Arctic Odyssey July 20 - 28, 2008

It's mid morning now. We've already had a very wet and bumpy ride on the
zodiacs to check out a large murre colony. Perched on the soaring cliffs
were adults and chicks, cheek by jowl, and the constant flight to and
fro of parents bringing food.

Some of the passengers are sitting around in the library, sipping tea
and exchanging tales of the excursion - 8 foot waves, some lost
breakfasts, wet cameras and soaked clothing - all a great adventure!

Susan has spent a great deal of time reviewing my wildflower photos this
morning. She's got endless patience and is so knowledgeable. We did find
one flower not previously identified as being on Coates Island, but she
tells me we couldn't consider this authoritative because we didn't
collect a specimen. So much to think about at once..taking photos,
collecting seeds, identifying species and now, checking to see if it's
ok to collect a specimen. Maybe I should stick to my back yard garden!

Well spend the rest of the day on ship, off to our next destination.

Carol

Cruise North Passenger Ruth says...

Arctic Explorer: July 3 - 12, 2008
What an amazing day we have had. We started bright and early leaving the ship in zodiacs in the sheltered harbour of Ivujivik. This is a small Inuit community located on the northeastern point of Nunavik where the Hudson Strait meets Hudson Bay. It is a community of very warm, friendly people who are a very creative group. We hiked up to the cliff that towers over the town. We had amazing views of the two waters, islands, the town and the airport, a short strip running across the top of the cliff. There were many colourful flowers along the way similar to those we saw on Baffin Island. As we came down to the road, a man and his young son approached on an ATV and it turned out that he had a soapstone carving to sell. It was a lovely piece that you will soon see as I was the lucky purchaser.

We talked to a number of the community members and then headed to the Co-op. It was surprisingly well equipped and quite expensive. The room of carvings at the back was incredibly popular with our group and Andy and I made a couple of other purchases. The prices are incredible and we are so happy with the pieces we chose. We were blessed with meeting the sculptor and sharing some stories and time with her. Women sculptors are fairly rare so it is nice to have her piece. She was delighted to know it was going to an appreciative home and we will exchange emails and I will send her the photos we took.

We re-boarded the ship and after a short sail transferred to the zodiacs again to visit the cliffs where the thick-billed murres nest. The geography is unbelievable and these black and white birds make do with the smallest amount of space possible on the ledges. There was quite a swell which was a bit better near the cliffs but the photos likely will have a lot of camera shake. It was exhilarating and topped off a special day.

We are now sailing back east in the Strait along the coast of Nunavik with more adventures planned for the coming days. The ice conditions look promising ahead.
Tuesday July 8th 4:15 pm