This is officially the last day of our adventure.

This morning we have developed a forward action plan in order to make a difference when we return home.

My action plan is to: Give a presentation on global climate change and polar bears at my school; and to integrate Arctic issues and global climate change into a Wetlands program I volunteer at in my school.

Hopefully this will help in the fight to preserve the polar bear. Every little thing you can do makes a difference. Recycle, plant a tree, use energy efficient appliances, turn off the lights, conserve water, ride your bike, or walk. Just do anything you can to reduce carbon emissions.

After completion of the forward action plans, a mass packing chaos ensued. Bags and articles of clothing were flying as well as people (don’t worry I wasn’t). We loaded the buggy and were sent on our merry way.

We have now returned to Churchill and we are all stuffed into a little house eating frozen pizza. Our flight leaves around 10 and we should be in Winnipeg around midnight. Home will be an awkward place to return to and I know there will be some tearful good-byes. I guess this is the end of the adventure but this is a new beginning. This camp has inspired me to care and to make others care. For that, I am infinitely thankful to Polar Bears International.

October 6, 2007

It was the second last day of camp ☹, but it was amazing. I was woken at the crack of dawn for kitchen duty (I made scrambled eggs). After that we were herded onto the buggy. After we traveled about 100yds, 4 things appearing to be flies appeared on the horizon. As they approached, they began to resemble helicopters! Once they landed, we boarded them and left on the rides of our lives. We went on a helicopter ride for about 20 minutes over Wapusk National Park. We landed on the shore on Quantum Lake in the heart of the tundra. We landed on what felt like space-foam mattresses but actually the ground was comprised of “mosscakes”. We had to watch our step because there are unforeseen sinkholes in which you can fall in up to your knees in “mosscakes”. We were led into a polar bear maternal den (not currently inhabited) and were allowed to go inside it. I was surprised how comfortable in was. It was lined in peat moss, and I almost fell asleep inside except I was interrupted by the need to have a snowball fight.

For the better part of the day 2 sub-adult polar bears (one male, one female) were hanging around the camp. They started sparring and play fighting around mid-morning and eventually gave up and took an afternoon nap together.

Tonight we are finally (upon Michael’s request) going to play tundra buggy hide and seek. Otherwise, we are losing steam fast and badly need some rest!

October 5, 2007

I developed a cold a couple days ago and it is getting progressively worse but I am managing all right. Today included a fair amount of action from discussions to polar bear watching.

This morning I woke up to four caribou (two sets of a cow and calf). They were poking around about 300ft from camp and did not seem to be nervous of the lodge.

Discussions today included the importance of biodiversity, caring about species at risk, and polar bear species dynamics. We also completed our final videoconference to a grade 5 class in Oregon, and completed our final presentations on impacts of global climate change.

Out on the tundra buggy, we found a polar bear having a nap and trying to hide from the wind. We also spotted some birds including a couple peregrine falcons.

Sorry for the minimal choice of words but I really need to sleep right now. Good night.



October 4, 2007

After blogging and dinner last night I thought the day was completed until darkness fell. We were interrupted at dinnertime by a spectacular view of the aurora borealis! The swirls started out green, and then developed into yellow, red, purple, and other assorted colors. The lights looked like the steam rising from a hot cup of cocoa when the steam rises and curls. It creeped up along the horizon and ended up covering a significant portion of the night sky. On top of that, we saw a couple shooting stars (my wish is a secret).

As for today the weather has been dreary. We were unable to head out of the buggies today because of the harsh wind but no wildlife would be out in the rain anyway. It also snowed a teeny bit, which worries me because I do not want to come home to snow in Winnipeg. Lucky for me I have not been terribly cold because of the warm company. We have been in the lodge all day preparing for one of our videoconferences, which was this afternoon. A grade 4 class from Selkirk, Manitoba asked us questions about the polar bear and global warming. The most amusing question was probably “Do polar bears move in herds?” I got a kick out of imagining 40 polar bears moving in a large pack like the caribou do. 2nd prize probably goes to “How many dogs in weigh equals a polar bear?” Huskies weigh about 25kg each and polar bears weigh between 150-600kg. Collective mental math proved hard but we pulled through thanks to numerical signals from the cameraman. Honorable mentions go to “Why do polar bears have to go to zoos?” and “Why is a polar bear’s fur orange at sunrise and sunset?”

Tomorrow we have another videoconference and I think it will be easier than today’s. We are answering questions posed by a grade 4 class in Portland, Oregon.

Sorry for the lack of exciting wildlife spottings; hopefully the weather will clear up for tomorrow.

Last night after I blogged we received a presentation from three resident trappers near the Churchill area. They showed us examples of fur, and discussed their way of life. Many people assume that trappers are bad for the environment but that is not true. They practice centuries-old conservation techniques, taking only what the ecosystem can sustain. The traps are also designed to kill swiftly to avoid animal suffering.

Their lives seem difficult, but they assured us that trapping is very rewarding. My only concern was that they trap various animals including wolves and wolverines. I asked them if was safe to be in such close contact to these animals because I have always perceived them to be dangerous and aggressive animals. They answered that this is a common paradigm but if you treat the land and wildlife with respect, the animals will ignore you. Wolves and wolverines do not typically attack humans unless severely provoked.


That was yesterday; today it’s been non-stop action since the wake up call (6:30).

We spent about 4-5 hours on the buggy today and we saw plenty of wildlife. We saw another caribou (cow), it seemed pretty small, it could have passed for a calf. There are two main types of caribou in Manitoba: woodland and barrenlands. Bill Watkins, the resident biologist said it was a coastal caribou, which is closely related to the woodlands caribou; it differs in behavior. He also saw Arctic hares, foxes, and various birds including ptarmigans, falcons, herring gulls, horned lark, snow bunting, northern harrier, a mallard duck, eider duck, and a plover. As for the bears, wow! We found a bear that was puttering around until it caught sight of a muskrat and it was off! It ran in the water for it but sadly it was too slow. Afterwards, the polar bear seemed unhappy because apart from being hungry, it was now also wet.

At lunch we received a presentation from Michael Goodyear. He talked about ringed seal ecology and its relation to polar bears. This was interesting for me because I was invited to attend Leadership Camp because of my work with ringed seal ecology and contaminants. I was already familiar with most of what he said but I was new to ringed seal hunting techniques practiced by the Inuit. They either wait for hours at a time at a breathing hole or ambush a seal lair in hopes of harpooning a seal before it retreats into the ice.

For the rest of the time we have been in the lodge focusing on developing our presenting and leadership skills. We have been learning to communicate our opinions and to teach others to appreciate our point of view. I guess Leadership “Boot” camp has begun!

This was my first full day on the tundra and I loved every second of it! Today the wind was too strong to depart from the lodge to do some exploration in the tundra buggies but throughout the day we have been interrupted by surprise visits from the neighborhood polar bears. One even bunked with us last night about 100 feet from the buggy! All of the bears we saw today were sub-adults so hopefully we can find some cubs tomorrow.

When I saw the bears today I got over the ‘bear fever’ and I was able to study some of their behavioral aspects. I noticed that the bear acted like my dog when he wants dinner. When I am resting in front of the television or the like, my dog sits in my line of vision and maintains eye contact with me until I feed him dinner. The bears act the same way and I feel sorry for them because they are waiting for the ice to form to be able to hunt ringed seal but it is illegal to feed them. Feeding them would encourage them to associate humans with food, which is unsafe for both the humans and bears. It is important to respect these and all other creatures in their natural habitat.

Other than the bears, my favorite part of this journey so far is experiencing the tundra in all its natural glory. The land possesses a silent beauty that I greatly admire. We are just offshore some of the Hudson Bay tidal flats and today I was able to watch high tide. That was really special because I live in the middle of the continent; I rarely get to see coastline.

This blog was co-written with Cassidy.

Today we woke up at 7:30 am and ate delicious food at Gypsy’s restaurant. After breakfast, we were led on a tour of Churchill. On the list was the polar bear jail, the old Churchill dump, and the new dump. We went to the dump because the polar bears used to go to the dump and eat garbage. The people of Churchill decided to take action to protect the bears and put the garbage inside where the bears couldn’t get to it.
After lunch we arrived at the Parks Canada office and received a presentation on the research projects in Wapusk National Park. The research was mainly centered on population management. The researchers studied population dynamics in snow geese, and polar bears, as well as their effects on the surrounding area.
There are currently eight fugitives staying at the Churchill Polar Bear Jail. We were not allowed to see them because Manitoba Conservation wants to minimize bear and human contact. Therefore, we looked to other places to find polar bears. After being loaded on to the Tundra Buggy we proceeded on to the moving lodge. On the way, we encountered numerous amounts of magnificent “tundra inhabitants” also known as animals. These included, ptarmigans, caribou, bald eagles, Canada geese, arctic hares, peregrine falcons, and polar bears! We saw our first bear about 150 feet away and the next two bears came rite up to the buggy. Theses were our reactions to seeing the bears:

Beth: I got something called bear fever’ when I first saw the bears. “Buck fever” is when out hunting for deer, someone finds a huge buck and ends up blowing the shot because they were too excited to think properly. I got “bear fever” with my camera. I couldn’t take any good shots because my hands were shaking! The bear was literally feet away from me looking at the buggy. Seeing the bear inspired me more to care about the bears and learn more about them and how to help them.

Cassidy: I was so amazed when I saw the polar bears! It was truly a magical experience; I felt so special and privileged to be in the presence of such a magnificent animal. The tundra was so amazing and seeing all the animals on it was even more special. I have never seen anything so incredible in my life, and the extremely cold temperature has been worth it.

We finally made it to Churchill! Upon arrival Stephen, the student ambassador from Churchill, led us on a tour through the town. We saw the mouth of the Churchill River, but my favorite part was experiencing Hudson Bay for the first time! I put my hand in the water and also got the opportunity to get my feet wet when I was too slow to dodge an upcoming wave. My shoes and socks are soaked and I can say with confidence that the Hudson Bay is cold! I cannot imagine how a polar bear is able to swim hundreds of miles in that icy water without freezing to death! I did not realize how incredible their adaptations to the cold weather (warm fur coat and plenty of blubber) were.

So far, we have not seen any polar bears but an officer herded us off the beach of the Hudson Bay because a polar bear was spotted about one half mile away heading in our direction! It seems scary but it is actually quite safe because the officers in Churchill are well equipped to handle bears and our instructors are very protective of us “sub-adults”.

The town has a very welcoming atmosphere and I am looking forward to our upcoming adventures!

Saturday September 29, 2007

Greetings! I am a native Winnipegger so I have no traveling tales of woe. Instead I arrived after completing my afternoon math class at school.

Upon arrival I was welcomed with opens arms by Robert and Carolyn Buchanan and the rest of the crew. We have been listening to incredible presentations about what we are about to experience up in Churchill. The most notable in my eyes was the presentation by Robert Taylor, a nature photographer. He spent thousands of hours out in the Churchill wilderness searching for the “perfect shot.” His photographs make averages things such as pebbles and moss look like true works of art. His polar bear photographs were captivating and I am highly anticipating the adventure to come.

This afternoon we visited Deb, the oldest polar bear in captivity (40), at the Winnipeg zoo. We started a discussion about zoos and various viewpoints about keeping animals in captivity versus protecting them in the wild. I believe zoos are important tools in education and conservation but animals should be housed in such a way that they can retain their dignity and assume their natural behavior. Since I am a local here, I have been to the Assiniboine Park Zoo many times. I remember thinking when I was a kid how everything seemed so big. As I have grown, I have realized that the bear exhibits, although among the largest in the zoo, are on the small side for the size of the animal. Deb’s enclosure has some naturalistic rock work and boulders, so it is an improvement over the really old “animal in a box” type of zoo exhibit from the old days. New laws and international standards have been passed in Manitoba to create a better enclosure for polar bears living in the Winnipeg zoo after her, and for polar bears in zoos around the world. I feel zoos, like science, should be constantly upgraded as we continue to learn more about animal behavior and animal biology, especially in the polar bear.