Years ago l used to subscribe to The Beaver, a Canadian journal which focused on the history of the Hudson Bay company and related subjects. l kept on noticing an advert for guided canoe trips just below the arctic circle in the North West Territories of Canada. In 1989 l did my first three week trip and fell in love with this north country which has everything - animals, endless horizons, quietness, wind, rain, sunshine and biting insects. I’m up to my seventh trip. It’s taken me a while to realise on these trips that while the destination is important, the journey’s the thing.
A couple of years ago l completed another canoe trip in Northern Canada; this time above the tree line and about one degree of latitude south of the arctic circle. The tundra was a mass of wildflowers: moss campion, labrador tea, mountain aven, arctic lupen, dwarf fireweed, alphine azalea, lapland rosebay (rhododendron) to name a few. The river had about 40 major rapids and many minor ones in the 140 mile trip.
Towards the end of the journey l wrote in my diary “I’m sitting here outside my tent wondering why l feel so invigorated by this country in spite of the mosquitos and aching muscles. It might be the silence, the absence of made-made artifacts, the endless horizon, the majesty of it all. Perhaps the physical effort involved in moving through the land. It’s definitely not an easy country.”
If you go to this page you will see some photos of this trip.