Life on the Ice: A Breathtaking Break

April 30, 2008 — -- Explorer Will Steger and six young adventurers in their 20s have been traveling across the Canadian Arctic for the past four weeks, following in the footsteps of other legendary polar explorers. As they journey across the ice, the team's goal is to chronicle the effects of climate change on the area. Sam Branson, son of Virgin Group founder Richard Branson, joined Will Steger on this trip. This is his story.

I'm sitting in a tent right now in the Canadian Arctic.

The trip has been an incredible experience. Everything's been pretty new to me. There are phenomenal views up here: ice chunks, icebergs, great sunsets.

I was quite green before another trip I took last year. I got the lucky opportunity to join Will on an expedition to Iglulik, Baffin Island, in Canada. It was quite new to me. Once I got the hang of it, I absolutely fell in love with the place.

At the time, Will said there might be another expedition, and I jumped at the chance.

On this trip, you have a group of people traveling on a mission. I thought it would be an amazing opportunity. And I get to share the message of what's happening back home and get the message out about what we see.

On Sunday, we saw where the Ayles Ice Shelf broke off. It broke into two pieces -- one went east, and one went west. We saw the east side. The piece that broke off was absolutely stunning and very dramatic. There was a big ice cliff around the edge of it. We saw it in the distance, and then we spent the night on the camp next to it. It was quite interesting.

The hardest thing initially is the cold. In the beginning, it's pretty chilly. You get used to it. It's all about working your routine, learning what you need to wear. Once you're warm, it's more just the grind of the day. We've been running for nine hours straight. It becomes more about just trying to keep up a sort of energy. You get worn down.

Because it's such a great group and we're having fun and working hard, it makes it easier. It's a great group of people.

So far we've had six polar bears on this trip. I only saw one last year. This is the most I've ever seen.

We're getting to the bay in about six days. Then we'll decide which route we're going to take. We're looking at expedition pass or going around the northwest tip. There's rough ice and it's pretty severe around the northwest tip. If we go up there, we could get caught in ice floes, and we might not be able to resupply. But it will be a stunning trip. We just need to assess what's possible.

The next resupply is coming up in about nine days. An American, Ben Walton, is coming to join us. We hit the halfway mark yesterday. We've got another 31 days to go after today, just over a month really. Then we'll back in reality and I'm sure it will be an adjustment period.

This trip was a chance to get away from one's society for a while. It's kind of nice. You have a simple life. The amazing visual beauty of this place is phenomenal, and you also have the time to take it in as you're traveling.