Thin Ice Blog  

WWF's work in the Arctic, around the pole.

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Northwest Passage update: Sea ice report

There was more sea ice in the Arctic this summer than in the past two years, contrary to early spring ice forecasts and the longer term trend of melting sea ice. “Arctic ice is holding in there, with about 20 percent more than in 2007,” Dr Humfrey Melling, a research scientist with Canada’s Institute of Ocean Sciences, told me.

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Northeast Passage: Opportunities for the Arctic

When I come up for my final watch, we are at Unalaska Island, making our way into Dutch Harbour! It is still twilight, but the view is beautiful: steep mountains still mostly green, but with a dusting of fresh snow at higher elevations. The Aleutian Islands are among the most dramatically scenic places anywhere and I always hoped to see them someday. I just never imagined I would arrive to them from Russia!

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Northwest Passage: Homeward bound through the icebergs

Silent Sound has crossed the Arctic Circle marking her official transit of the Northwest Passage! We entered the Arctic via the Bering Sea two months ago to the day, and since then we’ve sailed some 3,400 nautical miles, seen a lot of ice and learned a lot about the Canadian North.

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Northeast Passage: Sustainable fishing in the Arctic

In the middle of the Bering Sea, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, two ships cross paths. Once again I have a ship on radar right at the end of my watch. This vessel is using the new AIS, or automated identification system, as does the Explorer. AIS lets other vessels know who you are and can also give information on the current routing and even purpose of the vessel. This one is a large commercial trawler heading north, over 200 feet long and very modern- the Starbound.

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Photo of a Pacific walrus by Flickr user Beyond Neon, under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial licence.

Northeast Passage: Saving the Arctic, one walrus at a time

The winds have picked up overnight and the weather map shows we are heading into a small gale as a low pressure system slides up the Bering. This is very expected weather for this area in September. The good news is that the winds will be favourable for sailing and we are soon able to set the main and Genoa without losing any boat speed. The bad news is that the ride will be rough for at least the next 36 hours.

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Northeast Passage: South to Alaska

South to Alaska! We head out into a beautifully calm Gulf of Anadyr and the current is going our way, giving us a small boost in speed. This is a perfect way to start our trip across the Bering Sea. Our planned route will take us just south of St Mathew Island and along the edge of the continental shelf that separates Russia from Alaska.

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Northeast Passage: Visiting Anadyr

The wind and seas ease as we approach Anadyr. We pick up a local pilot as we enter the long bay that leads to the city. He’s a friendly retired captain who spent 20 years in charge of big ships along Russia’s eastern and northern coasts. Anders takes the wheel so I go down and cook up a hearty brunch of potatoes, eggs, and a mystery ham-like product we picked up in Pevek. It actually turns out to be very good and the pilot happily shares our meal. I wish I could speak Russian so I could truly visit with this interesting man.

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Northeast Passage: So, what of the polar bear?

As we cross the Gulf of Anadyr, my mind wanders back to the where it started. So what of the polar bear and the loss of sea ice? What can you or I do as individuals to really make a difference? Global climate change is such a huge and complex problem, is the situation hopeless?

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Northeast Passage: Filled with hope

Life at 20 degrees … I fell asleep last night to a boat pitching against a head wind – raising me up and then dropping me in my bunk. Luckily for me, I am very good at sleeping! I awoke this morning curled comfortably on the wall of my berth.

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