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| Jens arrived in January to help
train dogs and finalize equipment selections. Here he is fixing one of the
expedition stoves. |
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Prepare for Take Off!
Date:
02.25.02
Position: NOMADS Base Camp Grand Marais, MN USA
Weather
Conditions: Light snow 23F/-16C
Its hard to believe that its actually time
to leave - not that leaving comes as much of a surprise. Everyone at
NOMADS base camp has been watching the clock on the website for the last two
weeks. After months of preparation, there is really nothing left to do but
pack up and go. In a few minutes, we will be loading everything into the
trailer. |
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| And when we say everything... we mean
everything! Can you imagine carrying all that you need to live and survive
for over a month in a fourteen foot long dogsled? That's what we have to
do! So, before being loaded into the trailer each item is carefully
inventoried, checked and double checked. Leaving something behind could
prove disastrous for us out on the trail. Things like snow hooks, dog
food, people food, snowshoes, skis, dog
sleds, rope, carabiners, stoves, fuel, communication equipment, a small
generator, IBM laptop computer, sunscreen, cameras, ax, shovels... (get the
picture?) are all loaded.
Eighteen
Polar Huskies
need to get loaded into the dog truck, too. Each dog travels on a
comfortable "bed" of straw in their own box. Dogs like Fuji, Khan and Nuka
are always very excited to go. The dog yard explodes with eager barking as
we begin loading dogs. They know that they will end up somewhere new and
will soon be able to do two of their favorite things: run and pull. Once
on the road, we usually stop every six to eight hours to let the Polar Huskies
(and people) out to stretch, eat and go to the bathroom.
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| On the trail, each of us
will need to eat over 5,000 calories per day - that means eating a healthy well
balanced diet with extras like cheese and butter. |
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Freja
relaxes in comfort before the door is closed. The dog yard
explodes with barking and excitement when we begin loading the dogs. All
the dogs want to come along! |
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After all the gear and food is loaded
(including all the NOMADS team members) we will drive north on Hwy 61 to the
Canada. On the way we will pass through Grand Portage, a famous place
where voyager fur traders gathered and is currently home
to the Grand Portage band of Ojibway and their reservation. A few miles farther
down the road, we will stop the Pigeon River Customs station at the US /
Canadian border. Then, its north to Thunder Bay where we will "hang a
left", head west and finally veer north toward Red Lake, Ontario. All told the
drive should take around a day and a half. |
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The area that we will be traveling across
is, by no means, unexplored territory. People have crisscrossed this
region for various reasons throughout history. From the
ancestors of the Ojibway and Cree to fur traders and voyagers to the region's
current residents, northern Ontario has seen its fair share of the human
race. Regardless, its hard not to think that we will be acting kind of
like explorers. Many of the places we will visit are fairly remote and are
only accessible by plane. As NOMADS "explorers", we will not be looking
for fortune or fame; instead, our goal is to educate about the environment, land
and people of this unique area. For us, this territory is new, fresh and
relatively unspoiled. Every hill, every valley, twist and turn of the
trail will be a new adventure. Imagine traveling to a different place
almost everyday for over a month! Sounds exciting doesn't it?
While traveling to new places and meeting new
people can be very exciting, it can also be dangerous, and at times, nerve
wracking. Thin ice, bad trail conditions and winter storms are all
concerns. |
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| Although she would much
rather be out on the trail with the rest of the team, Mille will be in charge of
base camp during Pimagihowin 2002. She will play a crucial role
facilitating the educational program, updating the website, and of course,
working with the remaining Polar Huskies. |
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We also want to make sure to leave a good impression on the
people we meet. We want to be respectful and sincere. In the
past, explorers have accomplished many great feats. They have also brought
disease, famine and the destruction to most Native cultures they
encountered.
(If you have ever wanted to become an
explorer or you have an opinion about some of the effects of exploration,
participate in this week's online chat and discussion boards. You discuss
this issue and "chat" with NOMADS team members on Thursday, February 28th at
10:00am and 12:00pm central time.)
Now, its important to realize that
Pimagihowin 2002 couldn't have happened by itself. Working alone, there is
no way that one person could have trained the Polar Huskies, fixed sleds,
prepared marketing brochures, designed the expedition website, met with
teachers, contacted sponsors, acquired and tested new equipment, fixed old
equipment, fundraised, kept up with accounting, researched the educational
program, wrote and edited the curriculum, attended trade shows, fed the Polar
Huskies... (get the picture - again?).
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| Being able to plan, prepare and
participate in the Pimagihowin 2002 expedition took the skills, talents and
efforts of all the NOMADS team members. As a group, we needed to trust one
another to do a good job and complete tasks efficiently. Each of us is
responsible for one part of the whole. Separately, we could not accomplish
what needed to be done; however, together, Sarah was able to feed, train and
care for the Polar Huskies, Mille and Paul were able to manage NOMADS, attend
trade shows and promote the Pimagihowin 2002 expedition and I was able to write
and edit the education program. Cassie's insight and teaching
expertise helped create the 2002 Curriculum & Activity Guide. Mary Ann
managed the office and even Jens came over from Denmark to lend a helping
hand. For us, team members are not just the people on the
trail. |
| During a normal
winter, there would be almost 3 feet of snow on the ground by this date.
Instead, we have around 8 inches. So, Sarah still trains the Polar Huskies
with a one of NOMADS ATV's. (Here with Spook and Norma) |
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