What Is This White Stuff?

Exploring the Canadian High Arctic at Beechey Island and Dundas Harbour

September 25 and 26, 2026

Fun Facts for the Canadian High Arctic

• Scientists found fossil fragments on Ellesmere Island showing that a 3.5-million-year-old ancestor of the modern camel once lived in the region when it was a warm, forested landscape.

• Sixty percent of the world’s polar bear population is found here, and 75% of the narwhal population.

• Beluga whales have a natural ability to mimic sounds, including human speech.

Yesterday and today we have been exploring two currently uninhabited areas of the Canadian High Arctic. We have learned about native cultures and explorers who have visited. We have seen wildlife. And we have done it all in the snow! We woke up to snow on the decks on the 25th, and it has been snowing off and on ever since. For two Southern Californians, the snow has been almost as fun and exciting as the zodiac rides, specials ops rides and the wildlife! Oh, and it is really cold!

Snow on the deck of the ship and the shoreline.

Geography of the Area:

The area of the Arctic we are currently in was warmer with more vegetation in the distant past. But, the ice age brought giant glaciers and ice fields that lasted for millions of years. During that time the weight of the ice pressed down on the land and compacted it. As the ice sheets and glaciers began to recede in the distant past, the weight on the land decreased and the land has started to rise. This process is still continuing, and can be seen in the layers of the rock cliffs, in the picture on the left. Another interesting geologic formation is the igneous intrusion, seen in the picture on the right. This is caused by the molten lava from deep in the earth, pushing up through the land and hardening as it reaches the cold air.

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Polar Bears and Protocols:

Since Polar Bears are so dangerous, there are very serious rules about going ashore in areas where polar bears might be seen. Viking sends a team of polar bear guards to check the area carefully before guests are allowed to go ashore. The bear guards stay around the perimeter while we are exploring the area.

(Refer to previous post for Polar Bear pictures.)

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Bear guards at the top of the hill.

This set of pictures shows bear tracks on the beach where we landed to explore the area. Compare the size of the footprint to Nancy's hand!

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Wildlife Spotted:

Bearded Seal

Northern Fulmar

Musk Ox

Narwhal

Beechey Island is well known because of its connection to the 1845 Franklin Expedition. John Franklin was a experienced arctic explorer who was looking for a navigable passage through the arctic waters. He and his crew left for the arctic with several years of supplies on the ship. Unfortunately, no member of the crew ever made it back, and the ship was not found. There are several conflicting reports of what happened, but it seems like the ship was stuck in ice for two years, and the supplies began to run out. The crew eventually decided to abandon the ship and hike south to get help. All that was ever found were three grave sites on Beechey Island.

Canadian Outpost - this settlement was originally established in Dundas Harbor to help the Canadian government's claim of ownership of these arctic lands. It was eventually abandoned because of the poor conditions. The main building is on the left, and the outhouse is on the right.

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Another "Toy" - a Special Operations Boat, and us on the boat (the person with the big goggles is Nancy):

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Response to iceberg shape poll: If you remember the picture of the iceberg that looked like an animal - here are the results of the poll: Frog - 3; Turtle - 1; and a write in vote for a whale.

Selfie of the Day:

We are in front of a "Daylight Signal" that was used at the Canadian Outpost.

Tomorrow is a sea day while we travel back to the western coast of central Greenland, approximately 200 miles north of Nuuk. Our next stop on Monday is Sisimiut, Greenland's second largest city with close to 5,500 people . We'll post again after that visit. Takuss!