Bienvenue Au Canada Welcome To Canada

The fog has lifted, the sun is shining, and the Canadian immigration officers have landed. They started their journey here yesterday for the sole purpose of meeting our ship. First by flying from Winnipeg to Whitehorse in the Yukon and then onto Inuvik, NWT and finally here to Hershel Island in the Beaufort Sea or otherwise known to the Inuit as Quikiqtaruk. The island is a national park which was first discovered by Sir John Franklin on his second expedition to the Arctic. On board we are intoduced to 6 Inuit Park Rangers who brief us and instruct everyone to keep to the designated walking areas. Yesterday a grizzly bear was spotted in the vicinity, as they are preparing for hibernation and scouting about for suitable accommodation. No Motel 6 or Best Western in town so hopefully they have moved on to something more to their liking. In addition, we are instructed to stay clear of the local gravesite and to refrain from taking pictures as this is a direct request from the local elders. We take a zodiac in from the ship for our walkabout around the community, population of none. The dirt airport landing strip runs parallel to the beach which is covered in driftwood. The Park Rangers live on the island for two weeks at a time but when cruise ships arrive they fly in extra personnel at a cost of $8000 per return flight. We are the second ship to arrive this season and they expect a total of five. We are treated to some smoked Arctic Char and herring which is being caught and smoked on site by the rangers. Bear prints are evident on the beach as are fox paw prints. The fog was starting to crawl back in so the pilot decided to high tail it out of here for fear of having to spend the night. I don’t blame him. Pretty desolate around here.