Survival Tactics for the Arctic

Mar. 8, 2007— -- Educators and explorers Will Steger, John Stetson, Elizabeth Andre and Abby Fenton joined four Inuit hunters on a 1,200-mile, four-month-long dogsled expedition across the Canadian Arctic's Baffin Island.

The expedition is traveling with four Inuit dog teams over traditional hunting paths, up frozen rivers, through steep-sided fjords, over glaciers and ice caps and across the sea ice to reach some of the most remote Inuit villages in the world.

Elizabeth Andre, a team member of the expedition Global Warming 101, got frostbite on her fingers while setting up tents. She is now recovering well and plans to rejoin the expedition in a couple of days when it's in Pangnirtung. While disappointed to miss part of the trip, Elizabeth knew that leaving the field was the right decision, and she needed to protect her fingers from any further damage.

One Inuit elder told Elizabeth that she believes that the unusually warm weather in Iqaluit the week before the team's departure could have contributed to her frostbite. The elder said that the warm temperatures didn't allow the team members to acclimate. During the team's preparations in Iqaluit, temperatures were 40 degrees Farenheit warmer than they were in Minnesota.

It was so warm in Iqaluit that people could go for walks without hats and gloves. The day the team departed, however, the temperatures dropped well below zero degrees Fahrenheit and the wind gusted up to 40 miles per hour.

The elders told Elizabeth that Inuit people have learned over many years how to travel safely in these harsh conditions.

They told her that as the climate changes, however, some of their knowledge is no longer relevant. For example, hunters who travel over sea ice know how to read the surface of the ice to determine if it can hold the weight of a human, a dogsled or a snowmobile. With changing currents and water temperatures, however, sometimes the ice can look safe on the surface but can be eroding underneath. Several hunters have fallen through the ice in tragic accidents.

The loss of these hunters greatly affects the villages. Country food (seal, walrus, fish and caribou) comprises a large proportion of Inuit community members' diet. Inuit hunters provide meat not only for their own families but for the whole community.

Elizabeth believes that her experience with frostbite gave her new insight into just how harsh the weather conditions can be in the Arctic. She is beginning to appreciate how much skill and knowledge of the environment the Inuit people possess. Here she shares 10 tips on how to survive in subzero temperatures:

Stay hydrated. It's not easy to make yourself drink water when it's really cold, but staying hydrated is crucial to surviving cold temperatures. When you're well-hydrated, you have enough blood volume to keep warm blood pumping to your extremities.

Consume lots of calories and food high in fat. Exercising in the cold burns a lot of energy. Global Warming 101 expedition members need to consume around 5,000 calories per day, including one stick of butter per person per day. Burning these calories produces much needed body heat.

Protect yourself from the wind. Wind robs heat from your body as it sneaks into your clothing, replacing warm air with cold. Wind also dries and chills any exposed skin. At minus-20 degrees F with a 30 miles per hour wind, exposed skin will freeze in less than five minutes. A windproof outer layer and a fur ruff around the face are necessities. Inuit people always turn their back to the wind or take shelter behind a komatek sled when possible.

Insulate yourself from the cold. The thicker the insulation in your clothing and the more air it traps, the warmer you'll be. Any gaps in the insulation, for example between your coat and pants or between your sleeves and gloves, can let a lot of your heat escape. You can also lose a lot of heat by standing, sitting or kneeling on cold surfaces. Thick boots and foam pads can help retain your heat.

Protect extremities. As your core temperature lowers, your body, in an attempt to maintain its core temperature, restricts blood flow to your extremities. Your body is basically sacrificing your nonessential parts to maintain vital organs. For this reason, hands and feet are often the first parts claimed by frostbite. If you feel your feet or hands getting cold, take aggressive action to rewarm them.

Stay dry. Your body will lose heat 240 times more quickly to water than to air. If you let your insulation get wet from sweat, snow or water, your insulation will lose much of its ability to keep you warm. Try to adjust your layers before you start sweating, and if clothing gets covered in snow, brush off the snow before it melts.

Don't get lost. Flat light conditions combined with blowing snow and sometimes featureless topography can make navigation difficult. In addition to a GPS and maps, bring enough food and gear with you when you travel on land. If conditions deteriorate you can dig in and wait for the weather to clear instead of trying to travel in a whiteout.

Avoid weak ice. A changing climate, warmer ocean currents and shifting winds can make ice conditions unpredictable. Even traditional travel routes may now be unsafe. Travel with caution. If you do fall through the ice, "swim" out and roll in the snow to get as much of the water off as possible, then change into dry clothes.

Practice with all gear before heading out. In cold temperatures even small tasks, like putting on skis, tying a knot or stuffing a sleeping bag take longer and are more difficult. Fumbling with unfamiliar gear or discovering that a crucial item is missing or broken could lead to injury or disaster.

Take care of one another. In cold and windy conditions, always check your partners' faces for frostbite and let them know so they can fix it. Try to notice if someone seems cold or low energy, and help them get more food, water and warmth. To be a good safety net for others, however, you must make sure you're taking care of yourself as well.