Sachs Harbour and Northern Lights

Hey Everyone,

Its been awhile so time for and update. Went to Sachs Harbour for work and got some great pictures. Had a good time on this trip. On the flight back to Inuvik we saw the northern lights that was neat to see up in the air.

It has been very cold and super clear so have had some great northern lights shows recently, I have attached a few to this email. They are definitely the best thing about winter up here.

Only a few more months until summer. I cannot wait for the long days and warm weather. The bugs I dot not look forward to as much but I will take them too for long days and warmth.

I attached a bunch of pictures of the trip to Sachs and of Northern Lights. Enjoy.

 Sunset in Sachs Harbour

 Looking out onto the vast Arctic Ocean (as far as the eye can see)

 Almost $6 for a can of soup. Most other things were just as expensive.

 Sachs Harbour

 Muskox

 Deon and I explored an abandoned hotel (the Icicle Inn). It was super creepy.

 Doors and windows were broken so snow was all blown through. Animal tracks throughout as well.

 The inn was so creepy because it was as if there were people there and they just left all of a sudden. Papers, chairs, beds, even sheets and cleaners, etc. left just like they would come back some day to use them. It could daily be the site of a horror film - post apocalypse.

 Beside the inn was an abandoned science station as well. Equally as creepy!

 Cairn in Sachs Harbour with a plaque about the first visit to the location by the arctic vessel the Mary Sachs in 1913. Very nice view of Sachs Harbour as well.

 On the Ice Road on the way to Tuk from Inuvik.

 It was cold!

 Truck coming on the road.

 Northern Lights (March 9, 2012)

  Northern Lights from by backyard.

 From the front yard they were all around.

 The next pictures were of the Northern Lights from the Ice Road. We went out to get out of the light.

Hope you enjoyed the pictures.
Will post again.

Josh

Famous Tuk

Update time is here again!

We have been having some wacky weather lately.

Last week we had a blizzard so bad that the office was closed for 4 of the 5 days in the work week. Drifts were so high what you could climb from the top into a second storey window. And packed the snow was packed so hard that only metal shovels and heavy equipment could do anything with it. Trucks were covered and the engines packed to the hoods with snow. Could not even see across the road (10ft) at times. It was amazing to see (as long as I don't see it very often).

This week it has been wicked cold. Today for example -53 with windchill. At that temperature you get frostbite in less than 2 minutes. But this cold weather has brought clear nights and I have seen the Northern Lights a few times this week. They are such an amazing sight. One of my favorite things about the north.

Favorite things about the North:
1) Arctic Summer Nights
2) The Northern Lights

Well thats about it for now, I feel that there was something else that I was going to blog about, but I cannot remember.

Bye for now,
Josh

OH YA! - the other thing was that I was watching Parks and Recreation last night, a show on ABC or one of those channels, and they mentionned the Tuk Ice Road - famous little Tuk!

Hitching a Ride Home with Santa!

Hello All,

Time for another installment of Josh in Tuk which I update all too rarely.

It has been very dark and very cold lately. Yesterday it was so cold that I picked up a lasagna that had just come out of the oven and did not even know it was hot because my hands were so cold from standing outside. Thats fun!!

But the time has come for me to exit this land of ice and snow (cold and dark), etc. etc. so venture to lands warmer and sunnier - well Nova Scotia is only so warm and so light at this time of year but it has more of both of those things than Tuk.

Spending a couple days in Inuvik will be good and then a few days in transit which will be not as good but the end result is great; and that is me at home.

I need to do my Christmas shopping, I have not even started yet, I have never been this late with my purchasing of presents; uh-oh!

I would say that I will update this blog again soon but who are we kidding, it will be weeks if not months before I update it again.

Have a good Christmas everyone, and a Happy New Year.

In the words of the great Chevy Chase in a Christmas classic, "We're gonna have the hap hap happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tapdanced with Danny fucking Kaye."

I'll blog again in 2012!

j

(p.s. - this blogs title is funny because I live in the North-pole!)

Its Darrrrrrrk!

Hi All,

One of the super awesome things about being up here, or anywhere in the north for that matter, is the super awesome darkness. I didn't love it in Iceland and I am not loving it here. I am not having as much of an issue with it here because of my work schedule but in general I find the dark to be depressing. This is pretty ironic though because I consider myself a night-owl. Its just hard to be a night-owl all day long :)

The countdown is on until I go home for Christmas. I cannot wait to get home. Seems like so long since I have been home even though its only been since August-Septemer. Looking forward to seeing friends and family and also SUBWAY, my love.

The fan is going to Halifax for New Years which should be fun, have a nice meal, watch the fireworks, stay at the Westin, then a nice breakfast.

I wish that we were going down south this year at Christmas, its so cold up here that the south would be so nice. Maybe in the spring!!!

You may see me post on this blog more now that it is so cold, and so dark. For example it is now 10am its is dark out, it will be until noon. Then by 5pm it will be dark as night again. The temperature has actually warmed up for the last few days to -25, mmmmmm super nice! It has been -35 so ill take -25 over that any day.

Here are some photos for your enjoyment. :)

Darkness at 10am on Nov19th

Darkness at 10am on Nov19th

My Christmas Tree until I get home. Its a BLIK Olive
 tree with print out decorations taped to it :)

Hope you enjoyed this update!

Peace for now,

Josh

No longer MIA

Hello All,

I has been called to my attention that I "need to update my blog." I am unsure as to if the poster suggests this because it has been almost exactly 3 months since my last post or if it is because my last post includes some data which seems to be incorrect.

Nevertheless post I will.

The weather data seems to have lead me astray a tad. It has been consistently a few degrees either side of -10 for the last few weeks. The weather network assured me that this would not happen for some time. Those lying b@st@rds.

I am finding it crazy what a small world this is. So many people from the east coast all over the west. I found myself at a bbq and was introduced to a new person in town. She was like "are you josh of josh in tuk?" Indeed I am. She was from NS too. Oh how I miss NS.

Christmas break is coming and I will get to go back to NS. I cannot wait for that time. Looking forward to seeing friends and family.

The daylight is slow fading up here...time to break out the sadd light and the bob marley. He will make everything better.

Peace

Here are some awesome pictures of some awesome snow in awesome september the same awesome weekend it was awesomely 20 awesome degrees in NS. :) I sound bitter. (Sept 25th)

WEATHER

Hey All,

I stumbled on an interested section of Environment Canada where I found some historic leather data for here. I thought that I would share some with you all.

- It is around mid November before it gets below -10 regularly here

- January seems to be the coldest month

- -39 was the Coldest it got in Tuk in 2010

- The warm weather was about a week ahead this year (to welcome me), May 13 was -1.3 and snowy, I arrived May 16, and by May 21 it was +21.3 - it was just fine with me!!

Thats all for now.

Talk to you all again soon!

Josh

Mom Arrive Tomorrow!

Hey Everyone,

Tomorrow is a big day! Mom arrive in Tuk. I am anxious to see what she thinks about the place. She had a good flight to Edmonton and then tomorrow she flies from Edmonton to Inuvik and then onto Tuk.

The last week has been pretty good. We have gone boating and fishing and have spent lots of time outside.

Also, most of my orders have arrived so yay for Canada Post being back on the job!

The weather has been great up here, I hope the weather is great for while mom is here.

Mom is here for a week then we head down to Inuvik for a little less than a week. We are going to head to the arctic circle and to the Yukon border.

Well back to cleaning up the apartment for moms arrival.

Thats all for now!

Josh