This Time Last Year in the Arctic

Imagine that feeling of sitting at the end of the world, before you an open stretch of mirror-like still water all the way to the orange hues of the horizon, and beneath your feet a metre or so of ice is the only thing that holds you up. Beside you the chef is coolly displaying a dream lunch starter of fresh Arctic char sashimi right on the ice, complete with wasabi and soy sauce, and above you a neat display of brightly-billed eider ducks.

Well, this is where I was this time last year, enjoying the Arctic wilderness on safari in search of polar bears and narwhals. 

Living on the fast-ice southeast of Bylot Island in Arctic Canada, I ‘camped’ for a week. Sleeping under the magical glow of the midnight sun (although I must admit I had to close the blinds to actually sleep!), is truly wonderful after a day of playing in icebergs and slowly stalking polar bears in the hopes of getting that little bit closer for the ultimate photo.

Days were filled with kayaking through water so cold that you had to break a thin layer of ice as you moved, tracking polar bear footprints, navigating huge cracks in the ice via snowmobile, building little 'ice houses' and contemplating the ultimate Arctic dip (which never happened for me). As the days passed, we’d put off sleeping for longer and longer until it was normal to hit the hay at 4am after a Thai green curry beside a cliff filled with thousands of kittiwakes.

As I cycled to work this morning and studied the colours of the morning UK sky, battling the ‘spring wind’, as I have so named it, I felt so unbelievably lucky to have experienced what I did last year. 

I’m skipping the summer holiday again this year to find somewhere filled with adventure. How about you? Where were you this time last year?

If you’re thinking of somewhere unique for your summer this year and lying on a beach just won’t do it for you, get in touch with our team. We are full of ideas to get you out there and experiencing the world; we can usually add some beach time on the end if you fancy it…!