Rupert!

I arrived in Prince Rupert on February 28^th for my 6 week contract.  It was nice not to have to travel two days to get here.  It was a quick and easy flight, but then you take a bus, to a ferry, to a bus then to town.  This is what happens when you build towns and airports on islands.  Silly.

I’ve actually spent time in Prince Rupert 20 years ago.  I used to date someone that lived up here.  Rupert is the center of the province, coastal.  It’s a solid 18 hour drive from Vancouver and one of the rainiest cities in North America.  I was always here in the summers so I’ve got a whole new appreciation of how much it rains.  Not much of the town looked familiar but it has been a few decades.  My first stop was the pub for lunch.  THAT was still there and still the same. Being next to the ocean has always been comforting to me and I was excited to not feel as claustrophobic as I did in Inuvik. 

stuffed

not

The town itself is about 12,000 people.  They have housed me in a three bedroom apartment right across the hospital so I have roughly a 90 second commute which is nice.  There is a huge flight of cement stairs to and from town though and as I don’t have a car I need to be efficient with my trips “downtown”.  Lugging bottle of Perrier in ones backpack and bags full of groceries up these GD stairs in the rain and with wind got a little tiring.  There were occasional cab rides, not going to lie.

The hospital is well organized.  I’m one of two obstetric RN’s on at a time.  There are only 15 or so births per month so I’ve only done a few deliveries.  I have a smaller workload then the rest of the RN’s, so 3 acute care patients, and that is in case an labouring woman comes in I can easily hand off my workload.  I certainly can’t complain about having 3 patients, and I have felt pretty guilty when the rest of them are running around taking care of 6, so I do my best to help out and answer call bells.  So the work itself has been pleasant.  My schedule on the other had has been horrible.  Prince Rupert wins for the worst rotation in this last 9 months of travel nursing.  I haven’t had more than 48 hours off since I’ve been here.  I’m working a few shifts, then 24 hours off, then a few more, then 36 hours off etc.  I haven’t worked more than 3 or 4 shifts in a row but still, not having a stretch off to regroup has just wrecked me.  I’ve done probably 75% night shifts (all of these shifts are 12 hours) and a lot of quick 24 hour turn arounds from nights to days.  Blah.  I’m more burnt out than I’ve felt in a long time.

Having said this about my schedule I really haven’t had a chance to do much of anything up here.  Not having a car in a bigger city is a challenge too.  I went to the gym quite a bit, (it’s called “The Gym”) so that helped keep me sane.  I got a roommate from Nova Scotia who had a car because she was working with Public Health so we went on a quick hike in the woods one day.  I mentioned to my roommate that I worked with a nurse from Nova Scotia up in Inuvik.  She said, “is her name Sherri?”.  Yes!  Small world.

There are some fabulous, and I mean fabulous sushi restaurants around town.  Some of the best I’ve ever eaten actually but VERY expensive.  Dinner averaged $40.  It’s hard to justify when I can get an 18 piece sushi special for $7.95 back home, but damn it was good.  Rupert has totems scattered throughout town too, it’s a nice reminder that were are in beautiful coastal BC.

I don't know how these bands of colour showed up.  It's like the totems energy is oozing out.

The highlight of the trip was an adventure to a small community across the harbour from Prince Rupert called Dodge Cove, population 30.  My roommate and one of her coworkers were heading over so I got my butt out of bed after a night shift and a mere 2 hours of sleep to get the noon water taxi with them to this tiny hamlet.   It was a Saturday that we went but apparently the Monday-Friday water taxi captain is the very ex boyfriend that brought me here 20 years ago.  He was my prom date back in 1995! The one and only time I mentioned his name was in the community of Dodge Cove and they knew exactly who I was talking about because he shuttles people back and forth into town in the water taxi for groceries etc.  I was ok with not running into him.  I told the weekend captain to tell him I say hi and that I look fantastic ;-)

The water taxi was picking us up at 5pm again.  I wasn’t quite sure how we were going to fill the afternoon, especially in the pouring rain.  We were met on the dock by two characters in various stages of rubber slickers and boots.  My roommate’s coworker hadn’t been to the community for 5 years and didn’t know many people there herself, and I’m not entirely sure if even she knew who these two gentlemen were but I got the impression they were the unofficial mascots of Dodge Cove.  They were waiting for us, introduced themselves and we walked to Bill’s house for coffee.

These guys look far grumpier than they were.  They weren't a fan of cameras I don't think...

There are no cars in Dodge Cove, just a gravel lane that all the houses are lined on.  It made for a quaint little place.  Bill’s house was eclectic to say the least.  A bachelor pad for sure, full of books, comics and knick knacks, all a little dusty but with character.  Bill and the other guy, his friend Jan, were kind of like the odd couple, full of sarcasm, quick wit, but gentle souls, who were engaging and genuinely interested in why 2 nurses wanted to come to Dodge Cove.  I was just as interested to hear their stories about how they came to  be living in such an obscure place.  Jan was a Public Health officer in the Canadian Military, originally from Denmark, Bill was originally from Texas and ended up working in the National Guard in Alaska.  To be honest, I was so enthralled by these stories alone, I still never really got how they ended up in Dodge Cove.  Regardless, it was remarkable to hear how many of the people were Americans.  There was a couple from Atlanta living in a yurt down the lane.  I mean really, how does this happen?!

After spending probably 2 hours in Bill’s living room having coffee and cookies (we were told to come bearing cookies) next stop was to Lu and Jerimiah’s to see their garden.  Lu is a librarian in Rupert and Jerimiah is a seasonal spot prawn fisherman down in Howe Sound and also planes wood to sell, maybe?  Not sure. They had lot of wood lined up in their yard.  He was a forester in his earlier years and said he started felling trees at 12 years old!  We had stinging nettle and mint tea from Lu’s garden and it was delicious.  Again, we spent two hours talking with total strangers who could not have been more gracious and engrossing.  I think I probably asked them as many questions about their life then they asked about mine.  I got Jerimiah’s number so next time he comes to Horseshoe Bay after spot prawning we are going to meet at Trolls and have some fish and chips and a beer.  It’s like I had known these people all my life.

We made one more quick stop before the water taxi was picking us up.  Another couple, but I can’t remember their names, sleep deprivation was kicking in.  They were lovely too, had beautiful house, we had a nice glass of wine and went to catch our boat back to Rupert.  We gave big hugs to Bill and Jan, our two mascots.  It was such an inspiring day.  I love hearing the stories of how people came to be where they are, how couples meet each other, how and where they have lived.  It makes me want to be as fearless as they are in travel, in life, in love.  It was a beautifully random day and I won’t ever forget it.  Sometimes it’s the most simplest things that touch you the most. 

I leave for home tomorrow.  I excited for my chapter of travel nursing to be over. There have been a lot of anxiety provoking first days of work. It’s been a great 9 months but tiring.  I’m definitely working more than I ever would at home.  I have become very adaptable to new environments and that potential excites me.  I’m home for 12 days and then off to east Africa!  I’m spending 3 weeks volunteering at a medical clinic outside of Arusha, Tanzania then heading to Zanzibar (an island off the coast of Tanzania and part of Tanzania) for a week of R&R, then heading to Kenya to live with no running water or electricity for 3 weeks with the Maasai tribe and also volunteering and then 10 days in the Seychelles.  They are a group of 115 islands in the Indian Ocean north of Madagascar.  I’m pretty excited.  All this hard work paid off.  I’m back to reality and my real job in July.  I’m looking forward to getting back into a routine and being closer to friends.  I have definitely had my bouts of being homesick. 

I won’t be blogging in Africa as I won’t be bringing my computer so this is bye for now.  I’ll try to catch up when I come home for those of you not on Facebook, but for now, this part of Tonya’s Big Adventure is coming to a close.  Thank you for reading about my adventures.  

Carpe Diem.  

Arctic Adventures!

Dogsledding was the top of my list of things to do in Inuvik.  I called the one and only place and they told me that on the day I wanted to go they were organizing a snowmobiling trip to go see the reindeer herd.  I hesitated because it was a $300 but it was scheduled to be -7 Celsius (19F) which is downright balmy by Arctic standards so I decided to go.  They estimated an 7-8 hour day and that is a long time to be out in the cold, so the warmer the better.  I texted two new nurses that had just arrived, they happen to be from Vancouver too, and they joined me.  I had known them for about 30 seconds so kudos to them for being so spontaneous.  

The Arctic Chalet tour group closely analyzed what we were wearing.  I guess they don't like their guests getting frostbite and it's a real possibility up here.  We had on everything warm we had packed up here with us.  Balaclavas, mittens, mitt liners, neck warmers, toque (knit hat), goggles, two pairs of long johns, ski pants, Canada Goose jackets and a pocket full of hot shot hand and toe warmers.  They were not impressed with any of our personal boots so provided us with moose hide mukluks.  I was hesitant that they would be warmer than my Merrels, but without a doubt they were.   They warned us that the weather can change at any moment so it's better to be over prepared.  

We left on a glorious morning.  All of these pictures are of sunRISE.  This is about 11 am when we left the chalet. 

There were 5 guests and three guides.  The sleds (snowmobiles) they gave us were pretty old.  We were on them for about 7 hours and they didn't handle very well.  I had a very sore back the following few days.  I took only one corner too fast and ended up on just one track of the snowmobile.  I made the mistake of sticking out my leg to correct myself.  I learned later this is how people break their legs (makes sense in hindsight).  I guess if you are going to fall you just let the machine fall on you.  I didn't break my leg (thank you universe!) and slowed down on the corners from then on.  

Giving er down the frozen Mackenzie River with the sun rising behind us.  It doesn't get much better than this!

They were saying that in the last 10 years these short willow trees below have got much more abundant in the Arctic due to climate change/global warming.   It made for a diverse trip with a lot of different scenery.

This was the top of Beer Hill, the half way point.  It is these slow sunrises/sunsets that give the sky these amazing colours for hours....

Rest stop on one of the many frozen lakes we went across! 

 After about 3 hours/45km we arrived at the 3,000 head reindeer herd.  A man named Henrik is a Sami reindeer herder from Sweden whose family has been herders for centuries. The Sami are the only indigenous people in Scandinavia and he was dressed in traditional attire.   Henrik was worried that the traditional ways of Sami herding were being lost in Sweden so he came to the Arctic to keep his cultural traditions alive.  His eyes lit up when I mentioned the National Geographic article that I had read about the Sami people that came out about 18 months ago. 
He is very sentimental and protective of his herd.  He is married to the husky kennel master of the dogsledding teams. They only met a few years ago when she had cross country skied (see above, 45km!) to the reindeer herd.  Henrik spends Monday to Friday with the herd and comes home to Inuvik on the weekends.  There always needs to be someone with the herd so when he is away someone replaces him.  Before the ice melts he will herd the reindeer on to a large island for the summer, wait for the ice to melt and they will be contained there until fall.  During this time he goes back to Sweden with his dogsledding wife.  It still amazes me people live like this and I mean that with the utmost respect.  This guy has chosen to come live on the frozen Arctic tundra and herd reindeer.  Every day.  It's crazy.  This is what makes Canada so truly awesome.

Remember how I said we had to prepare in case the weather changed?  Well it did.  Right when we stopped.  The wind was howling and wind when it's cold like this changes everything.  We had a scheduled lunch stop on the tundra.  Note the herd in the background.  They built a fire in the snow, surprisingly fast actually.  They have us each a cast iron sandwich holder that had a cheese/tomato/pepper sandwich on one side and an diced apple/cinnamon/butter sandwich on the other.  You toast your sandwiches over the fire.  They were amazing! And hot chocolate on the arctic tundra just tastes better.  Not sure why. The two golden rules in the Arctic are to not sweat and not get hungry, you get so much colder. I was warm enough (thanks again PK!) but starved.  Best sandwiches of my life.  But by the time I was on my last bites the sandwich was covered in frost.  It was that cold.  Then I had to pee.  Sigh.  Man oh man is that a cold squat.  And don't squat too low!  Oh my god..  

Seeing 3000 wild reindeer was one of the coolest things I've ever done.  And these are reindeer not caribou. Although they can interbreed, and depending what you read on the internet they are apparently different animals.  Reindeer live in large groups (in the thousands), and need to be herded.  Caribou live in groups of 10-20 and roam wild.  When scared reindeer clump together, caribou scatter.  Henrik the reindeer herder apparently gets quite stressed out when a caribou is in the herd and is one of the only ones that can tell the difference between the two species.    

Reindeer were imported to Canada via Norway in the early 1900's to help the Inuvailuit in the region have a consistent food source.  The caribou herds were in decline and the Inuit relied on them for food and clothing.  The United States and Canada launched the Canadian Reindeer Project to help mitigate the food shortage.  Sami people from Scandanavia came with the reindeer and they were to teach the Inuvailuit hunting and herding techniques.   It didn't go well.  The Inuvailuit weren't interested in another species, and wanted the challenge of the hunt for the caribou.  This herd is the only one left in Canada.  

They are looking for a "chief herder trainee" for a three year contract if anyone is interested. Being bad ass is a requirement.  
http://reindeerherding.org/tag/canada/

 The way home was interesting.  It became a total white out for a while and we had to follow each other pretty closely.  The guide couldn't find one of the turnoffs (can't say I blame them, you couldn't see a thing).  It did clear up again but the temperature dropped significantly.  We had to keep stopping to warm up our hands in the exhaust of the snowmobile and made a quick stop to the herders cabin to warm up by a fire.  Henrik shoots two reindeer a day and sells the meat and hide in town here.  It's delicious and mild.  He never shoots reindeer when they are running, only grazing.  It apparently makes the meat taste different if they are stressed due to the cortical release.  He shoots them with one even shot, and the herd doesn't even notice.  They just go on doing their thing.

Dasher & Dancer?!  Come on...that's funny.

________________________________________________________________________

I still had to go dogsledding!  I chose another mild day.  It's a trade off.  If it's snowing it's warmer, if it's blue sky it's -30.  I decided on the warmer option.  I know a few people in town that have gone.  About 50% of them fell off at some point.  If you fall you have to somehow hang on to the sled or else the dogs will take off.  I was pretty worried but I managed to stay on. Your feet are on two runners about 3 inches wide.  There is a rubber "slow down" pad between the two runners that you can put varying degrees of pressure on with a foot to slow the dogs down.  There is also a steel break that if you step on will bring the dogs to a stop pretty quick.  So yah you have to take a foot off these 3 inch runners and balance.  Yikes.  The commands were easy "CHEE!" was right, "CHA" was left.  You usually had to give a few pumps of the break to get the dogs attention as you yell these words.  And then the customary "GOOD DOGS" when they do something right.  

This was pretty fun.  I actually wanted them to go faster, but I think I needed more dogs for that.  The guide said they had just pulled a bunch of 300lb guys the day before and were pooped out.  It's a lot like water skiing, especially as they start.  It was nice to be able to look around a little and enjoy the scenery.  They had decked me out in wolf gloves to keep my hands warm.  They were bulky but definitely warm.  

The Arctic Chalet guide company only raises white huskies with blue eyes.  They have about 35 of them and a bunch of puppies.  They are very vocal dogs with a lot of howling and yipping when they want to go.  It's pretty cool.  

Note how deep the snow is below.  This is me and my new friend Sherri!

 Future pups!

I finally got my new GoPro camera to work and got a video of my experience.  My debut on YouTube!  Pretty proud of it, it took HOURS to edit.  Ugh.  You might have to copy and paste the link...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaPskFHFJz8&feature=em-upload_owner

I'm doing three night shifts then leaving the Arctic on Friday to spend two weeks at home.  I'm ready.  I need a town that is more than 1km long I've learned.  I am feeling pretty restless.  Having a car here would help or a friend/partner.  It has been an overall mild winter here so I'm lucky in that regard.  There was only one real blizzard and that only lasted a day or two.  The cold didn't bother me as much as the dark did.  I like the work and the people but need to regroup at home.  I extended this trip by two weeks so have spent two months up here this time and 30 days of it them were the polar nights where the sun never came above the horizen.  So believe it or not, I'm going to Vancouver for the light.  Fingers crossed Mr. Sun comes out when I'm home.  I am so glad I came up here.  I'll never forget the experience of almost 4 months in the Arctic Circle.  Doubt I will come back however.  Hats off to the people that can make a life up here.  It's not for me but I'm glad I did it.  After two weeks at home next stop is 6 weeks on north coastal BC, Prince Rupert!  I'm craving green/lush rainforests like home and the OCEAN! Everything is better with the ocean....