The 2nd Annual IR Vacation to Hell- The Baffin to Ellesmere Challenge

A quick recap.....

(photo,Alain tries on his new pair of Teva shoes!)

Over the past few weeks, I have had more than one person look at the blog site and ask me so....what is it about?
I will clear that up for new comers to the site. Basically there is an expedition grant put out there every year by Immersion Research ...you send in video applications and when you win they tell you where you are going. This year my self and three others won. Team Sweetwater as we are called is. Alain Cormier,(Seen standing in hie blue kayak in the above photo). Alain lives in Zurich Switzerland and is an all around outdoorsman.
Tim Keen , hailing from Nashville Tennessee, well traveled and he and I have done a long trip in Labrador 2005.He is an engineer for GM and is working on a new motor for them.
Originally Mark Prator was on the team ,but had to back out of going with us for reasons we respect and understand.
In to take Marks' slot was Phil Eccles, from north Wales in the UK. He helps run an outdoors centre for the City of Coventry, and so is quite active in outdoors pursuits.(photo below..Phil in Outer Hebrides 2007)

And I live in Clearwater,Florida where I can paddle year round! I have paddled with everyone on the team , but the team has never paddled together. We do have weekly conference calls and e-mail each other almost daily,(sometimes 15 times a day).

(photo,Russell in the Outer Hebrides Sept.2007)

So where we are going is to Pond Inlet on the north side of Baffin Island, we are charged with paddling north from there...across about 60 miles of open water to Devon Island...Sledging our kayaks across the ice cap on Devon,(about 60 miles),then a quick 40ish mile crossing to the south side of Ellesmere Island and ending up in the hamlet of Grise Fiord. It will take about 7 weeks...we will take everything we need with us including solar recharging panels,artic gear,ice gear,guns,food,tents sleeping bags, ect.
Here is a map of the top of the world to give a better idea where we are talkng about. The island to the left of Greenland is Baffin.

Hopefully this will help clear up what this site is about...if not you can ask questions in the comments section....all for now Russell.
(photo,Tim Keen in the Apostle Islands, Lake Superior (2007)...dressed for the Arctic.)

There is only one North

We were hoping to use a tracking device so that our friends and supporters could follow our route. Sadly, we were told that some trackers don't work so far north.

However, that doesn't faze us at Team Sweetwater because Russell has similar genetic attributes as migratory pelagic sea birds. He can take one look at the world around him and sense North. Paddling with him in conditions of virtually zero visibility is quite astonishing.

When the chips are down and you think you're lost Russell , with almost prophetic genius he will tell you, "North is always up, right?"

be prepared...

(photo,Phil outfitted with prototype eye wear)

When you go places you've never been , and those places have different envior"mental" challenges than you are used to. You are wise to listen to people that have local knowledge.
We have been told that once we are on the ice or if we get snow getting snow blind is a real concern. It happens quickly and can take days to recover from. So, with that in mind we approached the people at Loch Faoilem Laboratories in Scotland and told them that we needed them to help us develop ultra light snow goggles. You can see Phil wearing a pair of prototype eye pieces in the photo.
He says that they are so comfortable you hardly even know you have them on!
More to come....Russell.

Back on track....

(photo;Russell on the Weeki Wachee River)

I returned from Charleston and the East Coast Canoe and Kayak Symposium,and am ready for the final run to our departure date....July 18.
The first thing, e-mails were sent and everyone is onboard for a conference call..Keeno has been in touch with Dave Reid at Polar Adventures in Pond Inlet and he will join our call next week. So if anyone out there has questions about the far north let us know and we will ask him and post the answers here.
We have our sleeping bags on order and will be getting the rest of our small goods over the next few weeks.  Phil will be leading a trip to Ireland soon and I think the rest of us will be at home until we head North.
Anyway, more later.
Russell

Stay warm with Immersion Research!

I just received a whole bunch of stuff from Immersion Research today! Many times clothing that performs well doesn't look so great and clothing that looks good doesn't seem like it's built to last. I was happy to see that the IR stuff seems to be both!

The first thing I tried on was the Polar Skin top: looks great and it's the perfect thickness.

I also like the Hooded Zephyr Jacket. It's a paddling jacket so it doesn't have neck or wrist latex gaskets but I think the neoprene wrist closures are a nice touch. (Without them water picked up by the paddle can sip trough at the wrist and stay trapped in the bend at the elbow and come down your back as soon as you raise your elbow over your shoulder - arrgh!) The cold water temps means that I'll be wearing an IR Drysuit on the water but this might be the perfect on land rain jacket.

One piece of gear that really got my attention was the Union Suit. My first thought was "Man, I can't believe they forgot the zipper on this thing!". I looked at it for a while and realized that I can probably get in through the top since the fabric there seems to have a lot of stretch to it. I was afraid to damage it so I checked the website. Sure enough that's how you get in! What a great idea! It fits so nicely that you feel like you're not wearing anything but you feel very warm. Naked and Warm ... like a polar bear :-)

Can't wait for the weekend to try out all this nice gear! - Alain

honoured to be on board

Download basking_shark.jpg

Hi there, Blog readers,

Phil Eccles here form a very cold and wintry North Wales. I am so thrilled and honoured to join the boys of Team Sweetwater for this great adventure. I'm hoping my attributes will bring a desired dimension to the team to help make the trip successful, safe and fun. To paddle in the High Arctic is a dream come true and I'm longing to be there. We will paddle where few have paddled before. We'll camp on beaches where perhaps none have set foot before us. The vistas will be those of pristine wilderness. The memories will last forever.

As you can see from the photo (please click download above) I get on quite well with basking sharks ... and I'm hoping I can do the same with polar bears !

Paddling the High Arctic Talk in Brentwood Tennessee (4/21)

Announcement:  VTH Paddling the High Arctic Talk:

Tim Keen & Team Sweetwater were selected as recipients of  the Vacation to Hell - Kayak Expedition Grant, sponsored by Immersion Research, to paddle the Canadian High Arctic this summer. If interested (or in Tennessee), Please join us at REI in Brentwood, Tn. on April 21st at 7:00 as Tim shares the details & challenges of his team’s upcoming sea kayaking adventure to the High Arctic.

Where: REI in Brentwood Tennessee

When: April 21st, 2008

Time: 7:00 – 8:30pm

Welcome Aboard , Phil Eccles , King Pin!

(photo,Phil Eccles looking dapper in the Outer Hebrides,Sept.2007)

Due to things beyond his control our longtime traveling buddy Mark Prator can not commit to this expedition. We love him no less,and consider him to still be a team member. He will not be taking that long flight north but, instead will be helping the team with the blog site and other duties while we are in the far north.
As soon as Marko confirmed he would not be going , the first person that came to mind was "The Mighty" Phil Eccles.
I have known Phil I guess six years now.I met him in a dark,dank jail cell in northern Africa,where we were both being held under false pretenses.
No actually we met at a sea kayak symposium here in the USA and our mutual friend Nigel Foster introduced us. Since we met we had talked about doing a trip somewhere together. Just the two of us...exploring one of the worlds wild corners.We almost went to Iceland, but in the end went to The Outer Hebrides, off the northwest coast of Scotland.
I can easily say it was the most fun I have ever had on a trip.He was so easy to be around, always upbeat,proactive,(I felt like a slug around him),funny and the boyish puns and jokes never ended.

(photo,Phil modeling the latest in headgear from Loch Faoilem Laboratories,Outer Hebrides)

I have often said trips,expeditions and life are not about where you are, rather who you're with.
I know with Phil on the team we will have a great time! He will balance us out in ways we can't see yet.
Phil lives in North Wales so he is already used to bad weather and bad food (actually his wife Joan is a great chef).He works at a kids outdoor center and so is teaching kids climbing one day , kayaking the next.
So with great pride and pleasure I/we say "Welcome Aboard,Phil".
Russell....

Communication...

(Photo,tracking station Outer Hebrides,Scotland)

Every endeavor in which more than one person is involved takes communication. Sometimes its easy to talk to your team mates and sometimes its not. Sometimes its easy to talk to your wife/husband,friend,mom,boss,friend,co-worker, and sometimes its not. Sometimes you get frustrated by things beyond your control and it rolls over into your relationships and communication. Sometimes you don't know the whole story and don't communicate in a sensitive way, only later to your embarassment finding out the whole story.
Communication is very important in an expedition. In the planning stages, so there are no surprises when you actually hit the water. And of course when you are in the field, you need to know exactly how your team mates are feeling so you can plan a safe day.
When communication breaks down , the expedition breaks down.
Sometimes we get frustrated and our communication breaks....to all of our credit, with lots of stress from our daily lives ,jobs,relationships, running out of time for planning and just now getting the funds to get the gear we need, but now we don't have the time to learn how to use the cold weather gear, (plus there's no cold weather anymore as its spring). We have always muscled through the rough spots in the road and landed on our feet as a team. I look forward to always landing on our feet.
At the end of our Labrador Expedition Tim says,"friendships have been deepened, and there has already been talks and conversations about the next trip".
Thats how I want this trip to end ....with that statement from all of us
Russell

1st Check Rec'vd!

Great News.....  Our 1st check for gear & logistics hit the shared bank account on Monday and we're mobilized to purchase Critical Gear & Dial in the Logistics.  NORTH.....  I say!

3 and a half months to go...

(view from the "bridge",Labrador 2005)
Time sure is a tricky thing...when I was a kid it took forever for Christmas to come,but summer vacation was all too short. Time is spinning as I write this , there are lots of big and little details to cover in the little bit of time thats left.
We have finally received funds with which we can now purchase sleeping bags , ice gear, detailed charts , and a huge list of sundry items from food to GPS'.
I just returned from San Diego where I taught and paddled with some great west coast paddlers. We also took a couple of days and went down to the Pacific side of Baja where we played in the rock gardens and caves in some light ocean swell. We were the guests of Jen Kleck at Aqua Adventures in San Diego, she and Jake were awesome hosts.
The week I was there time flew by....I'll bet being in the Artic time will slow down and speed up like it does here. Time will slow down on those challenging days when we're cold , tired, and hungry and maybe miles from safety. And time will speed up when a Muskox comes into camp for a visit or when a Narwhal sticks its unicorn like horn out of the water.
Time is speeding up for me as I write this . So its off to the shop and work for the day!
Russell...