Dear Diary    TE Wendy Gorton's Daily Diary from the Expedition Trail

Monday
April 14, 2008

I awoke this morning with much anticipation: our first travel day! We spent the morning – dotting our i’s and crossing our t’s, preparing ski bindings, paring down my vast baggage into a manageable sack, tidying up the cabin – and finally getting ready for departure! Snow had started to slowly fall, making for a beautiful snapshot but breeding angst in Paul and Mille: what of our nice trail that had been laid out by snowmobilers? Heavy snow would coat it, making it tougher for the Polar Huskies to carve the sled through. We stood outside, ascertaining the weight situation. How much does your school backpack (or work bag!) weigh? Can you imagine it on its heaviest day, with all your books, lunch, maybe even a computer, afterschool activities equipment, and maybe an extra sweater for if it gets chilly? Can you walk quite as fast up the stairs to your classroom as you could without the backpack? Not quite, and such is the predicament our Polar Huskies were in. We had two new people aboard plus all of their accoutrements, and more fuel and food supplies for both humans and dogs alike. Then, with the sound of a snowmobile came a break – a very pleasant Finnish man who spoke English and was heading our very same way!

We unloaded two bags of dog food onto his snowmobile sled and he promised to leave it at “4 corners” – a junction of two trail meeting each other in the mountains – we dubbed it “Dog Food Junction.”

Finally, we were off! I strapped on my skis to my mukluks, grabbed hold of my towrope on the sled, and the Polar Huskies went! I was blown away by their power, and it was tough for me to keep up. We rolled down small hills, through bare birch trees and the snow falling was relentless. After an hour, we set up camp. It was fun learning the camp routine for real, but difficult as I wasn’t quite sure what to do at any given moment. Our nice tents heated with a stove and onto my bivy bag where I was amazed at how only thin nylon separated myself from the cold and the winds outside.


Tuesday
April 15, 2008

I reached over for my snooze button, but it wasn’t there. But, it was admonished “time to get up!” It was 7:30 and we still needed breakfast, put away everything, get the Polar Huskies harnessed, and getting rolling!

Many calories are needed to power this train that is my body, so I dropped a thick pad of butter into my oatmeal. We greeted the dogs after getting everything out of the tent and we harnessed them up once the sled was packed.

I put on way too much clothing! Your mind sometimes tells you things that are not what your body feels, so I had layered up. Once we got started, following the wooden “x” trail signs dotting the white terrain like stitches holding the hill together, my body started to sweat, Off came my parka, stuffed in between to bungees on the sled.

Swoosh, swoosh, slide. Swoosh, swoosh, slide. I am slowly getting the hang of skiing alongside a dogsled, very different than normal skiing. I get tired sometimes and have to be towed a bit, but I worry my weight slows down the sled. The hills were undulating and popped up often today, not a good combination with the ‘heat’ and lack of a cooling breeze. Paul called it ‘the perfect storm’ conditions, because the dogs with their heavy coat prefer it cold, so hitting hill after hill the dogs struggled being hot.

Along the way we saw some tracks – a fox, perhaps – but not any actual animals. It leads me to believe that animals are very good at staying hidden! Finally we approached some flat terrain – you could almost see the relief in the dogs’ eyes and for sure in ours! Disko was our sled’s lead dog, and he pulled us to a stop at Paul’s “whoaaaaa.” Time for camp again! I heart getting to know the dogs and their personalities. I think I have a “Hershey” in my class, and a “Freja,” and a few others, too!

Wednesday
April 16, 2008

“Auggh! No! What are you doing?” my muscles all cried at once. Even the smallest of them - imagine a small one on your back that barely gets used - was exhausted over the last two days. They couldn't believe I had the audacity to get up and do it again! It made me truly realize in what good shape Paul and Mille are in.  In the city we work out a few days a week, do some recreational activities in the evening and weekends, but to have the endurance for these 10-hour days is amazing. It is my new goal for when we return—to maintain this level!

The topographic map promised less hills today as it showed us contour lines far apart, and there was a cabin in the distance marked – our Holy Grail! Could we make it? I gripped the upright on the sled, but my ankle muscles were defiant, and the swoosh-swoosh-slide rhythm was all but forgotten! I fell a couple of times as we got started, and we problem-solved: I would try ski-joring!

Ski-joring is a sport where a skier is towed behind dogs, so I put on a belt, grabbed some poles, and away we went. Today’s terrain was much easier, lots of flat, wide-open valleys, and the weather was cooler, so we were hoping for lots of mileage.

There were some fun hills. Some I fell on, others I made it – and some that were huge! Mille had me get off the towline that I was attached to from the back of the sled and instead I would actually ride on top of the load on the sled. Fun!

We saw a ptarmigan flapping high in the sky – it looked beautiful.

I really get a sense of how well, Paul, Mille, and Aaron know the Polar Huskies and work with them today. Several dogs got moved around in the line-up, just like a coach might change positions for a baseball game. Nothing is coincidental and it’s all very strategic

Vrooooooom – a snowmobile came hurtling towards us! We asked, and a nice woman told us it was 3-5 kilometers to the cabin (it is very different having your mind operate on the metric system (when you are not used to it)! So, when your teacher cracks open the measurement lesson, pay attention! It comes in handy!).

Should we push on we asked? Yes! Down through a huge hill where the sled almost ran up on the team (!), we pulled up to a beautiful, public cabin and outhouse.  It was stocked with wood and had a large wood stove. It was like pulling up to a 5-star hotel, and we all greatly appreciated the small comforts it afforded. As the snow fell we enjoyed a gorgeous sun set into the mountains as we watched from our toasty cabin.

Thursday
April 17, 2008

It's funny what your body is capable of. The morning started and the weather was good and terrain looked promising, but my legs gave out on me again! I felt frustrated that I couldn't do more, so we went back to me ski-joring again so we wouldn't loose too much time.

We ran across two men skiing and pulling their own loads in pulks behind them, a veritable mini dogsled. Mille thought perhaps they they were training for some longer expedition. Many snowmobilers came by us today, and it snowed on and off. I made sure to stay hydrated and snacked up all day! 

Uh-oh! The binding on one of my skis came off after a ski-joring fall, and I had to ride the sled like it was a horse for a bit until we would stop fpr Paul to fix it. Then turned out he couldn't fix it on the go but needed more tools in the sled so we had to wait until setting up camp. But Mille sacrifried a ski for me, her then running on just one ski, pushing ahead with her foot. She was a trooper!

Friday
April 18, 2008

I thought I knew wind before today - after all, in California, we get our yearly Santa Ana's that knock down kids and knock out power. Wind, I did not know thee until today...

Wind lapped the sides of our tents this early morning, a foreshadowing of the day to come. We had me ski-jore the whole day as it was the fastest for me and my muscles, and I got into the groove behind Paul and Aaron.

It was fairly flat going for a while, and then we climbed a couple of mountains, with the wind blowing straight in our faces. Paul measured gusts of 25, even upwards of 40 miles per hour (about 40-65 km/h)!

I saw another bigger set of tracks today, and noticed a lot of the fox ones came off the trail and pee on the trail post.

We stood atop a particularly grueling hill to take it all in today, and I realized how much our clothing is like adaptations on animals. Goggles and sunglasses, furry hoods, face-masks, gloves, and rubber boots all are items that allow us to explore different areas of the world at all seasons!

High on the mountain, it looked very barren and desolate, like I imagine the moon. Finally, we reached “Dog Food Junction,” and, lo and behold, buried, in the snow, was our dog food. We also had a decision to make… So, we stopped and staked out our tents for a windy night.

Part of an adventure is not knowing—not knowing how the snow will be, or the next day’s weather or exactly which route will be the one of choice, but that’s what I like about it. We have two choices here at this junction, and I wonder which one we will take.

There is a herd of reindeer maybe 300 yards or meters away from us on the mountain slope!

Saturday
April 19, 2008

Ahh, a welcome respite! We spent the night at "Four Corners" or "Dogfood Junction," which was a bit scary at first because the wind was so high, but luckily Paul and Mille and Aaron set up the tents so that they faced the wind and didn't flutter too much. The sunrise and sunsets were amazing, and we saw reindeer off in the distance! I spent some time reading my Send-a-Notes from my class, and it was so encouraging to hear from them and to know that we were being watched and listened to everyday, by so many people-- go Adventure Learning!

Aaron and Mille were Education machines-- they set up the solar panels and churned out an entire trail report in one day! Paul and I helped where we could-- I gave my journal over with daily reflections, and Paul and I both did some audio for the site-- but for the most part, I read and relaxed and wrote in my journal. It was one of the most peaceful days I've had in a long while, although I started to get "Tent Fever" after awhile, which was okay, because we were off the next day!

Sunday
April 20, 2008

Which Way to Go?

Ahh, the fun of expeditions. Which way? Calculating navigation can be tricky, but when you're with expert explorers, you don't need to worry too much. We had two possible routes: 1) through Kilpisjarvi on the border of Sweden and Finland, where Aaron and I would have to spend two days taking two busses to Kiruna to catch our flight; or 2) be rock stars and make it all the way to “Torneträsk” where we could be picked up by the owner of Fjellborg Husky Kennels to drive back to his kennel in Jukkasjärvi outside Kiruna. Using the bgan satellite communication system, Paul made the call and BOOM-- Kent said he could indeed get us, so we ushered off on the trail south to Sweden and up into the Kiruna Fjells (mountains)!

We were off! The team decided to have me ski-jor again, so I was towing behind the sled, pushing as hard as I could with my poles so I wouldn't weigh down the sled too much! Up, up, up we went, to the top of a mountain where the wind was howling! It was so amazing to be up there-- we sat behind the sled so we could be sheltered from the win, and we all looked back at the amazing mountains we had already climbed!

Monday
April 21, 2008

The trail tipped on a particularly narrow section today, but together, Mille and I shoved it back upright. Crisis averted! You really see how much the Expedition Team works like a team-- when one sled doesn't show up, someone from up ahead always comes down to check it out. Now that's a team! We even ran over a trail sign today-- the dogs are really well trained to stay to the right, and that comes in great handy for in towns but sometimes can wreak havoc on the person on the right side of the sled. It was hard going for me today.

Tuesday
April 22, 2008

We stopped a bit today to take out our University of Minnesota flag and took some pictures with it blazing, and saw a herd of reindeer in the distance. The sweeping vistas seemed to appear every five minutes up in the Arctic, and the pictures were flying! Mille and Paul and Aaron are so good at quickly whipping out their cameras when something of interest showed itself-- great ‘documentarians’!

The reindeer are such magnificent creatures, and the dogs thought so, too! "Go get 'em! What is that? What is that?" Mille trilled, and the Polar Huskies lurched forward. One time, our lead dog Lightning even went off the trail to try and catch something! We decided to have me try to ski next to the sled again, and it was tough again at first, but I kept in the groove.

We pushed hard and had one massive hill to go up before: ahoy, a cabin, amongst many other cabins! I love finding these treasures, and we set up camp inside and were relieved to finally not have waist-deep snow to stake the dogs out in! It was fun reading the scriptures from all the people who had come to cabin before us-- some even from the 1950s! We actually had a real bathroom with a Styrofoam seat-- a real luxury out on the trail!

Enjoying our tea and ruminating on the day's travel (over 40k! (about 25 miles)), we heard a knock. It was two snowmobilers—Sámi reindeer herders! They came in to our cozy hut and chatted with us all about their jobs as reindeer herders and their family touring business, reindeer sledding! They were so nice and knew great English. It really made me want to learn a new language! Niels Erik explained about reindeer herding, and I soon realized what a huge job it must be to herd them over such a vast expanse of land. We also talk about living in this region with Niels Erik and Veronica and discussed things like today’s challenges for reindeer herders, land disputes and even affects of climate change; And I admired their traditional style boots and hats. I want some Sámi fashion to take back to LA, I thought! Off they went and we enjoyed some of Mille's fine home cooking and listened to Aaron's iPod using fancy speakers-- some nice Johnny Cash-- before taking our last night of sleep on the road.

Wednesday
April 23, 2008

We cleaned up our cabin and everyone had the same thought in our minds—‘Last Day’! We were pretty bittersweet as we packed for the last time. Niels Erik had said to expect fun downhill on our way to Torneträsk Lake, our rendezvous point with Kent's employee, Kalle. He wasn't kidding!

I skied alongside the sled again today, and we had some real doozies of downhills! Some of the tracks even had power-line poles right in the middle, making for an interesting game of ‘Dodging the Obstacle’! One particularly crazy downhill had me brushing over small trees on the right side, and one tree even ripped off my cap, which we had to go back to retrieve. "Lightning!" Mille would call out, because on the down-hills, if the lead dog (in our case, Lightning) didn't go fast enough, the whole team risk getting run on up by the sled as it THWUMP, THWUMP goes over all of the hills. Poor Hershey, in wheel, kept looking behind him and nearly getting nipped by the sled, but we were successful in every downhill!

The snow went from "buttery" to "Sugary," and you could definitely see more signs of spring – including open water (we had to cross several bridges that Lightning took like a pro!). I went over my first river – it was such a foreign site for me in the Arctic thus far, and it was so beautiful. Then we reached a small town near the huuuuge lake, and a kind pair of elderly men confirmed our route.

We made it to the north side of Torneträsk Lake now with just the final 8k (less than 5 miles) to go! Getting out the bgan communication system, since we still had no cell phone connection, we called Fjellborg Husky Kennels to let them know our location. We headed out across the lake. It was so vast and large and beautiful! Soon we could make out Kalle emerging at the end of the lake! He had driven here in Fjellborg’s awesome dog truck to pick us up. We loaded the eager Polar Huskies, and we slid the two sleds onto a trailer and Kalle took us to Kenth and Ann’s Fjellborg Husky Kennel – from where Paul and Mille set out on this expedition 50-some days ago.

We did stop by the Coop, my first Swedish supermarket ever (!), on our way and picked up some well-deserved treats. Swedish supermarkets have cool scanner devices that you can scan as you shop so you don't even have to check out-- you just pay! The Swedish have such innovative things.

We staked out the dogs and set up in our beautiful rooms. Then, our FIRST SHOWER in over a week! Absence truly makes the heart grow fonder, and it was the most amazing shower of my life. Kalle and Richard made us an amazing dinner of potatoes, Lingonberries, bread and elk-stew, and we chatted with them about how their life was working at the kennel and where they were from (South Sweden). Then it was off to bed-- big day on the fly tomorrow! I took a moment before drifting off to sleep in the comfortable bed to think about all of the awesome events of the day.


Thursday
April 24, 2008

A day of globetrotting! We got up at 3:30am and made a yummy breakfast as we looked out on a lake watching an incredible sunrise. We could see where the ice hotel is on the other side of the river that Paul and Mille reported about when they were first here. We had a great time watching some ravens and magpies play with each other in the trees, but then reality hit: we had to go to the airport!

Paul and Mille bid Aaron and I farewell as we boarded our plane to Stockholm, and then Aaron and I had the 8-hour flight to Chicago from where I headed back to Los Angeles and he to Minneapolis.

The whole day of travel, Aaron and I still couldn't believe we weren't on the trail anymore! We would look at our watches and say, "well, we would be eating some trail mix at lunch right now" or "almost time to set up camp!" I loved seeing all of the mountains that we had just sledded through flying high above-- I still couldn't believe that we were little specks for a week-- and Paul and Mille for so long. It looked so small down below but I know firsthand how huge and vast and astonishing it is down there!

By the time I got to my house, it was 6 PM LA time. My body "felt" like it was 3am, Swedish time, so I'm off to catch up on my sleep and readjust to LA time and get ready to see the amazing things my class has done!

Happy T(r)ails!
Wendy, GoNorth! Teacher Explorer 2008