I recently interviewed John Huston and Tyler Fish about their expedition to the North Pole in 2009 and the launch of their new book, Forward.

Here is an excerpt from the interview:

Tyler Fish, North Pole '09

It was the first American unsupported and unsupplied trip to the North Pole. Writing about it felt like another whole expedition, they said. John Huston and Tyler Fish just released their book Forward and the book (available for purchase at $40.00 on the expedition website) is already acclaimed by readers. Jim Paulson interviewed the skiers/authors for ExplorersWeb.

Jim: It's been two years since the North Pole. What have you been doing since?

Tyler: I've focused on my most important jobs: being a father and husband, and staffing director for Outward Bound, and local ski coach.

John: Writing the book, speaking, guiding, consulting, and working part time in real estate.

Jim: Talk about the process of writing the book? Any challenges?

John Huston, North Pole '09

John: It took us more than six months to feel ready to start writing. Right after the expedition we were too close to the experience and needed to let it breathe a bit. The entire writing process was much more involved and time consuming than we anticipated. It felt like another whole expedition, only without the singleness of focus that comes with being on the ice. It took a lot of whittling down and tweaking to get the narrative to the final product. All in all the process provided perfect closure to the whole expedition experience. We’re closer than ever and we’re happy that we put our experience on paper.

Tyler: Of course there's compromise any time you mix real life and expedition life. That’s hard for everyone involved. John and I have grown closer through the book project. We've thought a lot, encouraged each other, and laughed a lot.

Read the full interview at ExplorersWeb.

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Forward is their story. Over a period of nearly two months, John and Tyler skied more than 500 miles, hauling sleds that contained everything they needed to survive. They maneuvered their 300-pound loads through punishing rubble fields and swam across stretches of open water. To fuel their bodies and fight back the cold, each consumed more than 7,000 calories per day, downing deep-fried bacon, chunks of butter, and fat-laden pemmican stew.

Richly illustrated with photos, maps, and charts, Forward takes readers across the ice and into the lives of both men, revealing how and why they attempted their unsupported trek to the Pole. The authors describe the details of their journey: the preparations, the daily routines, the personal struggles, and more. This fascinating narrative also interweaves the science of polar travel with the rich history of past explorers, men like Amundsen and Shackleton, who inspired John and Tyler to push themselves to the limits of human endurance.

Available for Pre-order now. Get your copy.

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I started following the adventures of Vagabond and owners, Eric Brossier and France Pinczon du Sel, several years ago after reading about them on a news site. I've had a desire to set sail to the polar sea for most of my adult life and their adventures are a balm to my landlocked soul.

A truly inspiring project and lifestyle. Vagabond, crew and guests have sailed to virtually every corner of the northern polar sea - they've even started a family onboard Vagabond. I stop by their site daily as a reminder that dreaming big is the only way to go.

[Find out more at the Vagabond website]

Vagabond is an expedition yacht designed to sail in icy waters. Since 2000, she is a unique support of this type, a real floating base camp for scientists (collaboration with adventurers or artists, fond of polar regions.

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I spent a lot of time last year, when I was prepping for my trip to Baffin, to devise a system for warning when a polar bear was in camp. I setup a simple tripwire system with bells attached to alert when a bear was close. This system was lightweight and easy to setup, but if I fell into a deep sleep I doubt it would be enough to wake me up. Thankfully this was never tested.

Eric and Sarah McNair-Landy, Pittarak Expeditions, have devised a really ingenious system that will definitely wake everyone up and send the bear running.

Check out the video below from Pittarak: Northwest Passage Expedition 2011

05. How we protect against polar bears from Pittarak Expeditions on Vimeo.

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The Will Steger Foundation has created a new set of 10 dramatic photo cards for 2011 to capture Will Steger's historical expeditions and Will Steger Foundation programs. Photos showcase the 1986 Steger International North Pole Expedition which celebrates its 25th Anniversary this year, the 2007 Baffin Island Expedition, WSF's Emerging Leader Program, and images from Will's archives. The cards are standard 3x5, printed on 100% PCW recycled paper, blank on the inside and come with envelopes.

Order a set today.

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Did you ever need an example of a visually stunning, world class, adrenaline filled expedition? Check out this video from the BaffinBase 2010 expedition to Clyde River, Baffin Island. 23 jumpers (+1 photographer), 252 jumps, 30 days. Incredible!

Baffin Island 2010 from douggs on Vimeo.

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How do the coyote, wolf, wolverine and others survive a long winter of biting cold and intense wind? It's in the fur. Density of fur gives wind resistance, coarse outer hairs protect the softer, down-like inner fur and natural oils on the fur keep down the ice build up by repelling outer moisture.

Attaching a fur ruff to your hood is one of the best things you can do to keep ol' man winter out. A fur ruff will slow the creep of an Arctic wind into your eyes, your cheeks and that protruding, frostbite prone nose that can go from soft and pliable to waxen and dead in seconds.

If you're someone who spends a lot of time out in the cold, having an arsenal of coats to choose from is key. You'll have your wind jacket for high-activity and moderate temperates, and you'll have a heavier parka for those days when the temp falls and the wind picks up - or you're parked on a bucket, hovering over a hole in the ice. To make Winter your playground, you'll also have a couple other jackets to fill in the gaps between these two extremes. The question is, do you really need a ruff for every single coat? No.

A removable ruff that you can transfer from one hood to another is brilliant. Not only will you avoid forking out the cash for an expensive fur ruff for every coat, you'll also save some weight if you're packing for a long trip. To make it all come together effortlessly and efficiently you need a system to get that ruff to your coat of choice. I've examined a couple different options for transferring a ruff from hood to hood. Here is what I've found:

Zippered attachment - arguably the most secure way of getting a ruff attached to a hood and still remain removable. With a good zipper you can move your ruff from one hood to the next and keep it there. A zipper, even the best zipper, loves ice and this can lead to a lengthy process of transferring your ruff, often without mitts, and a risk of frostbite on your fingers. In addition, all zippers are not created equal and I have two jackets that use two different zipper styles making them incompatible.

Velcro attachment - Bergan's of Norway gave me my first look at using velcro to attach a ruff to your hood. At first glance it seems a bit like a cost saving method to use velcro over zippers. They're definitely not as secure, but when it comes to transferring your ruff to another hood, velcro makes it quick and easy. There is no fumbling with zippers, getting the fur caught in the track or having ice build up in the zipper and making it difficult to swap out. Another trick of the velcro option is that you're able to move the ruff around your hood to best fend off the wind on a long ski.

A good friend, John Huston, Forward Expeditions and Victorinox North Pole '09 expedition member, says this of the velcro attached ruff, "Zippers are a pain if you take the ruff off often. Also zippers are harder to fix, bulkier, harder to attach in the first place and don't allow you to affix the ruff off to oneside. In a windy place it's nice to be able to have more of the ruff on the left side if the wind is blowing from your left."

The above might seem like over thinking a simple thing, but when it's a matter of frostbite, or not, it's a big payoff to spend the time finding the solution that works best for you. It's really a no-brainer when it comes to adding a fur ruff or not and even the staunchest of animal lovers will see the reasoning behind this ancient addition to your favorite parka - although they still might not agree to sporting a luxurious wolverine ruff. If you want to extend your time out of doors, get a ruff and the denser the fur the better.

I have six coats and three ruffs that use either zippers or velcro. Before Winter sets in for another season I'll be packing these up and heading off to get everything using velcro - www.gettheredesigns.com.

What is your system?

[Images: (1) Myself on Baffin Island, 2008, (2) John Huston on Greenland with the "Race to the Pole" expedition]

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After landing in Ottawa, I checked in at the Adam's Airport Inn. I decided to stay over a night in Ottawa to repack my vehicle, which had been parked since July, and start fresh in the morning - here is where the interesting meets the not so interesting.

Driving from Minnesota to Ottawa, and back, saved me a few hundred dollars and gave me the time to acclimate myself to the change in pace - both going and coming back. My first day on the road took me to Escanaba via Sault Ste. Marie. The line to cross the border was long and made even longer by a "random vehicle inspection." Regardless of innocence something about getting singled out for a check at the border makes me nervous. The "is there anything you'd like to tell us before we start the search" look you get from the vehicle inspector is unnerving and being lead away from your vehicle to a very brightly lit, whitewashed waiting room is disorienting. In addition I've had to pee for the past 45 minutes, but flashes of "Midnight Express" kept me glued to my icy cold, steel bench while I waited. I was hoping they weren't mistaking my "need to use the bathroom fidget" as a sign of guilt. After about 20 minutes I was on my way. I thanked the inspectors, what else do you say, and made my way to a gas station and a much needed bathroom break.

Instead of dropping more money at a motel I slipped into the parking lot of the Wal-Mart in Escanaba, MI, curled up in the back of my van and drifted off to sleep to the hum of motorhome generators and semi-truck refrigeration units - not nearly as bad as it sounds.

Now only halfway home, I awoke early, stopped for coffee and a bagel and made the final push. With few stops, and lots of driving, I'd be home by early afternoon. I'd been listening to an audio book, The Pillars of the Earth, since leaving Ottawa and the final 1,000 miles slipped by quickly bringing me back to Minnesota around 2:30pm.

My family was at an open house for a friend who had just moved and so I made this my first stop. It was great to see a few friends and hear that they'd been following my blog. It has always been my hope that people would find this adventure interesting and follow.

I hadn't missed the Minnesota August heat/humidity or the Summer road construction projects, but spending the evening with my family and sharing stories of the past several weeks was priceless. I was back!

jim

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It had been raining non-stop for over a day in Clyde and although I'd kept busy with outdoor projects, work on Jake and Shari's cabin, moving dogs, etc, it felt good to leave the rain behind. The streets were muddy, rain water soaked everything and the chilly, moisture laden arctic air gets in your bones when you're out and not active.

The evening before I left, a family of 4 arrived via sailboat to Patricia Bay. They'd set sail in May from the UK on a one year adventure that took them to Iceland, Greenland, and now, Baffin Island. It has been a dream of mine to sail the oceans with my family and seeing this crew rekindled that desire - as if it was ever really dormant. It's not in our immediate future, but then one never knows. Fortunately, Cheryl is totally into the adventure of living aboard a boat and that could have been the biggest hurdle. Again, I count myself a blessed person to have someone like her who shares my passions.

After a two day sightseeing tour, and refueling in Clyde, the family will set sail for the eastern coast of the United States and eventually the Caribbean waters. They plan on being at sea one year - now that is an epic adventure.

The flight from Clyde to Iqaluit was quiet and uneventful. I've flown on FirstAir, the Airline of the North, many times over my 3 trips to the arctic and flights north of Ottawa are often an adventure in themselves. The planes are always one half cargo, one half passengers and there is no such thing as seat assignments - get in, grab a seat and buckle up. Once, when flying from Qikitarjuaq to Pangnirtung, the pilot took the plane down low into the pass north of Pangnirtung to give us a view of the Switzerland-like landscape. We were so low that you actually had to look out the window and up to see the tops of the cliffs and mountains. It was breathtaking and something you never experience when flying commercially in the south.

I'll be staying with my friend Meeka, again, in Iqaluit through Friday when I'll fly to Ottawa and the long drive home. I was greeted with a lunch of seal and bannock and the always present stream of guests. Meeka's home is a hub of activity and you never know when someone is going to stop over. Meeka's house had two guests when I arrived, Joe and Lisa, who were up visiting and working with Meeka on the Tussaqtuut (elder knowledge) project she has been developing. The mission of Tussaqtuut is to collect and save the knowledge of the living elder Inuit for sharing with future generations. As you can imagine, when working with elders, time is not your friend and Meeka has been working passionately to collect the knowledge while the elders are still living.

I've stayed in Iqaluit a lot, but there are always new places to see and explore. Today will be my only full, uninterrupted day here and I'll be out seeing the sites. I'll post photos and more tomorrow prior to leaving.

I have one more Skype video conference scheduled for Friday with the School for All Seasons in Minnesota. I've done two calls previously on this trip and it has been a great experience connecting with the students and adding to their studies at SFAS.

jim

Photos: A cannibalized 4-wheeler, the sailboat from the UK and the airport in Clyde River

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I thought I would shoot out a quick update to my plans and goings-on.

I am still in Clyde River, Baffin Island and staying with Jake and Shari Gearheard. Over the past couple days I've been helping them with some projects around their home. It is good to be active and learning more about life in the North. Living this far north has long held a fascination for me and spending time with people who made the decision to pull up roots, over 6 years ago, and call this area home is inspiring. I have no plans to make a similar decision, but living vicariously through them is cathartic.

Yesterday (Sunday) we drove 4-wheelers out to their cabin on the coast and spent the afternoon working on a cabin they are building. Imagine a small, and soon to be cozy, cabin on the coast, where icebergs and Bowhead whales drift lazily by as the occasional polar bear wanders past your front window. If you're anything like myself, you'll see the appeal - check out the tracker link on the right to see the latest wanderings.

I extended my stay in Clyde River to Thursday of this week to spend some more time out at their cabin putting up shutters on the windows to protect them from polar bears. It feels good to be active and doing some tangible, physical work in such a beautiful location.

As I see my plans coming together, I'll most likely make my way south to Iqaluit on Thursday the 29th, spend a few days there before I make the final jump to Ottawa for the long drive home.

I'll keep on blogging all the way.

jim

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Jake and Shari have 16 sled dogs, many they've raised from puppy's, that they train and use for various activities including racing in the Nunavut Quest - Jake took 7th place in the Quest last year. Jake and Shari had no dog sledding, or dog teaming in the north, experience prior to moving to Clyde 6 years ago, but have committed themselves to learning the art of dog teaming - raising dogs and puppies, care and feeding, building their own sleds, sewing custom fit harnesses, etc, etc. It is a huge commitment, but these two have really pulled it together and gone from novice to extraordinarily competent dog teamers.

This past Summer they kept their dogs staked out close to a lake north of town. A perfect location, close to water and away from other teams. Unfortunately, the close proximity to the lake gave rise to concerns that forced them to move their dogs to a new location. When you're only access to the dogs in the Summer is via 4-wheeler, a move of 16 dogs is no small project.

Jake and I started at about 10:30 Saturday morning by driving the 4-wheelers out to the dogs. The "trail" was a good bit of fun and my previous experience driving 4-wheelers was put to the test on the exceptionally rocky, and at times marshy, tundra, but I managed. Once at the dog yard we dug up the stakeouts for the dogs and then Jake unclipped the dogs - all of them. It isn't everyday you get to see 14 relatively large dogs, two were already at the new location, roaming free. We then proceeded to "shepherd" the dogs over the tundra and down to the shore of Baffin Bay and back across the tundra to their new location. The plan was to give the dogs a really good workout so they'd get some exercise and to settle them down before we got to the new location. It was a lot of fun watching Jake ahead of me on his 4-wheeler surrounded by the dogs, all following along with their master.

After arriving at the new location we dug in the stakeouts, clipped the dogs and then served them a dinner of narwhal meat and bones - watch your fingers here as these dogs were ravenous after the long run and the fresh meat was gobbled up quickly,

I've had a bit of experiencing working with dogs on two previous expeditions to Baffin and at the homestead of my friend John Stetson in Duluth. It was work orchestrating this move, but it was also a lot of fun seeing it all come together. The 4-wheeling along the tundra and the beach of Baffin Bay was a big highlight of my trip so far and I am thankful for the opportunity to help make it happen.

Tomorrow I'll be catching a 9:40 flight from Clyde to Iqaluit, but I'll try to sneak in another post before I leave.

jim

Photos: 4-wheeling on the beach with iceberg in the distance, two of Jake and Shari's 16 dogs, Jake shepherding the flock and more of that cool "arctic cotton."

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I put together a pretty basic food plan that had variety of low weight, easy to prepare, good tasting choices - all the things the pre-packed meals have without the hefty price tag or the end-of-times preservatives. Here is what it looks like:

Breakfast

• Granola - a basic blend with some sweetness and grains
  
• Dried fruits - blueberries, apples, baby pineapple and pomegranate seeds (the latter will blow your mind)
  
• Mixed nuts - cashews, macadamia and hazelnuts (or are they filberts?)
• Whole fat milk powder - tricky to find, but well worth the effort

• "Energy bars" - a mixture of grains, nuts and dried fruit
• Mixed nuts - a more savory concoction for variety
  
• Dried fruit - see above

• Veggie-chili soup - a mix of refried beans, vegan chili mix and "miracle burger" (the most flavorful and satisfying)
  
• Split pea soup - with dried vegetables for variety
• Corn chowder - with dried vegetables for variety
• Curry lentil soup - with dried vegetable for variety
• Miso soup blend with dried tofu and vegetables (this one was really good, but left you wanting something more filling)

• 3 loose leaf green tea varieties prepared with a simple cup and mesh strainer cone - super easy.
• Re-hydration powder mixes - many to choose from. I chose a Gatorade-like product.
  

Dinner was almost as easy. I'd put enough water in my kettle for a few cups of tea and dinner. Let it come to a boil, pour water into my seal-able dinner bowl with the food of choice, screw on the lid and enjoy some tea while the meal re-hydrated. It usually took about 10-15 minutes to get everything re-hydrated and then it was dinner time.

I really enjoyed the food choice for this trip and would change only a very few items. First, I was craving salt at every dinner. I think this was part a low salt mix of food and part that my body was putting out so much salt through sweating. Either way, in the future I'd bring along some spice mixes, with salt, to amp up the flavor and further satisfy. Secondly, ramen isn't a super good choice for everyday meals in life, at least the 10 for $1.19 ramen I brought, but on the trail it is really satisfying, fast to prepare and very light. I would skip the rice and bring all ramen. I never tired of it and it even made a passable rice pudding, using ramen instead, that was a nice treat when it was chilly.

In closing, be creative when planning your meals and don't be afraid to head over to your local bulk food co-op and mix-and-match until you come up with something that works for your needs and satisfies. You'll thank yourself in the end.

jim

Photos: corn chowder all ready to eat and my simple, yet totally solid camp "kitchen"

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Our ride back would take about 3 1/2 hours.There was little wind, sunny, blue skies and temps in the upper 40's - much different than the weather two weeks ago on the way out. The boat was open with a small cabin/storage area in the bow and allowed for an incredible view of the inlet from all sides. Ilkoo hugged the cliffs in a few places to give a closer view of the waterfalls and glaciers. Photos do not do this area justice, but I tried.

After a quick stop at Ilkoo's remote cabin, we continued on our way to Clyde River. About 20 minutes further along the trip changed from a leisurely jaunt up the inlet to an exciting narwhal hunt. Many of the Inuit in the area hunt narwhal and seal as a food source; not unlike people in forested areas hunt deer and moose. Because Baffin is closed off from roads the only transportation in comes via a few cargo ships and the ever present airplanes making food prices extremely high and "living off the land" is a must for the people in the area.

The narwhal we were now searching for are not easy to spot - at least not to my eyes. As soon as Ilkoo had located the "lane" that the narwhal were swimming along we tied off the boat to rocks along the shore and he took up a position on a rocky ledge above with his rifle. The narwhal were fast and where they would surface next was impossible to predict. Even though we stayed at it for what seemed like hours no narwhal were harmed in the transport of my adventure.

We saw several other hunters in boats on our way to Clyde and all were anxious to get the word on where we'd seen narwhal. Everyone in the area is connected via short wave radio, which seems to work incredibly well to spread the word. Ilkoo was made aware of my need for a ride via radio message from Tommy, the guy who gave me a lift out.

We arrived in Clyde River about 4:30 or so and after I picked up a few things I'd left at Tommy's, I made my way to my home for the night. Shari and Jake Gearheard live in Clyde River and I'd first met them when I was here in 2007. Shari works with the National Snow and Ice Data Center and Jake works in community development in Clyde River. They were gracious enough to put me up and provided a dinner of homemade pizza - what a change from just a night before.

It took me well into the night to adjust to a soft bed and the buzz of ATV's outside the window, but sleep did come eventually.

jim

Photos: picking blueberries, on Ikloo's boat and the fantasy-land shoreline of the Clyde Inlet. My apologies for the lack of narwhal photos - they were beyond my telephoto lens.

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Sometimes you really need to see your plans carried through and right in front of your eyes before you can really look at them with real clarity. The Barnes Ice Cap was a sweet proposition from the very beginning. A relatively straight-forward route through some really beautiful country and an adventure to say the least.

A few months ago when it became clear that I'd be doing this trip solo I was faced with either postponing the trip for another year or carrying through with the planning. I'd already purchased the non-refundable plane tickets, and other services, so I just couldn't not go. Instead of ditching my plans all-together, I warmed myself up to the idea of going at it solo, always with the mantra of "be flexible, go with what feels right" in the back of my mind.

About 3 or 4 days into my trip, camped at the end of the Clyde Inlet, and the launching point for the Barnes, I made the difficult decision to not go forward with the plans as I'd laid them out. I'd had a taste of going it alone and it just wasn't for me. Having other people along provide many advantages and I couldn't square myself with doing this thing alone after-all. I made a phone call to my support team, my exceptionally supportive wife Cheryl, and consulted with her. She agreed that I needed to go with my gut and so began the process of letting this decision "sink in."

Over the course of the next few days, I started making some tentative alternative plans that basically took me back to Clyde River, "by another way" (a brief line from a great James Taylor song), and from there I would head further south to Iqaluit and then on to Ottawa...

I still wanted to explore the Clyde Inlet area I was camped in and continue working with the School for All Seasons, we had a video Skype call scheduled for the 10th - see previous article. I gave myself an August 12th cutoff date, made the arrangements for a boat ride back to Clyde and then spent the remaining days focusing on being present in my surroundings.

When the 12th rolled around I was ready to break from my long solitude, or short depending on our leaning, and broke camp down to the very basics - I never was 100% sure that my new plans were clear with everyone involved and so kept a usable camp in the event I was there another night. About 11:30am on the 12th a boat appeared and I made like a crazy man to get everything packed up and ready to go.

I was about to meet my first outsiders in 11 days...

jim

Photos: last couple days on the Clyde River Inlet

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