Onward To Elwin Inlet – Part 2

Elwin Inlet.

I stepped off the skidoo and scanned the horizons.  No polar bears in sight.  I walked over to the red kill-switch button on my skidoo, already knowing what was coming.  I pressed it.  Silence, my old friend, greeted me.  The deafening silence was everywhere but I could barely hear a light breeze blowing.  Once my mind adjusted to the massive drop in sound, I immediately took out my shotgun and fired 2 slugs into the air to ward off any polar bears.  I carefully set the gun down and refilled the gas tank.  I continued looking around.  When that was done, I topped up the oil tank on the side.  I threw some light snow on the silver-coloured exhaust, watching it melt instantly.  The hissing sound told me the exhaust was hot from all the driving.

I filmed a 360-degree panorama video of the area; I wanted proof that I was actually there.  I also filmed a short clip of me firing a slug into the air from my shotgun.  My skidoo acted as the camera’s tripod and the tall slanted mountain served as the backdrop.  There was an echo but I didn’t hear it because of my earplugs and helmet.  Thankfully, the microphone on my camera recorded the sound.

I kept my helmet on and ate some snacks.  I had to maneuver the helmet a few times to get the food in my mouth.  I sat on my skidoo and enjoyed the scenery and near-overwhelming silence.  This was extreme social distancing at its best.  There were clouds in the sky but the sun was shining brightly.  I stayed at the entrance to Elwin Inlet for about 40 minutes.

All great day trips have to come to an end at some point.  I sighed, packed up, and got back onto my skidoo.  The time had come to head home.  I took one last look at the inlet and then began driving south.  I followed the main skidoo trail.

First seal spotted.

Seal in Baillarge Bay.

I spotted a seal sunbathing between Elwin Inlet & Ship Point.  It disappeared under the ice when I came closer.  I spotted another seal sunbathing in the middle of the entrance to Baillarge Bay.  I stopped and snapped a picture with Ship Point in the background.  The seal disappeared into a seal hole when I continued driving.  The seal hole was near the main skidoo trail.

Third Seal.

The third seal I spotted was closer to Ship Point.  This one appeared larger than the other two.  It was sunbathing near an ice crack and frequently looking in my direction.  I was expecting it to slip under the ice like the other two, but, surprisingly, it didn’t.  Even when I drove closer, it stayed in its place.  I stopped driving and took out my camera.  I quickly took a few close-up photos and filmed a short video.  This seal was either fearless, confused, or friendly.  I decided to see just how close I could get to it.

I drove a few metres passed Ship Point, stopped, and hit the kill-switch.  The engine went silent but the seal didn’t move.  It just kept looking at me.  I started slowly walking towards it, my camera at the ready.  I took a few steps, stopped, then repeated the process.  I think I was about halfway when the seal decided it had enough and slid into the water.  I should have crawled along the frozen ice, fooling the seal into thinking I was a large black seal.  I turned around and returned to the skidoo.                    

Low hanging clouds drifted over, across, and between the mountains on the way to Cape Strathcona.  I was still the only human travelling by skidoo in this area.  I wish I had an expensive hi-tech drone flying above me, filming my journey from the sky.  The footage would have made an excellenct short film.

Frozen Admiralty Inlet.

Strathcona Sound (left), Victor Bay (top middle), Admiralty Inlet (right)

Victor Bay.

I followed the main skidoo trail across the entrance to Strathcona Sound and returned to Graveyard Point.  I continued into Victor Bay, slowly driving over to the other side.  I arrived at the same place where I drove onto the ice.  The qamutiks & the mattress were still there.  I drove off the ice and followed the same trail back to the road to Victor Bay.  I stopped at the hill where you can see all of Arctic Bay.  I photographed people ice fishing and the French boat Vagabond.  The ice fishers were fishing derby participants.  I continued driving until I got home.

Arctic Bay. May 16, 2020.

Vagabond.

My day trip to Elwin Inlet was fantastic!  I got to see another part of Arctic and am closer to reaching the floe edge.  I only saw seals; no polar bears.  When I refilled the gas tank, I deduced that I had enough gas to explore a small portion of the Inlet.  I would need another 38 litres (10 gallons) to explore the Inlet in its entirety.  That would require me pulling a small qamutik with two 5-gallon cans tied to it.  I wonder what’s next on my list of places to explore? 

                                                  End of Onward To Elwin Inlet Series. 

Onward To Elwin Inlet – Part 1

Everyone was glad the annual Fishing Derby competition was not cancelled in the wake of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.  There were no confirmed cases in the community so the organizers felt that the “show should go on”.  Of course, participants were still encouraged to practice social distancing when fishing.  The fishing locations were: Arctic Bay, a lake near Victor Bay, Ikpikituarjuk, and a far away lake to the south, past Ikpikituarjuk.  The derby started on Saturday, May 16, but some participants left as early as Thursday because they needed the extra time to get to Ikpiki & the far away lake.  The bays & inlets are still frozen in May, but cracks do form in certain places.

I decided to do some travelling on May 16 but not because of the fishing derby.  I’m more interested in exploring the land than fishing.  I’ll have to devote at least a day or two in the future to develop basic fishing/hunting skills just in case my skidoo breaks down far away from the community. 

My destination was Elwin Inlet, around 61km to the northeast of Arctic Bay.  I had never been there before and I would have to drive a distance of 70km to get there.  I was aiming to just get to the entrance because I wasn’t sure if I had enough gas to explore the inlet itself.  Even though my skidoo was working again, the dashboard was still out of commission.  I would have to guess how much gas my machine was consuming.  I already had a good idea of the rate of consumption based on my trip to Baillarge Bay in 2019.  I normally travel with a full tank and two 20L gas jugs.

My backpack was full of supplies.  I packed: snacks, toilet paper, small first aid kit, binoculars, Kleenex, spark plugs, batteries, extra ammunition, earplugs, Ziploc bags, GPS, SPOT, map, and matches.  For lethal protection I had my 12-gauge shotgun, machete, and niksik.  I left a copy of my travel map at home and let my coworkers know where I was going for the day.  It took me an hour to get ready. 

The trip began at 10:30am.  I followed the Road to Victor Bay.  In true stereotypical Canadian fashion, I found myself apologizing to my skidoo while I drove on the road that zigzagged up a hill.  There was no snow; only gravel and small rocks.  Skidoo drivers usually drive on the snow next to the road but by mid-May much of it had melted away.  There was now a steep incline on the trail near the top of the hill and I feared my machine would tip over if I tried to drive over it.  When I got to the top of the hill, I drove off the road and onto a small frozen lake I had traversed on foot when I was exploring the Cliffs in April.  I stopped and checked the runners on my skis to make sure they weren’t damaged.  They were not.

I followed a skidoo trail over the land, across another frozen lake, and down to Victor Bay.  The trail does not follow the road.  I was surprised there wasn’t much snow.  There were a few places where I was driving over exposed soft grass.  Thank you, global warming.  As long as it wasn’t rocks.  The trail led me to several cabins along the western shoreline of Victor Bay.  I was expecting to see people outside but saw no one.  I continued down to the shoreline and found a spot to drive onto the ice. 

There were a few qamutiks (wooden sleds) lying on the ice.  To my right, I spotted a large object that looked like a large seal.  I used my binoculars and my camera to confirm that it was in fact a large foam mattress.  Hopefully, the wind wouldn’t blow it away. 

Victor Bay.

When I revisited the St. Georges Society Cliffs in April, one of the last pictures I took was a long skidoo trail snaking its way across Victor Bay.  I easily found this trail and followed it all the way to other side of the bay.  I reached the top eastern tip of the bay, also known as Graveyard Point.  It was here I spotted and drove over a small ice crack.

Graveyard Point.

I continued across Strathcona Sound and past Cape Strathcona.  My earplugs & helmet dampened the continuous, monotonous drone of the two-stroke engine.  I left the right plastic panel that covers the exhaust at home.  The cold weather would keep the exhaust cool.  I stopped a few times to take pictures of the jagged cliffs & mountains to my right.  I already have pictures of them from past trips, but their awe-inspiring presence makes it difficult not to take photographs.

Ship Point.

Facing towards Elwin Inlet.

I was surprised when I reached Ship Point because it felt like not a lot of time had gone by.  I checked my GPS to make sure I wasn’t hallucinating.  I left the engine running, stepped off the skidoo, and stretched my legs.  There were no signs of life in the area except for me.  The gas cans were still attached to the skidoo.  I looked towards Baillarge Bay, briefly remembering the day I explored that area in 2019.  I then set my sights to the north.  I could already make out the entrance to Elwin Inlet in the distance.  It appeared close, but I knew the inlet was 20km away.  I pondered on filling up on gas but decided to wait.  I got back onto the skidoo and took a deep breath.  I was about to enter an area for the first time.  I exhaled and squeezed the throttle.  I continued following the skidoo trail.

I was expecting a certain level of fear to surface as I passed Baillarge Bay.  Even though I was following a frequently travelled route to the floe edge, there are still things that could go wrong.  I was alone, my skidoo could break down, and at worst, the ice beneath me could break, or I would become a polar bear’s next meal.  I did have enough supplies to last another day or two.  My point is never lure yourself into a false sense of security.  Always be on guard.  Surprisingly, those feelings of concern were blocked by the majestic jagged mountains & cliffs I passed.  Being awe struck by their grandeur made me feel relaxed.  I stopped a few times to take pictures.

Reality decided to test my resolve when I neared Elwin Inlet.  The skidoo tracks I was following suddenly turned right at 90 degrees.  I slowed down to make sense of what I was seeing and then my mind shouted “Ice crack!” a split-second later.  I turned right just in time.  The crack looked at least a metre wide.  I drove alongside it and looked for a narrow spot to cross over.  When I found a spot, I got off the skidoo and photographed the crack.  Turns out there was still thick ice underneath the exposed water.  I drove back a few metres, turned around, squeeze the throttle, picked up speed, and drove over the crack.  I made a mental note of the crack’s location.  I would have to cross it again on my way back.

I spotted a small valley to my right just before the inlet.  It looks like a nice place to camp.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t see a way to get there because there was a lot of built up ice along the shoreline.  Exploring that area would have to wait until another time.

A very tall slanted mountain sat next to the valley.  It doesn’t have a name, at least, not on the map I looked at.  I quickly realized that it sits on the southern edge of Elwin Inlet.  I drove onward, crossed a small ice crack, and found a spot where I could clearly see the entrance to the inlet.  I turned the skidoo around just in case I needed to make a quick escape.  I had finally arrived.

Elwin Inlet.

                                                                         To Be Continued . . . 

New Working Arrangements

Sorry about the three-week absence but there wasn’t much to write about.  I finally have enough material to write a post.

The atmosphere at school felt a little strange on April 21.  Everyone greeted each other with elbow bumps and/or waving hands.  We were required to follow a new set of rules laid out by the Nunavut Government and Qikiqtani School Operations.  We had to stay at least 6ft apart from each other, use the photocopiers at prearranged times, and eat by ourselves at lunchtime – (unless you went home).  The principal held a welcome-back-meeting over the school’s intercom.  He explained the above rules and what was expected of us from the higher ups.

Our first priority was to prepare learning packages (LPs) for the week of May 4 – 15.  Once these were completed and ready to go, we could focus our attention on other educational projects.  The LPs are take-home assignments that cover the topics that we taught from the beginning of the semester to the shutdown of schools in March.  Students can complete and return them for extra credit.  The LPs were given out from the school’s main entrance because students are not allowed to enter the school.  The LPs were packaged in large envelopes.

The teachers were required to do something related to their occupation when not working on LPs.  The Nunavut Government did not want to pay teachers to just sit in their classrooms.  I reorganized & re-labelled several learning materials, but the largest project I undertook was adding English subtitles to five educational videos for my Grade 10 Socials Studies class.  These videos are attached to the Residential Schools & Inuit Land Claims modules. 

I wanted all spoken dialogue to be subtitled so that students wouldn’t miss any important information.  Having subtitles also helps when the audio isn’t clear.  We’ve all watched videos where people don’t speak clearly, mumble their words, and/or speak too fast.  To be honest, I personally think all educational videos need to be fully subtitled.  You just have to decide which languages to use.

Adding subtitles is very time consuming.  I find the rate varies between 30 minutes to 1 hour of work to add subtitles to 1 minute of footage.  There were many times when I had to listen to several sections over and over to make out what was being said.  I also had to get help from a co-worker to translate Inuktitut dialogue that hadn’t already been translated into English.  I thanked them for their help.  I was granted permission to work on these videos at home.

I also transcribed two audio recorded interviews from the Residential Schools module.  I’m not sure why these recordings came without written transcripts.  Several other recordings in the resource included transcripts.  The rate of transcription was the same as adding subtitles to the videos.  Having a transcript to go along with an audio recording gives students something to read instead of having to sit in their chairs and just listen.

My skidoo has been running well for the last several weeks.  It finally came out of the repair shop, the engine working at full capacity.  Turns out the problems were a broken piston and a very old oil pump.  A co-worker replaced the broken piston with one of my spares and the oil pump was replaced with a brand new one I ordered off of the Skidoo website.  Unfortunately, getting the lights & dashboard to work still remains a mystery.  We think it may be a wire because the lights are new, the voltage regulator is new, and the battery still works.  If only Bombardier offered skidoo engine repair course to us common folk!  Regardless, I can still use my machine by pull starting it and making sure it’s always topped with gas & oil.

I noticed more & more families were travelling out on the land since the closure of schools.  It’s very easy to social distance out on the land because the land is immense!  The community’s frozen coastline becomes a long parking lot for skidoos & qamutiks.  Most people leave them out there during the spring because there are rarely any blizzards.  Seeing all the vehicles out on the ice got me thinking about doing a day trip somewhere in the near future.  All I needed was a location and a date.

Sled Dogs on ice.

And finally, in the world of COVID-19, the United States has passed a million cases!  The USA always wants to be #1 in everything but why have the most active COVID-19 cases?  I don’t see the pride in it.  I just hope a vaccine is found soon.