Age: 7, born in March 2002
Birthplace: Bert and Johnny Hyde's home; Ely, MN
Parents: Daisy and Nightshade
Favorite position: Wheel
Favorite quote: "Good judgment comes from experience, and often experience comes from bad judgment." -- Rita Mae Brown

The journey home has been long. The Tundra Train left Churchill about 5 hours late, which means we were loading dogs and sleds onto the boxcar around midnight.

We rode the train for the rest of the night and most of the next day. It was fun to look out the window and watch the transition from tundra to Boreal Forest. The trees increased in size as we traveled south. I also noticed that the amount of snow decreased as we traveled south.

We got off the train in Thompson, where we left our cars and dog trailer. While giving the dogs a chance to stretch their legs at the train station in Thompson, Paul drove up with the dog trailer in tow. Bubba (one of the dogs) let out a loud, excited howl the second he saw the trailer. He knew that the trailer meant we were heading home! I think that the dogs, like us, enjoyed the adventure, but were ready to go home.

We drove through most of the night in rain and fog. It seems like we left winter behind us and spring has arrived in southern Manitoba.

After crossing the border between Canada and the United States, we stopped to share a treat with the dogs. A gas station just happened to have a soft-serve ice cream machine, so we made sure that every dog got an ice cream cone. It took some of the dogs a few minutes to figure out that the ice cream was food, but most of the dogs happily wolfed down their treat, cone and all.

The Snowy Owl is white with yellow eyes and a black bill. Males are completely white, but females have some dark spots. Full grown snowy owls are about 20-26 inches tall with a 50-60 inch wingspan. These birds weigh between 3.5 and 6.6 pounds. The Snowy Owl is well-adapted to its Arctic environment thanks to its thick plumage, heavily-feathered feet, and color.

Age: 8, born in June 2000
Birthplace: Tor Dixon's kennel, Quaanaq, Greenland
Parents: unknown
Favorite position: Lead
Favorite quote: "Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there."--Will Rogers

Lemmings are small rodents that live in treeless areas of northern Canada. Their bodies are well adapted to the cold conditions they live in; they have a very thick coat of fur in the winter, short ears, short legs, and short tails. Adult lemmings are about 150 mm in total length, including about 20 mm of tail. Their body weight varies from about 55 g in some years to about 115 g in others.

We could use some feedback from you. Now that Project Polar Bear is in its final week, we'd like to know what your favorite learning experience was. Which Animal of the Arctic was your favorite? Please explain why. Was there anything you found interesting in Notes from the Trail or Dog of the Day?

Everyone in the group was very happy to arrive in Churchill after a day of dogsledding on the sea ice. Our last day of dogsledding had just the right amount of challenge. The wind had died down and the temperature was fairly high (between 15 and 20 F). When I say sea ice, I don't mean ice like a skating rink. The sea ice in Hudson Bay is anything but flat. Wind and waves cause large chunks of ice to jut up at odd angles, making for a rather bumpy dogsled ride. Nikola described it as being in a rodeo. Skiing was rather awkward too, but everyone was in such a good mood, this didn't seem to matter. The distance from the Northern Studies Center into Churchill was about 15 miles, and about two thirds of that distance was on the sea ice.

It was hard work traveling over the sea ice.

On our way into town, we passed by the polar bear jail. During the fall when many polar bears migrate through Churchill, problem bears are taken here. Of course, there are no bears there now and all we saw were several large bear traps and a large empty building.

Large traps are used to catch Polar Bears that wander into town and cause trouble in Churchill. The bears are often held at the "Polar Bear Jail" until ice forms in the fall and they can travel onto the ice and hunt seals.

In Churchill, we staked out the dogs near our hotel. It felt odd to leave them out on the tundra, without setting up camp in between the two rows of dogs. After the dogs were fed, we went in search of food for ourselves.

The only open restaurant was Gypsy's, a bakery and restaurant owned by a Portuguese family. It was the perfect place for our post-trip celebratory feast.

During the following day, we broke up into smaller groups to explore Churchill. Dave and several others spent the morning feeding Brian LaDune's dogs. They had the opportunity to see all 150 of these Inuit dogs!

We drove around in Brian's pick up truck and tossed a large chunk of frozen meat to each of his 150 Canadian Inuit Dogs.

I walked to the Prince of Wales Fort, which is across the Churchill River. After being on skis for several days, it felt good to walk. The fort was surrounded by snow drifts as high as its two-story walls.

Later in the day, everyone met up to visit the Inuit museum in the center of town. The museum contains an astonishing amount of artifacts, ranging from a kayak and harpoon, to carved whale bones.

Our time in Churchill has been enjoyable. All of the people we have met here are incredibly nice, eager to learn about our dogsled adventure.

Age: 2, born in March 2007
Birthplace: Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge; Ely, MN
Parents: Patches and Steve
Favorite position: Lead
Favorite quote: "The way you overcome shyness is to become so wrapped up in something that you forget to be afraid."--Claudia Lady Byrd Johnson

Age: 7, born in March 2002
Birthplace: Crockett Lake, near Ely, MN
Parents: Thule and Goofy
Favorite position: Swing
Favorite quote: "We should eat all of our provisions now so that we have less to carry."--Christopher Robbins, Winnie the Pooh

The Arctic Fox is a small fox that lives in the very far north. It is also called the White Fox or the Snow Fox. Since they have lived for so long in the frozen north, they have adapted to the cold in multiple ways. The Arctic Fox has deep, thick fur that changes colors with the season. Most are a bright white in the winter to camouflage with the snow and more brown-gray in the summer. Some have a color variation that makes them a gray-blue color throughout the year. They also have thick fur on their paws to insulate themselves from the cold ground and to provide traction on slick ice. Their fur is even warmer than the polar bear or the Arctic wolf. Their tail has extra-thick fur, too. It helps them with balance, but also provides more warm protection when curled up. They also have a good supply of body fat, and their small efficient shape allows them to keep less of their body exposed to the cold.

Today we dogsled from the Churchill Northern Studies Center into the town of Churchill. In Churchill there are many interesting things to see and do. We will leave it up to you to figure out what we should do.

Here are the options . . . One option is a museum full of Inuit artifacts. This would be a great option to learn about the Inuit culture and history. The second option is the Prince of Wales Fort, which is at the mouth of the Churchill River. We could take a tour of the fort to learn about the settlement of the town and history of the fur trade in the area. The third option is to visit a very large kennel of Canadian Inuit sled dogs. The Wintergreen dogs live in a large kennel, but this one is apparently the largest kennel of Canadian Inuit dogs in the world, with about 150 dogs.

The choice is up to you! Please tell us what you would like to learn about. Be sure to include your reasons.

We spent our day dogsledding and skiing with our heads down and noses angled away from the wind. Sustained winds blasted us as we traveled along the coast of Hudson Bay to the Churchill Northern Studies Center. Wind speeds peaked at about 30 mph, with an air temp of about 0 degrees F today.

The Center is an incredible change from the camping we've been doing. It is heated, and has hot showers, a full kitchen, and internet access. The Center is a base for polar bear and other arctic researchers.

Tomorrow we will dogsled and ski about 10 miles to the town of Churchill.

Wolves are one of the most misunderstood animals in the forest. Many people fear wolves and think they are a threat to humans. Nursery rhymes and fairy tales depict wolves as "big and bad." In reality wolves are shy and much more afraid of us then we are of them.

Age: 1, born in February 2008
Birthplace: Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge; Ely, MN
Parents: Thule and Jens
Favorite position: ? Wherever she goes, she pulls like crazy!
Favorite quote: "Seize the moment of excited curiosity on any subject to solve your doubts; for if you let it pass, the desire may never return, and you may remain in ignorance."--William Wirt

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We are in the midst of an all out gale. Winds blowing upwards of 35 mph have stopped us in our tracks. Air temps are about 10F, but the wind chill has pushed temps into the deep freeze.

One of our dogsleds getting drifted over.

Blowing snow is piling up in drifts around the dogsleds and we have hunkered down at an abandoned research station on the shores of Hudson Bay. We have kept warm building snow walls to shade the dogs from the wind.

 

This photo shows our dog, Franky, behind his snow wall.

We are passing the time resting, snacking, playing games, enjoying conversation and waiting for the weather to break.

We continue to follow proper protocol for camping in polar bear country. For example, you see in the photo of camp that the dogs are staked out in rows to the left and right, and we sleep in between them. This configuration ensures that the dogs sound off should a polar bear approach in the night.

Tomorrow we will hopefully awake to lighter winds. We will dogsled to the Northern Studies Center near Churchill.

 

The Arctic Tern is a seabird that makes the longest migration of any animal. The Arctic Tern's circumpolar migration pattern allows it to see two summers each year. Its breeding grounds are in the Arctic, but as the seasons change, it flies south to the oceans around Antarctica and then back--that's about 24,000 miles every year!

Age: 2, born in May 2006
Birthplace: Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge; Ely, MN
Parents: Lufa and Bubba
Favorite position: Wheel
Favorite quote: "I run to see who has the most guts."--Steve Prefontaine

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We were unable to update the website yesterday, because we are having trouble with battery power. In order to do the update, we need our computer, satellite phone, camera, and video camera batteries to function. The cold weather is tough on batteries. If we try to use them when they are cold, the batteries basically have low or no power. This means that we need to warm them up before we can use them. We need your help to figure out how to keep our batteries warm! This is very important, because the warmer we can keep our batteries, the more information we can share with you! Please send us your suggestions.

We covered a lot of ground today - about 23 miles by dogsled and ski.

We are passing through some brushy areas with small trees. The deep, fluffy snow collects in these areas, making it difficult to get a dogsled through. The dogs bottom-out, like swimming in snow, and the sled starts to snowplow and tip over. However, none of these places slowed us down more than we expected.

The wind has changed from the northwest to an easterly gale, and we wonder what change in weather that may bring. The wind of 15-20 mph today dropped our windchills to subzero. The air remained in the teens or low 20s.

We saw more polar bear tracks in the snow today.

We pulled into camp at a little after 6 PM, and luckily we found a good spot out of the wind.

A frosty morning in camp.

We are sleeping in sleeping bags that can keep us warm down to 60 degrees below zero. The photo shows Amy waking up this morning after spending the night cozy in a dogsled bag. Behind her are some of our team waking up after sleeping under the stars.

The scenery is changing rapidly. As we move further north, the trees are getting smaller and smaller, and fewer and fewer.

The efficient traveling conditions allowed us to log many miles today. Our tired bodies were uplifted when we arrived at Hudson Bay, and its shining expanse of white flatness this afternoon.

Today we saw a white arctic hare that blended in with its snowy surroundings, and we saw a fox scampering across the tundra in front of us.

We pulled into camp at about 6:30 tonight. We are camped at an abandoned research station on the shores of Hudson Bay.

Most of the area polar bears have recently moved onto Hudson Bay to hunt seals. Tomorrow we will venture out onto the bay by dogsled to see what the ice holds.

Age: 7, born in March 2002
Birthplace: A small kennel, Ely, MN
Parents: unknown
Favorite position: Swing
Favorite quote: "A sled dog's* a sled dog no matter how small."--Dr. Seuss

Did you know that moose are the largest member of the deer family? Male moose, known as bulls, can weigh as much as 1,400 pounds. That is equivalent to about 8 grown men! However, the species of moose found here in the Border Country are usually between 700-1,200 pounds. Females usually weigh between 700-1,100 pounds and males are between 900-1,200 pounds. Moose are unique, charismatic animals. They are easily identified by their large noses, humped shoulders, and great size. These animals also have a huge flap of skin and fur under their necks called a "bell." Male moose have a much larger bell than females. Also, only male moose have antlers. Sometimes these antlers weigh as much as 75 pounds! The males spend a lot of their energy growing these impressive antlers. Each year the antlers are shed between mid-December and January and begin to grow again in early spring. Antlers grow quickly and a thin furry covering known as "velvet" begins to grow over them. In August, when the antlers are full grown, the velvet sloughs off within a few days.

River otters are playful animals. Otters are often found frolicking in the water alone or in groups. They enjoy jumping and playing in river currents. In the winter they slide on their bellies on the ice to make travel much faster. In fact, when they get up enough speed they can run and slide a distance of 27 feet!

Age: 1, born in February 2008
Birthplace: Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge; Ely, MN
Parents: Thule and Jens
Favorite position: Wheel
Favorite quote:

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We arrived in Thompson, Manitoba, at about 2:30PM. We drove straight to the train depot, staked out the dogs, and then put our sleds, dogs, and gear in order next to the tracks to await the next leg of our journey.

We heard several times that the Tundra Train is "always late." It remained true to its typical tardiness today, at a couple of hours behind schedule. Once it arrived, at about dusk, we loaded the dogs and sleds in the box car along with someone's truckload of fresh produce, a plush living room set, and some miscellaneous luggage. It took about 15 minutes, we grabbed our seats and the train started to creep north.

Really, it creeps north at only about 28 mph, and sometimes much more slowly. The slow pace is necessary because the frost heave from the tundra has left the tracks in a terribly uneven condition that would bounce a speeding train right off the tracks like a rubber ball.

We will be training overnight (about a 13 hour ride). Then the conductor stops the train on the tundra - not in a town - and we will carry on by dogsled to Hudson Bay and Churchill.

When the train arrived we had everything ready to load into the bagage car.

All of our supplies were loaded onto the train along with food and other supplies bound for Churchill and other remote communities along the train tracks.

We've had several varying reports from the conductor regarding the arrival time for our drop off point. Originally we heard mid-morning. It kept getting pushed back due to the rough track conditions.

At 1PM, the train screeched to a halt, the freight door slid open, and we started an assembly-line to unload the gear.

The train staff took quite an interest in us. All three of them gathered in the box car to admire our jovial scene. The conducted snapped photos, looked at me with a smile and said, "I may never see this again."

We waved goodbye to the train and watched it bounce away down the tracks.

 

We came across a large set of wolf tracks yesterday.

The group quickly harnessed dogs, hitched them to the sleds, and finally launched our dog teams across the frozen tundra.

We are fortunate our trail conditions are relatively firm with wind-packed snow. The sky is blue, the Arctic sun is shining, the temp is about 32F and the winds are calm. This region is known for high winds, and a ground blizzard swept through last week. We feel fortunate for these ideal conditions.

 

Lufa, one of our lead dogs, jumps into her harness to get the heavy sled moving.

 

One building exists between where we launched and Hudson Bay. It is called Watchee Lodge.

We dogsledded six miles to the lodge and took a lunch break. During February and March, photographers and tourists flock to Watchee Lodge. They are here to see mother polar bears emerge from their earthen dens with polar bear cubs in tow.

I spoke with a polar bear tracker there who searches out polar bears so visitors can be guided directly to them.

Most of the polar bears just recently left this area to hunt seal on Hudson Bay. The polar bear tracker says they saw a bear last week, but they haven't been looking because they are closing up the lodge for the season. I ask the polar bear tracker if we will see any polar bears. With a steely expression he grunts, "I hope not."

We dogsledded a few hours after Watchee Lodge and camped on Fletcher Lake.

The moon is bright, but we still see white-colored northern lights fade in and out across the lake.

Sunday we traveled about 15 miles. The wind started out gusty. We saw several firsts. We saw tracks in the snow from polar bears (including a mother and two cubs), caribou, wolves, wolverines, and fox.

The wind subsided and a blazing sun is giving us a tan. The temps again today are about 32F. Today we traveled about 15 miles, and set up camp in the sunlight.

 

4/6 Daily Dilemma

What would you like to learn about this week? It is up to you to pick a topic. Don't forget to state your reasons for picking that topic.

1. The history of northern Manitoba, including Churchill and Hudson Bay.

2. Animal evidence that we're finding along the trail.

3. Details about traveling by dogsled.

Did you know that beavers are one of the largest rodents in North America? Beavers are large brown furry rodents with small eyes, small rounded ears, large orange teeth, and a large flat, scaly tail. These active animals weigh between 44 to 60 pounds. They are about 3-4 feet long.

Beavers look rather awkward on land-- they stay in the water as much as possible to avoid predators.