After a few great days in Greenland we have arrived in Canada's great white north.
Aug 9 - Illilusat, Greenland to Iqaluit, Canada 4.25 hrs
Before leaving we had one last look at the ice fjord at about 100-300 feet in the plane going 300 km per hour. After that, another very nice flight over the Davis Strait to Baffin Island in Canada. We landed at the town of Iqaluit which is the capital of the newly established province of Nunavat just in time for the Friday night festivites. (Check out the picture - doesn't that look like a great place to live? there are lots of job openings so any of you tempted to trade in the hustle of Melbourne for something a little quieter and colder let me know).
Shortly after arrival we headed to Legion No 4 (a RSL for all those down under). We thought that would be a suitable way to close the journey to Canada along the same lines as it started from the West St Kilda RSL. We knew we were back in Canada when we went into the bar and they were playing Lynyrd Skynrd, seems like I never left 10 years ago at all. It turned out to be a big night with the place packed all Canadian nationalities, Ontarians, Blueberry Blondes, Nurses - it almost brought a tear to our eyes. We had some great hosts for the evening - an acquaintance of Marks mates in the Hague who were riding that Government job train in the new Canadian region on Nunavut.
We said we would go home when it got dark but the problem was it never did. So needless to say the flight the next day was pretty short.
Aug 10 Iqaluit to Kujjuaq (Fort Chimo), Canada 2.1 hrs.
After a late start the next morning, we donned the rubber suits for the last time and flew over the Hudson strait to the Ungava Pennisula to Kuujuaq in northern Quebec. We went there as the Inter Polar Conference of Inuit people (Greenland, Alaska, Canada and Russia) was starting and there was supposed to be music playing this weekend. Unfortunately, nothing was happening until Monday so we pitched a tent near the airport and escaped from the mosquitos who were eating us alive.
Aug 11, Iqaluit to Parry Sound, Ontario 7hrs.
The final leg which whet over Val Dor, Quebec and North Bay Ontario and the many many lakes and rivers that make up Canada. I forgot how much water there was in Canada. We eventually arrived at the Parry Sound airport in Muskoka (a fantastic resort area north of toronto). To our surprise there was a little welcoming party at the airport upon arrival made up of the Mennie and the Proudfoot clans. Mark and I looked at each other and said do you know those people? we didn't think either one of us knew that many people in Canada anymore.
We spent two fantastic days at Bruce and Anita's cottage on the shores of Lake Joe drinking beer, touring around in Bruce's new speedboat and catching up on the last 10 years or so. (Bruce who had just arrived from working the year in Indonesia at Freeport was delighted to see that he had guests so soon upon his return to the cottage. )
First Officer Mark has now returned to the reality of work in Melbourne while Captain Bahnsen is determined to elude reality (and WMC) for a few more months at least.
The immediate plan is to catch up with all the long lost friends and family in Ontario before heading northwest to the Yukon and Alaska to catch the last remnants of summer. So the emails may be a little more sparse over the next couple of months (you'll adjust!) but stay tuned for leg two - "Solo across the pacific". (a chance for all those DB players that went short on Bahnsen with "Alex the Bookie" and lost their dough to "double down").
So thanks everyone out there who persevered along this little journey of ours and stay tuned for Part 2. Cathy continues to update our website at "www.geocities.com/julietdeltayankee"
So adios for now - remember to try and get out of the office once in a while before its too late!
JB
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