The June/July issue of Men’s Journal is out, with their special spread on Canada for Adrenaline Junkies. Arctic Kingdom is listed for the #1 activity, Dive With Whales. The article states,

In summer, the Arctic sea is dotted with sun-sculpted icebergs and populated with monsters: beluga whales and narwhals, walrus, seals, Greenland sharks and polar bears. The best way to see the beasts is to don a wetsuit and dive right in: Whales, congregating along the floe edge, will swim beside you, eye to gigantic eye.

As the article goes on to note, the wildlife isn’t the only attraction. There’s the shocking blue of the ice, the water alive with microscopic creatures, and kayaking in sunlight at two AM, when “the sun casts long shadows and the glowing ice makes for a surreal experience.”

No Comments »

I have to admit a weakness for hot air balloon travel — there’s something so elegant, so magical about it, it really takes air travel away from mere utilitarian transport and into a realm of wonder.

Of course, up at the North Pole, this is more than just a balloon ride. Of his 3,130 km trip from Spitzbergen to Siberia, 65-year old French explorer Jean-Louis Etienne notes,

It was much harder than I imagined it to be. Yesterday I made contact with France and for a press conference, they asked me, if it took me five days. I would say I wouldn’t know. It was constant and non-stop… It was an extremely grueling voyage with sleep hours, well, that doesn’t exist- sleep hours, more like with some minutes of sleep. It was very very grueling.

Still, the video that balloon soaring over the snow is gorgeous. It reminds me of one of my favorite sets on our Flickr page, of a 2004 expedition utilizing a hot air balloon for filming!

1 Comment »

Visit our Flickr page for more images, including our full array of airboat photos.

No Comments »

This Sunday’s San Francisco Chronicle featured a great article by Margo Pfeiff about her trip to Baffin Island for training in polar survival. I couldn’t help but giggle at her description of her first foray into Arctic waters:

No Comments »

We’ve got a huge photo archive, and we’re adding content weekly from trips going back for more than a decade! This week we’re looking at one of my favorite subjects:

Check out our photostream for more photos!.

No Comments »

We recently updated our trips page, streamlining the layout and adding a few new expeditions to our existing list of offerings. Of all these new adventures, there’s one I find particularly exciting: the Dogsledding in North Baffin Island Adventure.

Sled dogs on a 2006 expedition to Qaanaaq, Greenland

According to the International Federation for Sleddog Sports, the dog sledding tradition may stretch back “almost as long as the relationship between dogs and humans” in areas with predictable yearly snowfalls. As a dog person, I love that idea: Traveling along traditional Inuit hunting routes, we’ll be experiencing the old Arctic, following paths that have bound man and dog together for thousands of years.

The trip is also a photographer’s dream: Baffin Island is located along one of the richest marine areas in the Arctic Ocean. Though our routes and the wildlife we encounter will depend variables such as snow and ice conditions, we’re likely to travel along steep-walled fjords, along inland lakes and possibly even out to the floe edge, the border between ice and sea where marine animals congregate.

A pair of sled dogs near Lancaster Sound

Are you as excited as I am? Check out the expedition’s trip page for more information, including rates and a sample itinerary.

No Comments »

Harsh though it seems, the High Arctic teems with life. One of the things I love about this video is how much of that life is in evidence, from large mammals, including narwhal and beluga, to the clouds of plankton that swirl around the camera and divers. And check out the crazy undersea plant life that shows up at around 1:42!

This video also showcases the diving, photographic opportunities, and natural beauty that make Lancaster Sound one of our most popular destinations. Visit the trip page to find out how you can join the fun!

No Comments »