Schools on Tundra 4: Exhilarating!

Posted on April 2, 2013 by dlevy

LCC students Victor Zhao’13 and Andrew Hamilton’13 had the opportunity to participate in ArcticNet’s Schools on Tundra program during the March Break.

“Students and teachers participating in the Schools on Tundra program [had] the unique opportunity to conduct authentic field research in the sub-arctic, engage with scientists working out of the [Churchill Northern Studies Centre] and participate in lectures and workshops. Participants also [experienced] the diverse geology, biodiversity, cultural history, and wild beauty that the area around Churchill offers.

The program was hosted at the Churchill Northern Studies Centre (CNSC), a hive of scientific activity located outside of Churchill, MB Canada. Here, scientists are trying to increase our understanding of the changes that the sub-arctic is experiencing due to global climate change.”

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March 2, 2013

Today was a very packed day in Churchill. After an early wake-up (6:30!), we continued working on our model rockets. Most people finished assembling their rockets. I’m very excited for Monday’s launch!

At about 10:30, we left for the day’s main event: dog sledding! We arrived at Blue Sky Expeditions a half hour later, eager to begin. Gerald Azure, the founder and trainer, walked us through how the sleds work. There were two sleds: one with space for one passenger, and the other with space for two. Both sleds were each pulled by a team of seven dogs. Blue Sky is unique in the way it treats its dogs; they believe strongly that the dogs shouldn’t be overworked, so each dog is “retired” into adoption at age eight. One of the dogs, who ended up being a lead dog for us, had recently been rescued from a home where she had been abused. You could see in both her timid nature and the scar above her eye that something wasn’t quite right with the dog psychologically.

On a happier note, I think that I speak for the entire group when I say that we had a great time dogsledding. It is a completely unique experience, one which I find difficult to put into words, but I will say this much: The feeling is a mix of exhilaration, empowerment and, well, surprise when the dogs first take off.

Then we went to sleep for the night. Or so we thought. Around 11 o’clock, Max (one of the teachers accompanying the trip) woke us up to take a look at the northern lights. They were by far the best I’d seen so far on this trip, and the viewing dome was completely full for the first time. He managed to get some incredible pictures of the overpowering phenomenon, and those of us who managed to get up were staring at the sky in awe for a while.

When thinking of what I was going to write for this dispatch, I thought it was almost unfair that I got a day that was so full of great activities. That’s when it hit me – it wasn’t that this day was so much better than the others, it’s that every day on this trip has been an incredible experience in and of itself. I feel privileged to be here. —Andrew Hamilton ’13

Schools on Tundra 2: Settling In

Posted on March 28, 2013 by dlevy

LCC students Victor Zhao’13 and Andrew Hamilton’13 had the opportunity to participate in ArcticNet’s Schools on Tundra program during the March Break.

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February 26, 2012

So here we are. Churchill. Our train pulled into the station today, full of anticipation. After 45 hours on the train (and in towns along the way), I’d say that the arrival has also solved our restlessness. We are now a group of nine, waiting for our final member to arrive tonight. As far as the students go, there are four from Quebec, four from Manitoba and a pair from Nunavut. I already feel as though I’ve known these fellow participants for much longer than what time and addition say. Between midnight games of ninja in the snow in Gillam, MB, the (friendly) provincial competition in our card games, and the shared suffering of trying to sleep in seats on the train, we have grown incredibly close as a group.

For the next eight days, we will be staying at the Churchill Northern Studies Centre. This is a non-profit organization dedicated to education and research on climate change in the North. The building that houses the organization (and us!) was purpose-built through donations from the provincial and federal governments, as well as through private donations. My favuorite part of the building has to be the Aurora Dome. As the name suggests, this is a dome on top of the building used to watch the Aurora Borealis, better known as the Northern Lights. Although we are out of season for polar bears, getting to see the lights from such a great vantage point will more than make up for it.

As I am writing this, we are preparing to hear a lecture from Dr. Pete Kershaw. He will be speaking to prepare us for tomorrow’s main activity, taking snow samples. We will also be hearing from a specialist on one of this area’s main attractions, the Aurora Borealis. –Andrew Hamilton ’13

Schools on Board – 1: Tired & Anticipating

Posted on March 28, 2013 by dlevy

LCC students Victor Zhao’13 and Andrew Hamilton’13 had the opportunity to participate in ArcticNet’s Schools on Tundra program during the March Break.

Enjoy the blogs!

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Sunday, February 24, 2013

It’s around 9 pm Winnipeg time, 10 pm Montreal time, and even without the trip really beginning, I am, in a word, tired. After a delayed flight, Andrew and I arrived yesterday at around 4:30, and unfortunately we missed the first orientation activity, where the group just walked around Forks, a town named after the fact that it is at the fork of two major rivers, the Red River and the Assiniboine. We had a nice dinner, a highlight of which was Andrew ordering the “muddy burger,” a burger big enough that he had to cut it into pieces with fork and knife to eat it, and met the four girls and two other guys that formed our current group before we met the other two boys in Churchill. We had a nice time skating along a barely-frozen path that was also at times terrifying and quite painful due to the skates we were wearing. By lights out at 10:30, the four guys in our room still hadn’t showered or decided where people were sleeping, as we only had two beds for four people, and the sleeping arrangements were really only decided at 4 in the morning when Tyler, the boy from Iqaluit who had elected to sleep on the floor, decided that it wasn’t worth it and climbed into bed with Andrew.

After a restless night, we had a nice pancake breakfast and continued to marvel at Manitoba’s ridiculous course sizes before climbing onto our 45-hour long train ride. We’ve been on the train for about 9 hours now, and it’s been surprisingly… well, not eventful, but not the long, boring experience we had expected. Playing cards and looking at pictures of polar bears in anticipation of the next week and a half have been keeping the group occupied, as has sleep. Sleep has been great. That, as well as watching people stumble along the train, have kept me quite amused, and excited for the days to come. –Victor Zhao ’13

Schools on Board: Benthic Ecology

Posted on October 3, 2011 by admin

September 29, 2011

This morning, we had two scientists talk to us about benthic ecology. This deals with organisms living on the seafloor. They are good indicators of the global state of the environment, but the scientists don’t know much yet.

I went up on deck today to watch the Boxcore go to the bottom of the ocean. This is an instrument that brings up a cube of ocean floor sediments for analysis. The scientists took the top layer to their lab, and we had to shovel the rest of the mud out of the box back into the ocean. I like how the crew lets us get involved with these kinds of operations and we feel involved in life on the ship as opposed to only watching what is happening.

Afterwards, I went to the lab with two others to sort the organisms found in the mud from the Boxcore. My mind was blown when we showed the scientist some strange creatures we found and she didn’t know what they were. I thought scientists knew so much, but there are still so many species on the bottom of the ocean that are undiscovered.

Karen Butt ’12

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Schools on Board: Eager with Anticipation

Posted on September 22, 2011 by admin

LCC student Karen Butt is travelling through the Northwest Passage as a part of the Schools on Board/Arctic Net collaboration aboard the Amundsen. Here’s her first reflection.

September 21, 2011

I arrived in Quebec City today, and got to meet all the southern participants. It was a beautiful day and we spent the afternoon walking around the old part of the city. I’m getting really excited because I got to see a lot of pictures and videos taken by someone who’s been on the Amundsen many times. I’m blown away by all the things that there are to experience in the Arctic and I feel like there will never be enough time to embrace it all. I also got to glance through the on-board schedule and I’m really looking forward to tomorrow when I get to enter an entirely different universe.

I’m getting up in 4 hours to fly to Kugluktuk, and we get to board the ship once we arrive. I’m really looking forward to settling in and getting a tour of the ship. What comes after sounds so different and exciting that I can’t believe it’s real yet.—Karen Butt ’12