Muskox & Silver Star Expedition (2018)

One of the student support assistants (SSAs) acquired a small muskox and had it placed in the Home Ec Room at Inuujaq School.  The muskox was going to be skinned, cut up, and a portion of its meat distributed to several lucky community members.  Thankfully, the SSA allowed teachers to take their students down to the Home Ec Room at designated times to sea the animal before it was “processed”.  I believe the muskox came from Devon Island.

            

The muskox was partially skinned and lying on a blue tarp when I saw it.  It looked big despite being a child.  I took several pictures of the dead animal with my digital camera.  Everyone was mesmerized by the animal and the students were shown & taught the various body parts of the animal.  I’ll figure out a way to travel to Devon Island and take pictures of the muskox herds.

            

Three third year cadets from 3045 Army Cadet Corps were selected to attend the annual Silver Star Expedition in Winnipeg, Manitoba.  I would be joining them as their escort officer and act as an adult staff member during the expedition.  The expedition occurs during the first weekend of May.

            

Flying to Winnipeg from Arctic Bay would be an all-day affair.  The spring weather in Nunavut is relatively good with clear skies and 24-hour sunlight.  The cadets were not required to travel in their uniforms.  I chose to travel in my military CADPAT uniform but packed civilian clothing just in case I was allowed to change.

We were surprised to see the Qamutik Cup on the plane.  The cup was being transported down to Ottawa by an Arctic Bay hockey player to get it engraved.  The Qamutik Cup is an annual hockey tournament where teams from Arctic Bay, Pond Inlet, and Igloolik compete.  The last time the tournament was held in Arctic Bay was in April 2015.  The tournament will be held in the community again in 2019.  In Iqaluit, several people walked up to the hockey player and asked him if he was carrying the Stanley Cup?  He just smiled and explained that no, it was in fact the Qamutik Cup.

The flight down to Ottawa was uneventful.  The cadets & I received a complimentary dinner from Tim Hortons, happily paid for by the Department of National Defence.  We had to wait in Ottawa for a few hours before we could board the plane to Toronto.  By the time we took off, the sun was already setting.

Toronto at night.

I didn’t realize how important it was for me to be escorting the cadets until we stepped off the plane in Toronto.  Toronto Pearson International Airport as it’s officially called is a very large airport with very large terminal buildings.  When we walked out of the gate, I found a tv displaying the connecting flights.  Our flight to Winnipeg was at a gate on the far side of the terminal.  We would have to walk a fair distance.  I’m sure the cadets would have eventually found the gate if I wasn’t with them, but having me there must have lowered their stress level.  We got to the gate in time and boarded the Air Canada flight to Winnipeg.

The plane landed in Winnipeg at 1am on May 4.  Besides passengers, the Arrivals Area was mostly quiet.  We were greeted by a military captain who escorted us to a waiting military van after we collected our luggage.  We were driven to 17 Wing and assigned living quarters.

The remaining cadets from Naujaat, Rankin Inlet, and Cross Lake arrived later in the day.  Everyone stayed on base until the late afternoon when the bus arrived to transport us to Turtle Mountain Provincial Park.  The park is located near the Canada-USA border.  This would be my first time visiting the park.  The bus ride took two hours. 

Light was replaced by darkness when we arrived at the camp site.  Headlamps were handed out and everyone immediately went to work setting up the tents.  I had a tent all to myself.  The real fun would begin the next morning.

The Captain of my group helping the cadets plan their hike.

Breakfast consisted of American-made Meals-Ready-to-Eat (MREs).  The cadets had the honour of preparing their MREs using portable camping stoves.  After breakfast, the cadets were divided into groups.  The cadets were required to complete two tasks by the end of the day: a 7km hike and a canoeing lesson.  My group began the day with the 7km hike.  The campsite was located near Adam Lake and the trail we followed was the Adam Lake Trail.  The cadets would take turns leading the group, aided by a map & compass.

Adam Lake

Canada Geese

The weather was sunny & clear.  Flocks of Canadian geese flew high above us.  Halfway into the hike we switched over to the canoe lesson.  The cadets were shown how-to put-on life vests, properly remove the canoes from the trailer, and carry the canoes to the launching area.  They were taught the proper paddling strokes and what important equipment needs to go into the canoe before being launched into the water.  And finally, everyone learned, what I think, is the most important lesson: how to get in & out of the canoe without falling into the water.

Once everyone was in their canoes and not “rocking-the-boat” we practiced paddling around Adam Lake, rafting, and forming a flower.  An officer on shore took several pictures.  The lunch MREs were consumed after the canoe lesson.  (When going on hikes, the cadets are given rucksacks and instructed to pack as if they are staying out in the field overnight).

Canoe flower.

My group continued hiking after lunch.  We discovered the Turtle Mountain Fitness Trail, featuring 14 exercise stations.  The short version of the trail has nine stations.  The stations are constructed from wooden logs and iron bars.  The exercises you can do at these stations range from push ups, to balancing on logs, to lifting logs above your head.  They are a nice way to make a hiking trail more interesting.

Everyone made it back to the camp site by the end of the day.

Sunday was about debriefings, tearing down the camp, and putting all the issued equipment away in the trailer.  The cadets were debriefed individually about their performance on Saturday and informed if they successfully completed the expedition or not.  My three cadets passed.  When the debriefings and teardown were completed, all the cadets & officers from Nunavut posed for a group photograph.

Two of my cadets had to leave early because they had to fly to Calgary and then on to Victoria.  They were on the Marksmanship Team competing in the National Marksmanship Competition.  Everyone wished them luck before they departed in a DND van.

The officer-in-charge (OIC) of the expedition held a final debriefing with the cadets and called out a few to be recognized for exemplary performance & attitude. 

The bus arrived at 1:45pm.  We were back in Winnipeg by 4pm.  I only had to escort one cadet back to Arctic Bay.  We said goodbye to everybody and checked in at the airport.  The flight to the Ottawa was mostly uneventful.  The cadet and I overnighted in Ottawa before flying back to Arctic Bay.  We were glad to be home but also wondered what was happening in Victoria.      

Another Silver Star Expedition successfully completed.