Reveille (Wake up) was at 7am for cadets but adult staff had to be up & ready by 6:45am. I was up and about at 6:15am. Time appreciation. The dress for the weekend was field training uniforms (FTUs), also known as combats in the military. Senior cadets went from barracks to barracks informing junior cadets that it was time to wake up, get dressed, and be ready for breakfast.
Breakfast was at 8am and catered by a local Subway. The officers served breakfast to many hungry cadets. The menu consisted of muffins, fruit, breakfast sandwiches, and granola bars. Beverage selections were water, juice, hot chocolate, and tea. Officers had the additional option of coffee. Breakfast lasted an hour.
The round robin of activities began after cadets were divided into groups and officers had set up their activity stations. Each group was composed of cadets from all corps. I was assigned a section of the Mess Hall to run my list of games. My activity station was called Minute-To-Win-It. Cadets had a minute to complete a task/game. The organizers had prepared a box of supplies and written instructions.
Cadets engaged in four games. The first one involved paper cups filled with water. You had a minute to look under the cups and find the ones that had black dots underneath. The challenge was not to spill water. The second game involved standing at one end of a table and throwing ping pong balls into a metal bowl at the other end. Cadets were allowed to bounce the balls. The third game also included paper cups but this time they were assembled in a pyramid, and you had to knock down as many as you could using rubber bands. The fourth game had cadets carefully moving metallic nuts from one wooden peg to another but only using chop sticks. Winter mitts were later added to increase difficulty.
Even though the name of my station implied competition, it wasn’t strictly enforced. The point was to have fun. Plus, I wasn’t given prizes to hand out.
In
the other section of the Mess Hall, cadets played a collection of three games. They involved book balancing, coin table
hockey, and reeling in rubber chickens attached to fishing lines.
The
remaining activity stations were spread out across the camp, in other buildings
and outside on the parade square.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t observe these activities because I was running
one.
Lunch was provided by a different caterer. The main course was hamburgers, but there were still leftover Subway sandwiches if anybody wanted them. Officers still acted as servers.
The
round robin of activities continued all afternoon.
One of the main highlights of Saturday was the evening trip to WalMart after dinner. Going to WalMart for many Nunavut cadets is a big deal because the store has a lot more products on sale. There’s more choice. There are stores in Nunavut communities but they’re much smaller and don’t offer as many products. I suppose the closest you could get to a WalMart in Nunavut would be the NorthMart stores in Iqaluit & Rankin Inlet.
Cadets excitedly boarded school buses and were driven to WalMart in Whitehorse. They were given one hour to shop. Some cadets bought a lot of stuff to bring home. It’s most likely their families gave them shopping lists. I only bought a few items.
The second day of Spring Thaw, Sunday, was pretty much a repeat of the first day. I managed the Minute-To-Win-It station and the cadets had a good time. Lego pieces were added to the mix of activities. Cadets had a minute to place as many Lego pieces as possible into plastic cups using chop sticks. The food was still good with plenty of choices. Lunch offered hotdogs, spaghetti, stew, and vegetables. Dinner had chicken, garlic bread, and Caesar salad. The organizers picked good caterers.
The last day of Spring Thaw 2024, Monday, began in the very early morning. Cadets & officers from the four Nunavut corps needed to be ready to leave the camp at 8:30am so there wasn’t much time. The remaining corps from Yukon & Northwest Territories would stay until the afternoon.
The breakfast menu offered muffins, fruit salads, granola, yogurt, and juice boxes. Once breakfast was done, cadets were instructed to pack their suitcases, remove all garbage from the barracks, sweep the barracks, and return their bedding for cleaning. Officers were instructed to do the same. Military personnel & cadets follow the principles of No Trace Camping. Make it look like you were never there. Cadets also assisted officers in cleaning the Mess Hall.
All cadets were formed up outside for a final debriefing by the major-in-charge. She thanked everyone for attending and making Spring Thaw 2024 a success. She hoped a similar event would be held next year. We all felt the same.
The coach buses arrived on time to take us to the airport. We loaded our luggage and boarded our assigned bus. The buses dropped us off at the Whitehorse Airport about 20 minutes later. My cadets & I checked in and then proceeded to our gate. We boarded the same Summit Air charter plane that brought us to Whitehorse on Friday. We left Whitehorse at around 10:30am.
Cambridge Bay Airport Terminal.
The plane landed in Cambridge Bay to refuel. This was our first time in Cambridge Bay. We disembarked and waited inside the terminal. I passed the time taking pictures of portraits and art pieces inside the terminal. My cadets bought snacks at a canteen. Interestingly, another Summit Air charter plane landed carrying cadets from Cambridge Bay & Naujaat. The Cambridge Bay cadets were home, but the Naujaat cadets had to wait inside the terminal like us because their plane needed to be refueled. They boarded both charters at the same time. I made sure my cadets boarded the correct plane.
Graveyard Point (left corner of the mountain).
We landed in Arctic Bay at 5:30pm. The plane approached the runway from the north. I was able to take pictures of Graveyard Point, Victor Bay, and Arctic Bay before the plane touched down on the runway. Frank gave me a ride into town. It felt great to be home.
End of Spring Thaw 2024 Miniseries.
