was provided by First Air and Scotiabank.  Between April 28 and May 1, the cup would visit seven communities in Nunavut: Igloolik, Iqaluit, Kugluktuk, Cambridge Bay, Resolute Bay, Arctic Bay, & Pond Inlet.  A tour of this scope involving the Stanley Cup had never been done before.  Two legendary NHL players would accompany the cup: Lanny McDonald and Mark Napier.

            

Project North is no stranger to Arctic Bay.  The last time they visited the community was in May, 2014.  Michelle Valberg, who started Project North, was in attendance, and she brought with her two professional NHL players and 25 bags of new hockey equipment to be given to Inuit youth.  You can read about the previous visit here.  I don't think she attended the Stanley Cup tour this year.

            

Having the Stanley Cup arrive on a Friday was a great way to finish the work week.  The plane was scheduled to touch down at 10:30am and the cup would stay until 1pm.  Classes would be postponed during this time.  It would have been nice if the visit was longer but the tour was on a tight schedule and the cup needed to be in Resolute Bay that evening.  The meet & greet would take place out on the ice in front of the hockey arena where the two makeshift hockey rinks were made.  There would also be a BBQ.

            

Students & teachers began making their way to the festivities at around 10:45am.  Many students went home to change into their hockey jerseys and bring their hockey equipment down to the skating rinks.  I was able to take a picture of the plane coming in for landing.  There were already a lot of people at the skating rinks and many more were converging.  People were getting there on foot, skidoo, atv, car, and truck.  I had to walk because my skidoo was in the repair shop.  The assembled crowd reminded me of last year's Nunavut Quest.  Arctic Bay was the finish line for the dog sled race that year and a huge crowd had assembled on the ice in front of the Northern Store.

            

Eleven o'clock came and went; the cup was nowhere in sight.  The tour group was probably still at the airport or taking the cup down to the iceberg for pictures.  Word had spread that the school bus had been commandeered to bring the tour group into town.  Judging from the amount of people who were waiting around, I guessed there were at least 10 pairs of eyes looking towards the airport at any given time. 

            

People sat and stood around the hockey rinks, watching children & teenagers skating around.  They were passing & shooting pucks around.  The BBQs were fired up and a team of volunteers immediately went to work cooking the many hotdogs and hamburgers bought by the Hamlet office.  I stood off to the sidelines and took pictures of anything and everything.  I was able to capture great action shots, vehicles, spectators, and even a makeshift parking lot full of vehicles! 

            

BBQ Line.

I didn't participate in the (ice) skating.  I don't own (ice) skates, nor do I like skating.  Yes, I know, all Canadians are suppose to skate, but I just never grew to like it.  I took skating lessons when I was a child but I just remember hating it.  Maybe I'll try again . . . someday.

            

The School Bus approaches.

Finally, at 11:35am, everyone could see the school bus in the distance, driving towards the community.  The excitement and anticipation climbed substantially.  A wide path was plowed to let the school bus drive onto to the ice and to park next to the skating rinks.  A large crowd gathered around the school bus to greet the hockey players and to see the Stanley Cup.  Photographers and a film crew from out of town stood in strategic locations, photographing and filming the event.

            

The Stanley Cup Table.

The Stanley Cup was taken off the bus and put on an atv.  The cup was then driven to a table that was covered with a black NHL table cloth.  The table was sitting on polar bear skin that was only harvested several days ago.  Another crowd assembled around the cup when it was placed on the table.  (I was expecting everyone to follow the cup, but many wanted autographs from Lanny McDonald & Mark Napier).

           

A line was quickly organized for those people wanting to get a photo standing next to the cup.  That line quickly grew into a very long chain.  I stood off to the side and managed to get a picture of cup from different angles but didn't stand in line for a personal photo.  I decided that the local Inuit population should have priority.  Although, even when the line thinned out, I still didn't have the urge to get a personal photo with the cup.  I guess I'm just not into sports that much as everyone else.  I did stand in the BBQ line and got a free hotdog!  Lanny McDonald & Mark Napier came over and played hockey with Inuit youth and also posed with the Stanley Cup.  

            

Stanley Cup photo lineup.

Parking Lot

I headed back to school to eat my lunch; the hotdog was an appetizer.  Several of the southern teachers also came back for lunch.  Some had their pictures taken with the cup.  (I wasn't jealous, seriously).  We all agreed that the Stanley Cup on display probably wasn't the actual cup the NHL uses to present to the winning hockey team at the end of the season.  The league probably has a duplicate cup made for touring purposes.

            

It took some time for all students to return to school in the afternoon.  I'm sure many stayed until the cup was driven to the airport.  And I'm also sure everyone was glad to see the "holy grail" of hockey.  For me, the visit was pretty cool.  The whole event reminded me of when the Grey Cup came to visit Inuksuk High School in Iqaluit, four years ago.  I wonder if FIFA will be the next big sporting organization to visit Arctic Bay?  If so, I can't wait to see the World Cup!      

               

The First Breakdown

Saturday, April 23 was a great day to go exploring.  One of my coworkers, John, wanted to see the floe edge and asked if I could be his guide.  I agreed.  (John teaches Grade 8).  I confessed that I only travelled half the distance but was confident that we could both figure out the rest of the way.  We would follow the main skidoo tracks as far as we could and then rely on my Garmin GPS.  We were only going to spend an hour or two taking pictures then head back.  Since the weather was great, it was very likely there would be Inuit out hunting and/or travelling along the main route to the floe edge. 

            

I would drive my own skidoo and John would drive a borrowed skidoo.  For the skidoo enthusiast reading this post, both machines are Expedition types, but the models & years are different.  Mine is a 2015 Expedition 550F Rev-XP and the other is a 2016 Expedition 600 ACE Rev-XU.

            

We left at 10am, packed and ready for adventure.  I was bringing 10 gallons of extra gas, extra oil, spark plugs, and a drive belt.  I also brought snacks, toilet paper (you never know), camera, and SPOT Device.  For lethal protection, I had my shotgun and machete.  John brought similar supplies, minus a firearm.  We drove north, following the road to Victor Bay.  When we neared the bay, we could see three long skidoo trails stretching into distance towards the floe edge.  We drove down to the frozen bay and followed one of the skidoo trails.

            

The skidoo trail we were following disappeared when we left Victor Bay.  We had to carve our own path through the snow, leading to a bumpy ride.  Suddenly, we came across two parallel lines of tracks that were made by a truck.  Obviously, we didn't expect to see such tracks this far out of town, but since the ice is really thick, it would be possible to drive all the way to the floe edge.  The tracks eventually disappeared as well, forcing us to create our own paths again.             

            

Our speed of travel increased substantially when we found the main skidoo trail at the foot of the peninsula across Victor Bay.  John took the lead and we drove for quite some time at 50mph.  We followed the coastline north; I wanted John to see the awesome, jagged looking mountains.  We stopped nearly halfway up the peninsula to take a break and let our snow machines cool down.  Our location was about 37km to the north of Arctic Bay.

            

My skidoo wouldn't start.  I turned the key several times and used the pull cord, but nothing happened.  John gave it a go but he was also unsuccessful.  In the distance we heard the sound of an approaching skidoo.  An Inuk, who is also a Ranger, stopped and asked us how we were doing.  I explained my predicament and he examined the skidoo.  After several starter attempts, he deduced that the engine was flooded.  We removed the spark plugs and waited.  I put in new spark plugs and we managed to get the engine to start.  Just as we were beginning to think the trip was saved, the engine stopped working after five minutes.  I shook my head in disbelief. 

            

We could no longer risk continuing on with our trip.  My skidoo needed to be towed back to town and repaired.  We hadn't brought a tow cable on the trip.  John would have to drive me to the Northern Store where I would buy a cable, drive back out to help me hook up my skidoo, and then tow it all the way back.  I apologized for the huge inconvenience and for not being able to visit the floe edge.  He said it was alright and that breakdowns happen.

            

We "abandoned" my skidoo for the next two hours.  When I was shopping at the Northern Store, I told several people about the recovery operation.  (They asked me if I was going hunting but instead I told them I was saving my skidoo).  We headed back out after resting for a bit.  I was able to spot my skidoo from a very far distance - it was just a black speck sitting on a white plain (snow/ice).  My skidoo hadn't been tampered.  A part of me was hoping to see a seal sleeping on it but no such luck.  We used the tow cable to connect both skidoos, tying strong knots around the front & rear bumpers.  We also removed the spark plugs and the drive belt.  I was told that removing the drive belt is very important.       

            

John towed my skidoo; I sat on it controlling the handlebars.  It was a slow drive to Arctic Bay.  John kept the speed between 25 - 30mph.  We stopped before Victor Bay to let the borrowed skidoo cool down.  Two Inuk men coming back from the floe edge stopped next to us for a chat.  They told me that I was lucky that my skidoo broke down only 37km from town.  Many skidoos have broken down much further out on the land, requiring days to recover.  We asked them how were things at the floe edge and they said it was nice.  They saw several seals and narwhals.  While we were talking, a student of mine & his friend drove by on their skidoo towards the floe edge.  We assumed they were going seal hunting.

            

John continued towing my skidoo.  We drove off the ice, and up a small hill before merging with the main road leading to Arctic Bay.  There was a moment when my skidoo began to turn sideways, forcing me to wave to John to stop.  He drove slower, descending down the winding gravel road into the community.  He towed my skidoo to a local mechanic who would look at the engine and clean if it was just flooded.

            

In the end, our trip to the floe edge turned into a skidoo recovery operation/training lesson.  We learned to always bring a tow cable and to make sure the drive belt is removed first.  I should consider myself lucky because if I had been driving alone, I would have had to walk for some time before flagging down someone.  I could have also activated my SPOT Device for assistance.

This was my skidoo's first breakdown and the machine has been in my possession for a year and a half.  I've heard of skidoos experiencing problems after several months so I think I'm taking good care of my machine.  Unfortunately, no matter how good you take care of  a vehicle, it will always experience problems of some kind.     

            

The floe edge continues to elude me.  Maybe it's sentient and doesn't want me to visit?  Regardless, I will make the trek to the floe edge, with or without my skidoo.  (I'll borrow someone else's).

                

3045 ACR 2016

3045 Cadets on Parade. *1

The Annual Ceremonial Review (ACR) was held on April 20 in Inuujaq School's gym.  Cadet corps/squadrons across Canada hold ACRs at the end of the regular training year to showcase what the cadets have learned and achieved.  These parades are attended by parents, friends, community members, and special guests.  The end of the regular training year is in June, but 3045 Army Cadet Corps has to hold its ACR a month or two earlier because most people are out camping & hunting in June.  It's impossible to compete with the spring weather.    

            

This was my fourth ACR at 3045.  We are Canada's most northern cadet corps!  The cadets set up the gym with rows of foldout chairs and a table with all the awards that would be given out at the parade.  The cadets & officers had been busy getting their uniforms ready for the last week.  Several civilian volunteers put in a lot of time and effort to prepare a variety of snacks for the after-parade reception.

            

RCMP Officers inspecting the cadets. *2

Me & the Mayor. *3

The parade began with the flags being marched on and placed at the front on both sides of the Dias.  The flags were of Canada and the cadet movement.  The cadets marched to the centre of the gym.  The officers of the corps marched in, escorting the guest reviewing officers (GROs).  The GROs this year were the community's two RCMP officers.  Both officers inspected and briefly spoke with each cadet on parade.  I kept the audience entertained by giving a brief overview of the Canadian cadet program.  The mayor of Arctic Bay, Geela Arnauyumayuq, acted as my Inuktitut translator.

            

The cadets put on their best drill performance during the March Past.  They had been practicing for several weeks, getting the marching & turns correct and in step.  I think they did pretty well and judging from the faces of the audience, they had the same opinions.

            

Cadets salute Lt. May. *4

Cadet Kines receives his
promotion to the rank of
Corporal. *5

The officers and RCMP officers proceeded to hand out promotions, badges, and awards.  Quite a number of cadets were promoted to a higher rank.  The badges were for physical fitness & marksmanship.  The awards were for best cadet, most improved cadet, top male & female athletes, and the cadet with the best boots & deportment.  The chosen cadets came up to the Dias to receive their rewards and have their pictures taken by Clare Kines, Arctic Bay's resident professional photographer. 

            

Biathlon Team salutes OCdt.
Swoboda. *6

The shooting team was called up to the front to be recognized for their participation in the Stage III Shooting Competition in Gimli, Manitoba.  The competition was held in mid-April and the team was able to fly back in time for the ACR.  The team ran into a problem on their way to Gimli.  Air Canada mistakenly sent their air rifles to Toronto, forcing them to borrow rifles from other teams.  Our team came in second place.  "Out of a possible 2400 points, Rankin Inlet beat [Arctic Bay] by 3 points," commented Lt. Frank May, commanding officer of 3045.  Our rifles never reached Gimli and were sent back to Arctic Bay.

            

Northern Store presenting the cheque.
*7

The Northern Store presented the cadet corps with a large cheque for $3,460.13.  The money would go towards our ongoing beach cleaning project.  The Northwest Company, operator of the Northern Store chain, takes an active role in northern communities by supporting "local organizations and programs."  They will provide funding for local initiatives in the areas of: sports & recreation, culture & arts, healthy living, environment, and youth & education.

            

Lt. May gives his closing remarks. *8

Cadet Tilley, D. being
awarded the Best Boots
and Deportment Award.
*9

The commanding officer of the corps finished the parade by announcing that this would be his final ACR as the commanding officer.  He would be turning over command of the corps to me in September.  Command of a corps is usually not passed on to an Officer Cadet; a CIC (Cadet Instructor Cadre) officer with the rank of Captain or Major is preferred.  However, there  aren't any officers with such a rank in the community.  I was excited but also nervous.  I have never been in charge of a cadet corps.  Thankfully, I would have the support of the Regional Cadet Support Unit (Northwest) in Winnipeg and of the Hamlet office in Arctic Bay.  I needed to recruit and maintain a staff of dedicated volunteers.  It takes more than one adult to run a cadet corps.  I would focus my attention on recruiting after the summer.  Our cadet ranks have dipped in the last few months and I want to bring those numbers back up.

            

Audience. *10

The audience gave the cadets a standing ovation when they were dismissed.  A slideshow of pictures was projected onto a wall while people ate the prepared snacks.  The pictures were snapshots of the training year.  The slideshow was prepared by Ryan, Inuujaq School's media teacher.

*Pictures taken by Clare Kines.

Visiting the Victor Bay Iceberg

One of the local nurses came up to me the other day and said that she laughed after seeing my extreme ironing photo in the newspaper.  She suggested that I should try ironing on the iceberg in Victor Bay.

            

"Is it accessible?" I asked, "because the large one near the airport doesn't have a stable flat piece."

"Yes, it is accessible," she replied.  "It's much smaller and next to the plowed ice road.  Very easy to climb onto and there even is a nice rounded crevasse at the bottom for taking great pictures."

            

I thanked her for the information and said I would check out the iceberg in the near future.  The opportunity arose on April 18.  JF had gone seal hunting in Victor Bay on the weekend and forgot his niksik.  He asked me if I could give him a lift on my skidoo.  When I told him about the iceberg he said he knew where it was and that we could visit it after he found his niksik.

            

JF goes looking for his niksik (seal hook).

JF returning with his niksik (seal hook).

We drove out to Victor Bay in the late afternoon.  April 18 was a Monday, a workday.  The sun was out, as always, and the weather was clear.  I followed the road, but drove on the shoulder.  I didn't want the ski runners to get damaged.  I stopped by some cabins and let JF walk down to the ice.  He walked out to a section of the plowed ice road and managed to find his niksik. 

            

I took several pictures of the surrounding landscape while I waited.  There is still plenty of snow and ice on the ground in April.  Nothing starts to melt until May.

            

I asked JF if had successfully caught any seals that day but he said no.  His pet dog found quite a few seal holes but no seals.        

            

A camp site in the distance.

JF pointed out the iceberg before I started my skidoo.  I drove down to where the shoreline connects with the ice road, then followed the road to the iceberg.  The iceberg was definitely smaller than the one next to the airport.

            

We were able to climb up to the top of the iceberg with relative ease.  There were just a few slippery spots we had to watch out for.  The path up to the top was already covered with footprints.  This iceberg appeared to be the second natural attraction in town.  I made note that there was enough flat space on the top to place an ironing board.   Ironing here is a definite possibly, I thought.

            

Me standing on top of the iceberg.

Onward to victory!

JF took several pictures of me standing on top of the iceberg.  I made the photos more epic by posing with my machete.  (I carry a machete for emergencies).  I thought of myself as a famous explorer or a warrior leading his arctic fighters to victory.  We drove back to town after the quick photo op.  A second extreme ironing (4th overall) stunt in the same month would depend on my work schedule.

                    

The short skidoo trip was a nice way to get out on the land on a weekday.  I usually shy away from such adventures during the week because I'm worried that I won't be ready for the following school day.  The excursion reminded me that sometimes it's good not to wait until the weekend.

            

On a more somber note, the annual Nunavut Quest dog sledding race had to be cancelled due to lack of funding.  It was an unfortunate announcement to hear.  The event is always a big hit with the people of Arctic Bay.  

  

Victor Bay.

  

Early April

Dog Teams.

It is April; midterms are long gone, and the final half of the second semester has arrived.  The end (of the academic year) is nearing with every passing day.  Summer will be here in less than two short months.   

            

The Spring/Easter Break finished on April 3rd but regular classes did not commence until Wednesday, April 6.  The staff of Inuujaq School had two days of in-service on the 4th & 5th.  The focus was balanced literacy.  (In-service is another way of saying professional development).  I still remember the students reacting ecstatically when they received the newsletter explaining they would be getting an extra two days off school.

            

Two instructors flew in from Iqaluit to administer the two-day workshop.  They brought boxes of new Inuit-themed books written in syllabics and Roman orthography.  The subjects ranged from learning Inuktitut to reading about old Inuit legends.  The resources were made for K-9 students.  The only issue we had was that some of the books were in a different dialect.  Despite this, the teachers liked the new resources and were glad to see more investment in Inuktitut reading materials. 

            

Cabin on a qamutik.  April 6, 2016.

I drove by a large cabin sitting on a specially built qamutik out in the frozen bay on the morning of April 6.  The qamutik was at least twice as wide as the usual width.  What I found surprising was that there were only two runners.  I was expecting at least one or two more in the centre.  There was no one around to explain to me what the cabin was built for and where it would towed.  My best guess at the time was that it would be towed to a well-known fishing lake.  I snapped three photos from different angles before driving to school.

            

My students wanted to hear what I did over the long break.  I showed them some pictures of my travels out on the land.  Regrettably, I had to tell them that my land trip to Pond Inlet was postponed until next year.  I held off on telling them about my extreme ironing stunt.  I was still waiting for Nunatsiaq News to respond to my photo request.  My students spent their break hiking the hills around town, going hunting, and catching up on the sleep they missed during school.

            

My Grade 10 English students would be focusing on poetry for the next month because April is Poetry Month.  (And poetry is a required module for the course).  My Grade 10 Social Studies students would continue their study of Globalization and how it affects the Inuit way of life.  My Grade 11 Social Studies students would turn their attention to International Conflict in the early 20th century, particularly the First World War.  And my guitarists continued their study of guitar chords, basic blues, and power chords.

            

April 9, 2016

Two makeshift ice rinks were constructed out on the ice next to the hockey arena.  The two large rectangles were made by plowing snow off the surface, revealing the smooth ice underneath.  I took several pictures of kids skating on the ice and playing hockey.  The scene reminded me of the opening of A Charlie Brown Christmas, minus the falling snow, bare trees, and music.

            

The photo Nunatsiaq News published.

April 11 was a special day; I had gotten my "15 minutes of fame."  I periodically check Nunatsiaq News Online and on this day, they featured one of the three extreme ironing pictures I submitted.  I was ecstatic!  The picture would be moved down to the bottom of the website by afternoon and then replaced the next day.  Thankfully, the newspaper shared the photo on its Facebook page where it received many Likes and Shares.  For the next several days, teachers and students would talk to me about seeing the picture in the newspaper and wanted to know why I did it?  I simply shrugged and replied that I can.  A more in depth answer would be it's a great way to get outside and to do your ironing in a more entertaining fashion.        

            

I was finally able to correct a great injustice on April 16: I watched Star Wars: The Force Awakens.  I was supposed to watch it in theatres during the 2015 Christmas break but somehow, I didn't get around to it.  When the DVD finally arrived at the Northern Store, I bought a copy without hesitation.  The $30 price didn't even phase me.  I re-watched all the trailers before watching the feature film.  I liked the movie, despite the plot being very similar to a previous Star Wars film.  It was everything I wanted it to be.  I watched the entire movie for a second time.  I would like to thank everyone who knew, and didn't know, for not spoiling the story.  I look forward to Episode VIII and the spin off film Rogue One.