Marilyn's Odyssey

Beechey Island

Thursday September 7th we visited Beechey Island which holds a significant place in the history books as it is here that the Franklin Expedition spent their first winter. Three of the members of the Expedition died and are buried here in marked graves. Beechey Island is a small island only 2500 meters across above the waters of Lancaster Sound off the southwestern tip of Devon Island. In 1952-1953 W J S Pullen on the HMS North Star led the final British Admiralty’s search for Franklin and his crew. They built Northumberland house on Beechey Island which was to serve as a supply house for the Franklin Expedition if they were to return here. It was stocked with food, coal and barrels of rum. Polar bear eventually ate the food but never did touch the rum.

Beechey island is composed of small rocks above the permafrost which with its varying temperatures have given it a rolly uneven surface with indents almost like potholes. At one end a tombolo stretches out towards Devon Island giving you the impression you could almost walk across. The grave sites are quite stark on the barren landscape and one can not help but stand and contemplate what hardships these young men endured in such an unforgiving environment. We all had every layer currently available yet some still felt the cold and it is only September and we went back to a heated ship so to us it was unimaginable. Did they have any idea what lay ahead when they left England?

Northumberland House still has some remaining structure standing 170 years later. The beach is littered with dozens of rusty rings which were the tops and bottoms of barrels. The island is a protected archaeological site and it was incredible to visit

On our return to the ship the crew had prepared a wonderful BBQ complete with white tablecloth outdoor seating but unfortunately a bitter wind had come up and except for a hearty few most gathered our food and retreated inside to the warmth to enjoy our food, something those on Beechey Island so long ago did not have the luxury of doing.

Landing on Beechey Island

First visit was to the grave sites. The fourth grave on the far right was that of a sailor from the North Star in 1856

One of the headstones. Just 20 years old!

Forever resting by the Nortwest Passage for which they were searching

The tombolo with Devon Island in the distance

The remains of an ancient tenting site

Fine rocky surface with a wavy pattern and low hills in the background

Arctic plants push their way through the rocks

As winter sets in the plants are turning to seed puffs

Little balls of cotton amongst the stones

Coral fossils found along the beach

Hiking towards Northumberland House

Empty food cans strewn along the landscape

A memorial to Joseph Bellot whom the strait was named for

The remains of Northumberland House. The black in the foreground is coal

One can still see the remains of the coal burning stove used for cooking and heat as well as lots of the rusted barrel rings

Northumberland House as it appeared in 1875

A view of th harbour and Devon Island with our ship at anchor from the top of the hill on Beechey Island taken by Eric when he did the extreme hike.

The Franklin cairn which was at the top of the hill for other sailors to see. The tall mast has fallen. When those looking for Franklin came across this they were hoping to find some documentation with some clues as to his whereabouts but nothing was found.

Port Leopold and Leopold Island

Port Leopold is an abandoned trading post in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut. It faces Prince Regent Inlet at the northeast tip of Somerset Island and was the site of the winter encampment for the first major Royal Navy search for Sir John Franklins expedition. It is a vast plateau of barren gravel dotted with Arctic plants that stretches out towards distant grey cliffs. Our plans for our landing here had to be changed at the last minute as there were a couple of bears hanging around close to the old trading post site so that area was of course no longer accessible so a planned hike had to be cancelled but our time on shore exploring and looking at the old Thule sites where Inuit lived hundreds of years ago was really interesting and always great to stretch the legs. Guides are always situated all around the landing sites to explain any interesting features.

After exploring the Port and going to some on board lectures we cruised slowly by Prince Leopold Island where the vertical cliffs rise 750 feet from the ocean. These cliffs are notable as they are the breeding grounds for Thick billed Murres, Northern Fulmars and Black legged Kittiwakes. Their nests are glued to the cliffs with guano made of bird excrement. The colony is estimated at a quarter of a million birds which occupy the site from May until the end of August but many still remained though we are into September. As we cruised along there were hundreds of birds in the water and many could be seen on the cliffs. The bird specialist Mark Mallory was on deck providing info as this is a place that his grad students do bird counts.

Sailing into Port Leopold

The abandoned trading post around which the bears were lurking

The beach up to the land. Tides here are only about 20 centimetres

Well preserved skull of a bow head whale on the beach

Close to shore the tundra was quite colourful with small arctic plants

Gradually slopes up into the hills where there is almost no vegetation

These are the remains of old Thule home sites situated high above the water

A single Thule home

A good example of an arctic willow. Very different from the willows we have at home these crawl along the ground

Though the Arctic plants tend to be small many of them are very colourful

This orange lichen on the rock almost looks like paint!

Marc St Onge can always be found explaining interesting rock formations. This one is fossilized rock of worm casings

A very broad expanse of tundra with nothing to protect one from the wind

The gun cases which are the proof of the ever present bear guards everywhere we go. They set up a bear perimeter and keep a constant lookout for bears the whole time we are on the ground

The cliffs of Leopold Island

They look like small dots but there are hundreds of birds on this cliff

Evening setting in in the Arctic

Coningham Bay and Bellot Strait

Tuesday September 5th was indeed an exciting day. After a lecture on polar bears after breakfast we suited up for the cold weather and extended time on the water. We spent two hours in the zodiacs exploring Coningham Bay which is on th southeast coast of Prince of Wales Island in Nunavut. It is a very shallow protected bay where the water is warmer and belugas come here for two reason, to feed and to rub on the bottom. However belugas were not our main attraction today but the polar bears who come here to feed on the poor whales who get stranded on the falling tide were. We were more than rewarded with multiple sightings. We were treated to a sow and cubs feeding on a carcass, swimming bears ahead of our boat, solitary large bears ,a ring seal, a quick glimpse of a female narwhal and sadly a dead polar bear. Despite the cold the time flew but we all returned to the ship with permanent grins.

Cruising on we travelled trough Bellot Strait which separates Somerset Island from Boothia Peninsula.During this passage we passed the northern most point of North America, Zenith Point, which is marked with a cairn. All eyes were on deck watching for wildlife but with none to be seen we enjoyed the magnificent scenery instead.