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Expedition Blog, pg. 2
by Sebastian Copeland  Dear Pax Arctica 08 team,This email constitutes the complete email information for each of the participants--or family leader whose responsibility it is to communicate with their significant other! To begin with, I want to thank you and congratulate you for taking the leap into this adventure, which promises to be extraordinary. We have been working diligently for months to complete this program, through the ups and downs of budgets and scheduling complications. We are now on the footing of departure, and I feel privileged to be in your company for this voyage to the North. I know that things are hectic for all of you and that your spirits are most likely mixed with excitement and apprehension. I want to ensure each and every one of you that you are in the most responsible and capable hands. I am not, of course, referring to myself as this is by no means a one-person show. Everyone of you has been hand-picked for specific characteristics which will prove critical in carrying out our mission: 1) to safely witness the changing environment of the Arctic at the hands of climate change; 2) to interact with local culture and hear first hand how this is affecting their culture; 3) to interact with scientists in the field; 4) to experience the Arctic summer ice in a way that will be gone within this generation; 5) and of course to bring your experiences back to your daily world and share the result of your findings.This, with an emphasis on the younger generation, who will most feel the result of this dramatic shift in our world's natural balance. We have a coalition of children representing many countries, including France (Flaam 16 & Ainhoa 14), the US ( Ashley 12), Kenya (Kuria 15) and an Inuit (Beth 15). As such you are all officially about to become the YoungAmbassadors of the Arctic By way of introduction, I would like to tip my hat off to Luc who has lent his tireless efforts, as well as committed to personal sacrifices to juggle some of the more thankless aspects of this planning. Luc and I will be your expedition leaders. We are lucky to have enlisted the guidance of Matty McNair, of North Winds. Matty is a veteran of the ice, having lead multiple groups to both the North and South poles. She is a legend, with a background in education, which will prove invaluable given the nature of our young participants. Like all expeditions, our trip is not impervious to meeting the challenges of last minute adjustments, weather, and other variables. As you know, this is not a tour-guided experience at Club Med. It is an expedition. I will ask you to keep that in mind when plans change without notice, and affect your expectations, and your mood. We have worked very hard to create a program that is inclusive of all the complex aspects of flight availability, practical restrictions, and other mechanical considerations. This for a group of 15 in the high Arctic! For now, what you can count on is meeting in Ottawa on July 5th for a group "meet and greet" and dinner arranged thanks to the generous support of John Coo of Green Cross Canada (we will miss you Matty and Beth and will raise a glass in your absence!) We will leave very early on July 6th for Iqaluit, about a 3 1/2 hour flight. There, we will meet Matty and Beth, and have a couple of hours to adjust our packs for our journey down the Soper river. We will be flown to the river in the afternoon for a three-day rafting expedition, including camping each night, to reach the Inuit village of Kimmirut on July 10th. In Kimmirut, we will benefit from a home stay with Inuit families. On July 11th, we will be flown back to Iqaluit, and head up to Resolute. Some will need to spend one night in Iqaluit and join the group the following day; Paige and Ashley have volunteered for this: thank you!We will stay at the South Camp Inn Hotelin Resolute from July 11th-14. We will meet scientists returning from field studies and discuss with them the nature of their findings. We will stay in Resolute for two days (not a most scenic town, I warn you!) until our first leg to the North will take half of the group to Ward Hunt Island, the northern most Canadian land in the Arctic. Because of plane payloads, length of the flight (about 3.5 hours) and availability, half of our group will need to stay one additional night in Resolute--July 14. Bring a book! On the ice, we will set up camp and conduct excursion at the edge of the world, where the land meets the pack ice which scientist warn will likely break entirely this summer.We will examine the state of the ice shelf, and look for fresh cracks. After three days, our planes will come back and take us to Otto Fjords and then Tanqueray Bay for another few days measuring glaciers, taking in the majestic beauty of this vanishing landscape, hiking, and doing some light trekking. Due to payloads, the plane will make rotations, taking in one part of the group, and coming back for the other. Each group will be inclusive of at least one team leader/guide. After a few days in those locations, we will then fly to Mount Barbeau in two rotations, and consolidate our group in this location before undertaking the evacuation of the bulk of our group. Most will then leave for Resolute, where some of you will sleep one night on their way to Iqaluit and then Ottawa. It is possible that while in Barbeau, some of you will have to leave some cargo to accommodate the payload of the plane back to Resolute. That cargo would then be brought back by those left there to scale Mount Barbeau. This will be determined when we factor the mean weight of everyone including luggage. Which is why I am insistent that you keep your weight/clothe/pack to a strict minimum: Twin Otters have a weight maximum that is further reduced by the possible need to affix them with skis depending on the snow conditions. Please keep that in mind. Through this process, as you know, we will be filming a documentary, left to the capable hands of Brian Knappenberger, our documentarist. Young Ambassadors of the Arctic will hopefully result in a clever and captivating hour-long film on the adventures of this motley crew to the top of the world, to document and advocate its changing conditions at the hands of climate change. We will have iridium/satellite phones but those will be used for emergency purposes only. Please do not count on using them for personal use. If you need one, bring one. A warm thank you to our female adult participants who have committed to advancing this important mission by lending their participation to "roughing it" in the North. With that I am referring to Paige Zangrillo, Mary Hardy and of course my friend, partner and companion through the many months of uncertainty, Nicole. I also want to thank HP for their support and who will be uploading fresh content in the form of daily blog--when possible--and will create a web identity for each one of our young Ambassadors Also to thank, my friends and sponsors at Napapijri have also been an invaluable partner and have gone to considerable efforts to provide a large amount of clothing which I will distribute when we meet, if you have not gotten it already. Oakley glasses have generously donated glasses; Y&R should also be thanked for their participation. As well of course as Global Green USA and Green Cross International whose flag we are representing in this international coalition! The children will also be given cameras--courtesy of HP. The pictures you bring back, I will edit and distribute to add to their visual identity on the website when we return. To that effect, I will likely borrow the card from the camera to upload images upon our return. Children should be encouraged to save battery power when away from a power source/hotel--especially in the second part of our trip. There will be VERY limited access to solar power, and children should be encouraged not to look tirelessly at--and share-- their image, unless they are within striking distance of a power source. Count on bringing an adapter as I am not sure what the power outlets will be. Additionally, I will distribute a journal to each of the children. Each child will be required to input a daily entry. This too, I will borrow at the end of the trip to transcribe their impression for web purposes. For those interested in sharing the experience with your friends and family members, two blogs will be uploaded. One at: http://www.sagaxexpeditions.com/blog/blog.html as well as on HP’s Wiki site at: http://expressioncenter.wetpaint.com/page/Sebastian+Copeland+and+the+Arctic+Ambassadors On the practical side, I will ask that you all input a contact information by responding here in the case of an emergency and give your personal medical insurance company, as well as blood types for each of the participants. Additionally, I have attached a release form to be scanned and signed for those of you who have not done so already. PLease print, sign, scan and return to me. There will be additional forms to sign, courtesy of Brian for the documentary when we are all together. If you have any additional questions, you know where to reach me, or Luc. Attached is a check list. Use your discretion. It is comprehensive, and feel free to edit. Welcome to the adventure, and thank you for your trust! Sebastian |
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Angelal22 |
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, Oct 30 2008, 10:52 AM EDT
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