Hotel Review: The DoubleTree Arctic Club Hotel in Seattle, WA

5 Stars

Full of elegant charm and friendly, helpful staff, the DoubleTree Arctic Club Hotel is a welcoming place for the traveler to Seattle. Located close to the city’s center, the Arctic Club is within easy walking distance to many restaurants, museums, and Seattle’s famous Pike Place Market. The elegantly understated interior is designed to evoke the ambiance of early 20^th century exploration and is replete with portraits of Arctic explorers, maps of the Northwest Passage, and stately chairs and tables reminiscent of the era. Just past the lobby is the Polar Bar, which perfectly exemplifies the hotel’s desire to provide luxury without taking itself too seriously. The Polar Bar, full of deep, comfortable chairs, cloth napkins and polished silver, has a drunken polar bear as its emblem.

Our room, though small, was very well appointed. Many amenities were incorporated into the room, including some that we had never before seen in a hotel room. As well as such common things as a coffee maker, hair dryer and ice bucket, we found tea, a loose tea strainer, and a French press. In addition to the large flat screen television, there was a DVD player and a stereo system complete with CD player. The writing desk was stocked with such office basics as a stapler, scotch tape, scissors, rubber bands and a calculator – no need to go to the office center. Robes and a safe awaited us in the closet, as well as a large umbrella (this is Seattle, after all).

The mini-bar was fully stocked with an array of beverages from champagne to sodas to fruit juices, and there was a basket of snacks that included an impressive array of choices. To their credit, the hotel made it clear that these items were not included in the cost of the room, but did so in an unobtrusive manner (again, their elegant understatement came through). Upon check-in, we were told that we could empty out the mini-bar to make room for anything that we might want to keep refrigerated, a welcome change from the old-style mini-bars that automatically charge you if anything inside is moved.

The bathroom was surprisingly roomy, and was designed for comfort and class. The towels were plush and thick, the bathtub jetted. A marble countertop graced the vanity, which had ample storage underneath. The bathroom door was charming, and included a frosted pane in the upper half. This proved to be one of the very few drawbacks, as it allowed light to spill into the main room (only an issue when one of us was in bed before the other).

The staff was extremely courteous and knowledgeable about the area. We were given many wonderful recommendations regarding everything from where to dine to modes of transportation to things to see and do. When they discovered that I was on a hunt for one particular item, the front desk staff took it upon themselves to call three different stores that they thought might carry it, and they checked with me upon my return to the hotel that evening to ensure that my quest had been successful. The housekeeping staff, too, was wonderfully warm, courteous and thorough; our room was kept in tip-top shape throughout our stay.

Many small details were attended to that really distinguish this hotel as a top-notch place to stay: a hand-written note welcoming us to our room, a variety of teas (not just black, but green and herbal as well), warm cookies upon our arrival. Overall, we were quite impressed with this hotel, and we would definitely stay here again.

City Escapes Nature Photography

The Many Advantages of Off-Season Park Exploration

I freely admit that I am an unabashed supporter of national and state parks.  I was introduced to state parks as a child when my family went camping and fishing, and to national parks at the age of 13 on a whirlwind, family tour of some of the West’s most famous parks: The Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Sequoia, Yellowstone.  I have been hooked ever since, and have been fortunate enough to be able to visit a variety of parks in several seasons, not just peak tourist season.  This has only increased my affection for these parks.

 

For many people, especially families with school-aged children, one of the constraints on travel opportunities is the school calendar.  Summer is a big travel season precisely because the kids are out of school.  The weather is often nicer in the summer, too.  These two factors combine to cram large numbers of visitors to the parks in a relatively short time frame.  But if you have the opportunity to visit our glorious parks in the off-season, I highly recommend it.  Here’s why.

 

First of all, most of the parks will be considerably less crowded during the off-season.  After all, you visit these beautiful oases to enjoy nature and the outdoors, not throngs of other people.  Yellowstone and Yosemite, for example, can become parking lots in the height of summer (and not just because of animal jams); traveling through them can cause more stress than it relieves.  Especially if you are a crowd-averse person, you will enjoy the parks immensely more during the less popular times of year.  Because of the decreased demand, lodging, airfare, and rental cars are generally less expensive during the off-season, sometimes considerably so.  Even shifting your plans by as little as a week can sometimes make a huge difference in the overall cost of your trip.  (My husband and I saved approximately $900 each on plane tickets a few years ago by shifting our departure date by a single day.  That one day took us out of summer season rates and put us into off-season rates.)  And, of course, gasoline is generally at its most expensive during the high-travel season, namely summer.

 

My favorite reason to visit parks in the off-season, however, is that you get to experience the park in ways that most people do not.  There is no question that the red rock formations of southern Utah, for example, are gorgeous – anyone who has seen a photograph of them is bound to be struck by the colors of the rocks.  Seeing those same rocks capped with snow, however, is an entirely different experience altogether.  Watching the bison in Yellowstone graze on the plentiful grasses of summertime can lead a visitor to think these majestic animals have it pretty easy.  When the temperature hovers around zero and you are in near white-out conditions caused by an icy wind whipping across the landscape, however, and you watch these same animals push aside three or four feet of snow with their heads to get to the meager scraps of grass below, you go back to your cozy hotel room amazed that any of them survive the winter at all.  And you are thankful for your warm dinner in a way that you could never be in the summer.

 

Sometimes snow is not the biggest off-season weather change, though; many parts of the country do not get snow on any regular basis.  In these areas, the off-season sometimes means rain.  While rain requires its own preparations, it can be fantastic; rain can completely alter the mood of a landscape.  Waterfalls in the rain are some of my favorite things to photograph, in part because it is something we so rarely see; most waterfall photographs are taken on beautiful, sunny days.  The moodiness of a waterfall in the rain is something few people experience, and it captivates me.

 

The off-season does not automatically mean bad weather, however.  Bright, gorgeous, sunny days happen in winter, too, and they can lend a compelling energy to a park visit.  Crisp, cool days with bright blue skies are at the heart of the concept of the “winter wonderland,” and that concept is not restricted to ski resorts.

 

If you’re not interested in the cold or getting rained or snowed on, however, then the spring and the fall are your seasons.  The landscape comes alive in spring with new plant life, while rivers and lakes are often at their fullest.  If it’s early enough in the season, the bugs have not yet become a problem, while in late fall they are no longer a problem.  Fall ushers back in the cool weather and the brilliant palettes of autumn leaves.  In some parts of the country, both spring and fall bring with them much more comfortable – and safer – temperatures than summer, as well.  The Grand Canyon and similar parks get dangerously hot in the summer, with the mercury soaring well into the 120s or above in some of the canyons.  Hikers frequently underestimate either the heat or its effect on their bodies, routinely getting themselves into trouble.  Heat exhaustion, heat stroke, and even death are not uncommon.  Visiting the Canyon in the spring or fall can greatly reduce the dangers of heat-related illness.  (Be sure to check with the visitor center in any canyon-containing park if you plan to hike, however.  Find out if the park has flash-flood prone areas, and what the weather forecast will be.  Slot canyons are gorgeous and much more fun to hike in cooler weather, but can turn deadly quickly in rainstorms.)

 

If animals are your thing, the off-season offers wonders that you will likely not get during the summer.  Many species give birth during the spring, meaning that your best opportunity to see baby animals at their youngest is during this time.  Be patient and keep a sharp eye; youngsters are often quite well camouflaged.  The fall brings the rutting season for many ungulates, and while you want to give them a wide berth, watching the males vie for mating rights is nothing if not impressive (in a painful, sympathetic-headache inducing way).  And in winter, you may get a glimpse of the real reason moose have such long, spindly legs.  (Hint: it’s not just to make them look funny.)  Add to that the burst of spring flowers, the brilliance of fall foliage, or the surreal blanket of winter’s white, and you will have an experience quite different from, but no less extraordinary than, one in the height of summer.

 

Jodi

City Escapes Nature Photography

 

 

 

Hotel Review: Hilton Houston North

Visited: Feb 2011

1 star

 

This hotel has a wonderful lobby with a huge atrium and decent-sized guest rooms. There are two restaurants and a Starbucks on the main floor, and several good-sized conference rooms are available. So, what’s not to love? Unfortunately, a lot. Pretty much everything about the service was disappointing during my visit. Things started off poorly and did not get much better. The hotel is 15 minutes from the Houston Bush Intercontinental airport, but it took me an hour to get there using the free shuttle bus, “which runs every 30 minutes.” Except that it didn’t, it was late, and then, after boarding, it was full and we had to wait for 15 minutes while the shuttle driver explained to the next group of passengers at the next stop that there were no seats on the shuttle and he couldn’t pick up more people (as opposed to actually dropping us off and returning to pick them up – or using the larger shuttle in the first place). There were 2 people at reception checking in a line of about 15 people, so the wait was longer than it should have been. Fortunately, I was able to get into the restaurant 15 minutes before it closed (at 11:00 pm, along with room service) and order my $12 hamburger, which was ok but not outstanding. My room was a good size; however it was not particularly clean. There was mold on the bathroom floor in the grout lines, where it was obviously not disturbed by the cleaning people. I used a towel to keep it covered (I couldn’t change rooms since the hotel was full). The phone was not programmed properly (the buttons for messages and wake-up calls dialed but never connected), the air conditioning didn’t work well (the thermostat was off by about 10 degrees), and there was no fan in the bathroom (probably a contributing factor to the mold), so the room was a little warmer and more humid than it needed to be – particularly after a shower. The conference room, however, was freezing, so I guess it balanced out. Our meeting of 60 people overwhelmed the wireless connection, so I ended up using an air card connection for most of the meeting. I don’t understand how a hotel can charge so much for wireless and yet have no connectivity.  Overall, the attitude of the staff seemed summed up by a single experience as I was checking out: I was on one side of the elevator with my bags, an open (empty?) can of Monster sitting on the rail on the opposite side. A member of the housekeeping staff got on the elevator next to the can, didn’t acknowledge me, went down 2 floors, and left the can sitting on the railing after she got off. Of course, no-one asked how the stay was when I left, even the 2 managers I passed with my bags – I have noticed only the well trained staff do that, and I usually don’t have problems in hotels with well-trained staff.  One final note, if you are still considering staying at this hotel, be very, very careful at night. The hotel is located in a dangerous part of Houston, and you should never walk outside at night (I was told this by at least 3 people I trust who are familiar with the area, one of whom is a police officer).  For better or worse, there aren’t any restaurants nearby that you would be likely to walk to, so you may have no reason to go outside.  Nonetheless, be warned.

 

 

Hotel Review: Elizabeth Lake Lodge, Cranbrook, BC

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

Date of visit:  Jan, 2011

 

This lodge has been a favorite on trip advisor for several years, and deservedly so. It embodies the best of a local inn. We stayed here twice, heading to and from our final destination, and were very impressed with this motel-style lodge. We were fortunate that others had sung its praises previously or we would have driven right by it.

 

One of the first things you notice, beyond the striking mural on the side of the building, is the location.  The lodge is on the south side of Cranbrook, right next to a 250 acre bird sanctuary. While there were not a lot of birds during our visit (in the middle of winter), just having the view over the expanse of trees and Elizabeth Lake, instead of looking into another business, was a nice change. I imagine in the summer, it would be even better.  There is also a miniature golf course on the premises, though it, too, was closed for the season.

 

The rooms were well-equipped with a miniature kitchen, a full size breakfast table, and duvets over the beds. The kitchenette was a nice surprise, and allowed us to easily make breakfast and reheat leftover dinner.  My favorite feature, however, was the heated floors in the bathroom. Tile floors are common in bathrooms, and are always cold. The heated floors warm the tile so that it is not only not cold, but actually warm on your feet. This makes stepping out of the shower much nicer. The heated floors were also a great compliment to the dedicated bathroom heater that allowed the temperature in the bathroom to be set independent of the main sleeping area.

 

Other amenities included a 42” flat-screen TV, tea and tea kettle (it is Canada, after all), deck chairs outside, and custom soaps made especially for the Elizabeth Lake Lodge by a local soap company. 

 

It is also worth mentioning that we were greeted enthusiastically on check in. On both occasions, we were met by George (one of the owners) who not only showed us a room before we committed to staying, but checked the weather and road conditions for the next leg of our drive,  as well as provided multiple restaurant recommendations. George is clearly interested in providing the best accommodations in the area, and even asked us what amenities we have seen elsewhere that we have enjoyed. Clearly, he is not taking his high trip advisor rating for granted and is continuing to look for ways to enhance his guests’ experience.

 

If possible, I would give this lodge a 4.5. However, there are two, minor reasons I don’t believe this hotel rates a 5. The first is the request that the guests wash their own dishes (and as a small sign notes, they may be charged if they don’t). While I find this to be an unusual request, having never seen this before in anything but a condo, and I am not thrilled with it, I would be willing to go along with it given the other advantages of the lodge. However, I am very concerned about the sanitary aspects of this practice. Specifically, I have very little confidence that guests will do a thorough job cleaning the dishes, and that could lead to germs being passed along to the next visitor.  Something as simple as a centralized dish washer that could sanitize the dishes (and not just make them look clean) would resolve this concern. The second issue is that the rooms do not appear to be particularly sound-resistant. It was fairly easy for us to hear other guests both above and near our rooms – more so than in many other hotels. Unfortunately, this problem is not something that is easy to resolve in the existing building. On the plus side, a second building is under construction, and is due to open in May. Hopefully, the insulation in this building will provide additional soundproofing.

 

Terence

City Escapes Nature Photography

 

---

Arctic Trip Tips 2 - Tips for Polar Regions

Finally, our arctic cruise provided several insights that are primarily applicable for travel to the poles, or other cool climates where you may end up in zodiacs for an extended period of time.

1.       Bring a second sweater or jacket. After a day out on zodiacs, or hiking in weather, it is really nice to have a clean, dry sweater or fleece jacket to be able to slip into to stay warm. I had originally planned to just take one jacket with me on this trip, and am extremely glad that I brought a second that I could use around the ship (in particular sightseeing from the deck) while the first jacket dried off.  If I had only had the one jacket, I would have had to wear it before it dried and I would have been cold and miserable instead of warm and excited.

2.       In Antarctica, take the longer trips. Make sure that your trip includes both the Falkland Islands and South Georgia as well as the Antarctic Peninsula. While the addition of these two locations will increase your time commitment as well as the cost, these are where most of the animals hang out. According to everyone we have talked to, both staff and more importantly fellow travelers, these locations are well worth it. The animals are plentiful, easily found, and not shy – providing ample opportunities for photography and general viewing.  Since these animals are one of the primary reasons people visit the Antarctic, do not short change yourself by passing by these locations. In the grand scheme of things, the additional cost is well worth it (and much cheaper than going back a second time just to see what you missed).

3.       Bring a dry bag. When travelling in a zodiac, you have to expect to get drenched. You may not, but you have to plan for it. And since this is salt water, which is corrosive, you need to really protect your equipment – losing a camera early on in the trip can be tragic. While you can use Ziploc bags, and general waterproof bags much of the time, I suggest bringing a dry bag along for those days when the sea is a little rougher. Using a large dry bag in addition to the other preventative measures can save you huge headaches (and repair bills).  You can also stuff your extra hiking socks and a dry sweater into the bag, bonuses that your potentially cold and wet body will appreciate.

4.       Use hand-warmers and foot-warmers.  Obviously, the polar regions are cold, or at least cool, even during the summer season when the adventure travel cruises take place. While we dressed in layers, and were generally warm, we did find that when we went on zodiac cruises, our extremities got a little cold. On these cruises, which lasted up to 3 hours, there were minimal opportunities to move around – we were mainly just watching the scenery and wildlife from a fixed position. In this case, the warmers did their job exceptionally well. Now, someone just needs to develop a warming seat. J We were also glad to have the warmers on those few days when we had poor weather, our hikes were slower and shorter, and/or we didn’t generate enough internal heat to stay completely warm.  During those hikes, the warmers were a nice addition.

5.       Use dishwashing gloves as a waterproof layer. As previously mentioned, you need to expect to get wet on a zodiac. Even in relatively calm weather, your hands / gloves will get splashed as you hang on to the zodiac. Instead of having wet gloves after every excursion, place your glove or liner inside an oversized dishwashing glove. This will give you an outside layer that is waterproof, over an inside layer that keeps your hands warm.  This may require stretching the dishwashing glove a little (I should be using a XXXL, but could only find an XL on short notice) but it is well worth it. While not stylish, we were the envy of many of the other travelers. Of course, if you do these excursions regularly, you may want to invest in gloves that are both truly waterproof and warm; however a good pair of these gloves can be quite expensive. For the rest of us, using dishwashing gloves is an excellent and much cheaper alternative.

 

Terence

City Escapes Nature Photography

 

Arctic Trip Tips 1 - General tips

Many of the lessons we learnt (or re-learnt) on this trip are applicable to a wide variety of trips, so I have included all of those in this entry.  A smaller set of tips, applicable primarily for polar excursions, will be included in the next post.  

1.       Motion sickness patch can cause motion sickness: The prescription patch for motion sickness is becoming extremely popular with travelers, since it provides excellent relief of symptoms without having to remember to take pills on a regular schedule. There are a couple of important things to be aware of, however, when using this medication. The first is that you may still experience some symptoms of sea sickness if the seas are particularly rough. This is not unexpected. The second is that if you wear the patch for more than three days, then suddenly remove the patch at the end of the voyage, you may end up feeling the symptoms of motion sickness (nausea, dizziness, etc.) a day or two after the patch has been removed while your body adjusts to the sudden removal of the drugs. This is a noted side effect of the medicine, but can still catch you by surprise – for example, if you are flying out a day or two after your voyage. Plan ahead, and adjust your medications appropriately.

2.       Give yourself plenty of time before and after the trip to get where you need to go. Travel in general, and adventure travel in particular, does not run on a tight schedule.  Flights, including charter flights, are often  delayed; disembarking a ship can take more time than expected; bad weather can interrupt plans; and luggage can be temporarily misplaced. If you provide a little extra time at the start and end of your trip, these disruptions are less likely to impact you and you will be able to remain relaxed instead of stressing out. Even simply over-nighting at your departure and arrival locations may give you the time that you need. For example, on this trip, the charter company responsible for returning us to Toronto changed, causing a change in arrival time. Because we were spending the night in Toronto before continuing on to our final destinations, we didn’t have to worry about exactly what time of day we got into Toronto. Some of those who had booked connecting flights had to reschedule them, because we arrived several hours later than initially expected, and they still had to clear customs and check in to their connections before moving on. In cases like these, the connecting airlines take no responsibility for the cost of rebooking the flights, since the arriving flight was a charter, not part of the connecting airlines’ service. Any additional expenses were borne by the travelers, and almost certainly exceeded the $100 cost of a hotel room for the night.

3.       Work with local experts and experienced guides whenever possible. Do research before booking your trip to make sure that the people you are travelling with are not just familiar with travelling in general, but with the area that you are heading to in particular. In adventure travel, the agenda must adapt in response to a variety of conditions, including weather. This means that flexibility is important. The more your guides know about the area, the more options you have and the better you will be able to respond to the unexpected. On this trip, each day’s agenda was posted the night before based on the guides’ best estimate of what we would encounter, and we still had numerous changes during the day. However, because our expedition lead had been to the area over 40 times, and the captain had made hundreds of cruises in the area, they were able to identify alternatives that made us feel like we weren’t missing anything.  Less experienced guides would not have been able to respond as effectively, and we would have ended up with cancelled activities.

4.       Always bring spare socks when hiking. Of course, on longer hikes, you likely already know that you should change socks every chance you get just to keep your feet dry and prevent blistering. However, even when a hike is supposed to be easy you should still bring a spare pair along. There is always the chance for something to happen – for example, stepping in a puddle or needing to rock-hop across a stream. If you have a spare pair of socks, you can easily change out of a suddenly wet pair into a dry one, preventing blisters and keeping your feet happy. If you don’t, then you have to suffer with wet feet for the remainder of the hike.

5.       Mosquito netting is your friend. Surprisingly, to me at least, mosquitoes not only live but thrive above the Arctic Circle. While bug dope (aka repellent) will work, the bugs still swarm your face, sit on your hat or glasses, and generally try to find an unprotected area to attack you. Having netting available keeps them away from your face and decreases the distractions while you are hiking. Given the small cost and weight, it is definitely worth packing netting even if you don’t think you will use it.  Of course, you should still bring bug spray for those areas not covered by your netting. And, very importantly, keep both the netting and the spray with you whenever you are on an excursion. It does you no good at all if it is sitting in your room while you are providing a feast for the local wildlife.

6.       Bring external backup devices. I have previously written about our use of a Hyperdrive external hard drive to back up our flash memory cards. This is a good, single-purpose device which can copy files from a variety of different types of cards. However, it can freeze up when things are done out of order and it does not support filtering of images because the screen size is too small and the images cannot be categorized. On this trip, I noticed several people using an iPad instead of a full-blown laptop for accessing their photos. This has the advantage that the tablet is much smaller and easier to transport than a laptop, while still providing the essential capabilities that one would want on a trip (e.g. reading eBooks and sending email). It is also well designed for performing an initial filtering of the photos, since it has a large screen, can easily move between hundreds of photos, and allows directories to be created and populated based on content. Unfortunately, the current version of the iPad does not natively support an external USB drive (this has been hacked around by some), so this limits the usefulness of the device as a backup for long trips where you will have many more pictures to store / access than can fit on its relatively small internal drive . With tablet computers becoming more popular, however, I would expect this limitation to be overcome in the near future.

7.       Walkie-talkies keep people in touch.  It can be really handy to be able to talk to others in your group from a distance.  This allows you to find each other when you have become separated and can reduce trips back to the cabin for forgotten items. For example, if a polar bear is sighted, one person may rush out on deck to see where it is, while someone else rushes to the cabin to get a camera – but then finding each other can become challenging.  In many places, such as ski areas, cell phones have been allowing people to connect remotely for years (e.g. to coordinate lunch between black diamond and green bunny-hill skiers). Unfortunately, cell phones don’t work in many places – and even if they do work, they can be expensive for these types of quick calls. Instead of cell phones, for international and adventure travel, I suggest taking a hint from your guides and using a set of walkie-talkies. They work anywhere, use rechargeable batteries, and can provide an effective link to others in your group over moderate distances.  Even a fairly basic set will provide a level of connectivity that will save you several laps around the deck looking for people.

8.       Bring ski goggles. If you wear corrective lenses, you know that one of the downsides of wearing glasses instead of contacts is that rain, snow, fog and other weather events can severely affect your vision. On this trip, the rain was so bad one day that I simply took my glasses off since I couldn’t see anything through them. It was during this downpour that I noticed our more experienced guides were wearing ski goggles, which protected their eyes and gave them a reasonable view of their surroundings. Even over glasses, these provide an enhanced weather block and are much easier to keep clean while hiking.

9.       Always use your lens shade. While the nominal purpose of a camera’s lens shade is to keep the sun off of the lens’ front element and let you take a better picture sans lens flare, while on an outdoor shoot you should always keep your shade on. In addition to protecting from the sun, it also helps to block rain, sleet, and snow from hitting your lens. This not only increases the chances of getting good pictures but reduces the time that you need to spend cleaning your gear. It is not a bad idea to keep the shade on during indoor shoots, too.  The shade can help protect the lens against damage from ungraceful moments.  (How many of you have ever accidentally hit your camera against a chair back while walking past?)

 

Terence

City Escapes Nature Photography

Trip summary: Arctic Adventure Cruise

Hello all,

This past summer, we completed a fantastic two week Arctic cruise. Over the next several weeks, I will be sharing some of the tips that we picked up during this cruise. Most of these tips are general travel tips that could apply to adventure travel anywhere; however, there are a few that are specific to travel in the Polar regions. Before getting into these tips, however, I want to give you an overview of the excursion that we took.

This was our first adventure travel / expedition cruise, and it was very different than previous cruise experiences on the major cruise lines. In our case, the itinerary and excursions were organized by One Ocean Expeditions who rented the Clipper Adventurer ship for their exclusive use during this trip. The ship is leased to other companies throughout the year and sails in both the Arctic and Antarctic regions.

Compared to the larger cruise ships used by the major lines, our smaller ship was more personal, more interesting, and matched our interests perfectly. The Adventurer has a maximum of 120 passengers, and is well suited to expedition cruising with an ice hardened hull, a complement of 10 zodiacs, and the ability to load zodiacs from either side.  Our cabin was a little small but extremely well laid out, with two single beds (dressed in comforters), two good-sized windows (not portholes), three closets, a writing desk, a night stand, and an ensuite washroom with shower. The main lounge, where tea, coffee, water, and snacks were served 24 hours a day, hosted our lectures and served as a general meeting location. The dining room sat the entire ship for a single serving, and produced amazing multi-course meals throughout the trip.  Possibly because of the smaller number of passengers, the food was much better than my experience with the larger ships while maintaining variety and options (e.g. dinner was 5 courses, with at least 2 salad, soup, and dessert options and 3 entrees, all of which were different each day, and never repeated). There was also a well-stocked library and a back deck, with chairs, that we used for afternoon tea several times during our voyage (yes, we had afternoon tea, outdoors, above the arctic circle. Comfortably.).

Our itinerary gave us an excellent overview of the small part of the Canadian Arctic  we sailed through and  a glimpse of West Greenland.  We took a charter flight out of Edmonton to our starting point in Resolute Bay. From there, we traversed the eastern Canadian Shield visiting Beechey Island, Prince Leopold Island, and Devon Island, before heading over the north-east side of Baffin Island to Pond Inlet.  From there, we crossed Baffin Bay to Greenland where we visited Uummannaq, Ilulissat , and Sisimiut before heading down Sondre-Stromfjord to Kangerlussuaq, where we boarded another charter flight for our return to Toronto.  As one would expect on an adventure trip, our schedule was flexible and there were several times when our initial plans changed in response to weather, sea conditions, or wildlife. It was a credit to our staff that we were able to work around these interruptions (often without the passengers’ knowledge) and maintain an exhausting excursion schedule.

The focus of the trip was on wildlife and photography and excelled in both areas – a credit to the One Ocean’s team and the Captain.  The staff clearly had significant experience in Arctic expeditions, and was able to provide a variety of activities at most of the sites  where we landed. In most cases, there were at least 3 distinct options, ranging from zodiac cruises to “charging” hikes, where the goal was usually to get to the top of a local peak. There were also usually at least 2 less strenuous hikes (which was what I usually did). When we stopped at villages, there were  cultural options as well –  at least one museum visit was included as an option in each town, with the residents of Pond Inlet hosting us for a two-hour, live cultural display at their museum. This range of activities kept the passengers engaged and allowed for everyone to get what they wanted out of the trip. The One Ocean staff also gave regular presentations on a variety of topics and made frequent use of the ship’s intercom system to alert us when something interesting was happening outside that we might be missing. As one might expect, the staff included a couple of naturalists, who were able to put what we were seeing in context. What we were not expecting was the level of experience that the entire staff had, each having spent months at the Poles over dozens of expeditions. A highlight for us was a talk given by one of these naturalists about his experiences leading the last major dog sled expedition in Antarctica. Importantly from our perspective, the staff also included two resident photographers who worked closely with the passengers (in fact, we found out about this trip from one of them). They not only gave presentations about relevant topics and led photography-centric groups on excursions, but provided personalized instruction based on the individual’s level of interest, expertise, and equipment. The opportunity to learn from these experienced professionals, and to ask very specific questions, added significant value to the excursions and turned into one of the highlights of the trip for us.  

The ship saw 16 polar bears during our trip, and I personally saw 9 – averaging over one per day until we left Canada (missing several while I slept). My most memorable viewing came when the Captain parked the boat on the edge of an ice floe for about half an hour so we could observe a polar bear on the floe. The bear did not appear to mind us being there: although it did charge the ship once to see if we would back away, it spent most of its time looking for seals and sleeping. As we finally pulled away, the sun came out and gave the bear’s fur a glowing white silhouette as it stretched. Absolutely awe inspiring! In addition, we had several other viewings from both zodiacs and the ship. The staff was extremely diligent in making sure that there were no bears near our landing sites, so we never saw a bear from land – an important safety consideration since polar bears will hunt humans and they are extremely fast. I had an excellent musk oxen sighting, with a small herd letting our group approach fairly close, as well as several distant sightings where the musk ox looked like brown boulders that moved. I also had two close walrus viewings, one from a zodiac where we were able to watch for about 15 minutes before he slid into the water and one where the walrus was sitting on an ice floe that passed by our cabin window as the ship moved between stops late one night. We were told that we saw narwhals as well. Unfortunately, apparently, during the summer, all you can see are the blows – the tusks and most of the narwhal remain underwater and invisible. So while I saw a blow spout, I wasn’t able to clearly identify the type of whale.

Overall, the trip exceeded my expectations – and everyone I talked to seemed to feel the same way. The ship was fantastic, and the wildlife encounters more than you could hope for. However, the staff of One Ocean really made the trip everything I could hope for: they focused on making sure we saw the wildlife and landscapes we went there to see. A few snapshots from the trip are viewable at our Flick site.

 

Terence

City Escapes Nature Photography