The Beauty of the Ice

In Yellowknife there was Love in the graffiti

Travelling down the 406 through St. Catharines this week, had me thinking back to January and my time spent above the magic circle. Along the highway, on a fence, there was some graffiti sprayed...something not seen in "the territories" especially at an average temp of -30C.

Love was in the air in Cambridge Bay

The cover of night allows for this activity here in Niagara...and we have a readily-available supply of paint. Of those two, the darkness of night...we had in the north. However, once the roads end, and transport by plane is the only means of travel, the restrictions of the airlines take over...the liquids....and the aerosols.

Spray paint is not needed to get your message across in the north...you can simply use Mother Nature. While walking through town or looking through a window...no matter in which building you may be...one has to be observant or you miss so much in the short daylight hours this time of year.

The sun streaming through a fence line

While having fresh windswept snow each morning allows for easy observation of animal tracks, the temperatures also increase the amount of frost and is fascinating to see. The short daylight and lack of sun strength contributed greatly to the increasing thickness of frost which appears on surfaces of all sorts.

Thick frost on the posts and wires

The power poles and electric power lines, the chain link fencing (ironically originally manufactured by “FROST”) and the handrails of buildings were but a few of the targets of “jack”. The crystals seemed to lengthen each day until such time as the weather might change, the winds might increase dramatically or the sun might finally reach the object as it rose higher in the sky each and every day...and its path became longer.

"HIGH NOON" from the second floor

There is no easy way to describe the daily changes regarding the sun once it had risen above the horizon. There were overcast days and some days with varying amounts of cloud cover. One day, just before our lunch (and before the regular noon fire siren), I received a call from one of the midwives. “Bob” she said “do you have your camera?...come upstairs..you've got to see the sky.”

Frost on the playground equipment

I grabbed the Nikon and was off, up the staircase and into the south east corner of the health centre. It took a few moments to find a window, not covered in frost or snow in that section of the building...a clear portal to the sky. Once I did, the sight before me was incredible and the next ten minutes were a wonder to behold.

As I talked to the midwife, and captured some images, I was privileged to observe the sun...and then realized what was happening as the sun moved toward a power pole. It crossed behind the power pole...and continued on its path...the beam was soon blocked by the next two storey building. The sun was not yet...high in the sky...as this was only the second week of having the sun above the horizon.

...and on the signs

In a matter of less that ten minutes, with some visual stationary references, the sun had moved about ten feet across the roof of a building...and when it crossed the hydro pole...you could actually see the red ball moving. During my time spent in Cambridge Bay (and the few nights in Yellowknife), I never enjoyed as many beautiful and unique sunrises and sunsets....some only minutes apart.

The pace of life is slower in the north. The vehicles move with respect on the ice-covered roads, their drivers knowing that pedestrians abound and are likely to spring from any numbers of directions. The snow and ice build upon the roads due to snowfall or drifting then are compacted by the traffic. There are several ways to deal with this.

The dozer doing 360's on the main street

The third week at the Health Centre I was returning paperwork to the front entrance receptionist. I glanced out the front window in time to notice a big grader scrapping the top layer on the street. This was just a few days after watching a tracked bulldozer doing circles at the main intersection in town.

Snow and ice maintenance at the intersection

On a Saturday, just as that noon fire whistle had blown with the accompanying chorus of dog howls from across the entire hamlet, I had noticed this bulldozer, blade up, travelling down the street. Nothing unusual with that, as there are always front end loaders and other pieces of heavy equipment travelling the local streets...some with buckets clearing drifts and some doing heavy lifting with their forks managing the materiel stored about town.

This particular dozer came to the intersection and did a 360...then another...and this continued many times with the centre of his circle moving further down the street past the high school. Then it was repeated...and repeated. When I finally arrived at the intersection, I discovered the reason for this “dance”.

There's beauty in the night sky

The tracks of the bulldozer had broken up the icy packed snow into manageable chunks...and the road based gravel below was now visible. Next the chunks were moved aside...and the process would begin again...adding a margin of safety to this four way stop.

Another night...more beauty !

Elsewhere through this community, many of the residents own the steel shipping containers on their property. They serve as winter and summer storage...and while they might be considered a blight on the landscape, their need is real as the housing has no traditional basement and few have garages available, though some of the newer housing had garages attached.

In the winter though, the drifts can block easy access to that storage. You keep your snow shovel handy or you will be borrowing a neighbours to get access to yours, if you left it stored in your sea can. While these shipping containers abound everywhere, there are areas storing equipment and supplies throughout the town...no doubt some of these are ready for the construction season ahead...May? June? July?

Tthe "tourist" sign...a little frosted

There is evidence of an increasing arctic tourism market. Several cruise ships now have Cambridge Bay listed as a stop on their Northwest Passage routes. The Visitor's Centre and the Library (attached directly to the high school) are 2 of the main attractions with their various displays. Throughout the community, there are signs posted near the various “hot spots” of tourist interest. They are written in several languages, English and Inuktitut, primarily.

While they are interesting to read, at this time of year, many times you could not. To protect these signs, they are covered with thick plexiglass...and as a result, during the winter, that plexiglass becomes encrusted with frost and a thick layer of ice forms...obscurring the words of explanation located beneath. A return visit to some of the signs, once the sun was a regular visitor, allowed for some visualization...but its too early for most tourists yet.

I couldn't resist... the temptation

There is beauty in the ice and snow...but I was a visitor...and someone not having to deal with it year round. While the fresh snow and ice crystals provide a ready canvas for any graffiti artist, the good news its cleanup...above the magic circle...is easy. Once again, Mother Nature will take over and restore...once the warmer weather of spring arrives.