Chris and Parks Canada

Heli-slinging training

2008-02-01T21:26:00.000-08:00

We had a helicopter rescue slinging exercise the other day. It was to get everyone certified to be able to perform this rescue if someone needs extricating from a tricky spot. The temp's were -22 degrees Celsius, and it was very cold flying!

Part of the exercise was packaging a patient to be flown out. Luckily, we had a warden with a broken toe who was "happy" to volunteer for the role of patient.

In total, 11 people slung into the top of the landslide area. We packaged up a patient, flew him out with an attendant, then skied the slope and were picked up at the bottom. It was still bloody cold flying out...

Ice Climbing course

2008-02-01T21:04:00.000-08:00

Four days of ice climbing! After 7 years of letting the tools rust in the corner, I dragged them out, sharpened them up, and froze my butt off ice climbing. Well, it never really got too cold, which made it that much more of a sweet return to the Rockies!

My first route ever in the Ghost River area. I never had a large enough vehicle to get in there. This climb is "Weathering Heights", a three star, 100m WI4 route that was great fun.

Mike Eder finishing the first pitch on Weathering Heights.

Grant Statham on Carlsberg Column (WI5), an excellent route in Field.

Carlsberg Column from below.

Percy Woods on Louise Falls, avoiding the death daggers and climbing quickly.

Little Sifton morning tour

2008-02-01T20:52:00.000-08:00

On the summit of Little Sifton. A great tour first thing in the morning when you don't have time for a full day.

The view southeast towards Sir Donald.

The view south towards Asulkan Pass.

Looking towards Grizzly Peak from the summit of Little Sifton.

Starting the descent off of Little Sifton. There is an initial roll of roughly 30-33 degrees, but then it kicks back to mellow terrain, 20-25 degrees, down to the top of Grizzly Shoulder.

The Pass...road access is pretty good.

Returning south, coming home!

2008-02-01T20:29:00.000-08:00

After spending the last 6 months in Nunavut, it was time to fly back south. On November 8, I was heading home.

'Lo and behold, it was a sign! I had returned to Rogers Pass! I love the colder air of the interior vs the coast, and the ice crystals that hang in the sky on a clear day!

Went skiing with Henke up in the basin behind Avalanche Crest. Managed to remote trigger a size 3 slide from 400m away! We were creeping back down the hill after that one. The following day, people were skiing similar aspects up the Connaught drainage and not seeing the spookiness that we had. Spatial variability...keep your eyes open!

Vern heading up McGill through the caked trees.

Verena and Marty nearing the top of McGill Shoulder

"Every trip must have a bag of chips!" Vern exclaims!

Marty, loving the interior fluff.

The interior fluff, stuck on Marty's face, after a run of sweetness.

Finished for another day, the gang will return at a later date.

Boat patrol

2008-02-01T18:36:00.001-08:00

Our outfitter, taking us out to patrol the north coast of the park. This was the end of October, and the temp's were dropping to -15 degrees Celsius. It doesn't sound too bad, but when you're on the open ocean, it is bloody cold!

The high, noon-hour sun above Qikiqtarjuaq.

What a polar bear looks like when skinned and chopped up into a bunch of pieces.

Bergs, floating south from Baffin Bay.

The purpose of this patrol was to place boundary signs along the coast, as well as observe any activities of the sport-hunters in the nearby vicinity.

Seals taking advantage of the recently formed sea ice.

A successful hunter with his polar bear. He was outside of the park.

I will not pass judgement...

It's winter in Pang...

2007-10-07T19:44:00.000-07:00

The snow is here to stay. This is the one road out of town. It goes 3.6km to the north, ending at a quarry. The locals like to drive out to the quarry "just to get away from town", while a fair number of transplanted kalanuks use the road as their dog-running path. I've observed a fair number of folks driving to the quarry and back, having the dog chase the vehicle. I guess they didn't want to get exercise themselves?

On my wanders the previous day, I spotted a nice couloir that looked as though it would be a fun boot-pack up. The storm we had at the beginning of the week deposited only 10cm of snow, but the winds were blowing 50-70km/h for 2 days. It was enough to sufficiently load the chute up so that it avalanched. The large debris piles at the base and the crown lines that I saw higher up (up to 1m) indicated it was a good size 2 slide.

Higher up in the couloir. Worries of a dangerous sliding layer were diminshed, knowing that the chute had been cleaned out during the storm.

Looking back down the couloir. I wish it had a nice 2m base, with 20cm of pow-pow ready to ski...

This is Pangnirtung at mid-day, when the sun is at its highest point in its daily arc. As you can see, the town will be heading into the shadow next week. Yeehah...

Randomness on a Saturday

2007-09-30T04:51:00.000-07:00

There are many dogs in town, and very, very few of them are the genuine Inuit sled dog. At some point in Pangnirtung's history, someone brought in a very "randy" corgy-type dog, and the species has been altered forever.

The genetic blend does make for cute puppies, though.

Jonah, a young artist up the street from me, carving early in the morning.

Jonah is not considered a master carver. That is an honour bestowed upon artists who have been carving for a certain length of time and have produced some amazing sculptures. Jonah is well on his way to getting that status if he continues on his path.

I ran up Mt Duvall after puttering away in town. Nice to get out and stretch the legs.

The sun is getting lower, and in a couple of weeks, the mountain above Pangnirtung will block the sun from it, leaving it in the dark until February 14, Valentine's Day.

Kind of neat looking down on the ocean from 700m up. Note the coastal shelf that is completely exposed at low tides. Pang has tidal variations of up to 7m, making you plan your schedule accordingly when heading out on the ocean.

Night scenes in Pangnirtung

2007-09-24T21:08:00.000-07:00

We've been getting some great northern lights the last few nights. The full moon is lowering their intensity, but I'm not going to complain about it.

More lights above the cemetery in Pangnirtung.

The hopping night life in Pang...woo.

Last Foot Patrol

2007-09-24T06:56:00.000-07:00

Andrew Maher and I spent a week going through the Public Safety gear and program in Pangnirtung. The old gear, including the lovely cherry helmets, were retired...

Andrew hiking into the park for the first time.

Heading up the Weasel River.

Andrew hiking along the Weasel River, under the watchful gaze of Thor.

Looking south, down the Weasel River valley.

The three official languages of Nunavut.

Arctic hare (Okalik) near Summit Lake.

Reflection in Summit Lake.

Heading back south.

Crossing Half-Hour Creek, once it has started to freeze. Do note the difference in water levels here, with the levels that we experienced in mid-August.

An ermine. This guy was extremely hard to photograph, as he was bouncing everywhere, holding still for less than a tenth of a second.

The hiking season really is over once the fiord starts to freeze. The last 4 km of Pangnirtung Fiord now has ice forming up, and in a couple of months, it will all be locked up and good for snowmobiles to travel on.

Trip with parents

2007-09-24T05:19:00.001-07:00

The sand dunes near Windy Lake. This sand accumulates from the fierce north winds that hammer this area in the winter.

Mom and dad in front of a newly-dusted Thor Peak.

Mom has an aversion to suspension bridges. This one, according to her, was not too bad because it didn't bounce too much. Good to know.

Cribbage with dad. Mom always amused by our card-playing antics.

Once again, back at the Arctic Circle with another crew.

Big rockslide off of Odin peak. The debris came within 100m of the trail.

Rock slide off of Odin Peak.

Dad crossing Turnweather Creek. The rivers were much lower at this point in the season, early September.

Back at the Overlord Warden Cabin, waiting for our boat ride back to Pangnirtung.

Boating back to Pang.

Second through-patrol

2007-09-24T05:07:00.001-07:00

First night at North Pangnirtung Fiord was spent bouldering. We managed to put up some highball problems and find the ultimate location for skipping rocks.

Bryan on patrol near Owl River.

The dreaded hummocky ground that makes hiking in the northern half of Akshayuk Pass less enjoyable than the southern portion.

Long-distance runners, Ray Zahab and Chuck Dale, during the first stage of their Canada Trails run. They were planning on running Akshayuk Pass, then the East Coast Trail in Nfld, and finishing on the West Coast Trail in BC, all in 10 days. When we saw them here, at June Valley, they were 34 km into the 97 km trail and Chuck was looking punched already. Ray simply stated that this was way harder than running across the Sahara Desert, which he did the previous year by running ~80km per day. Not sure how the other trails went, but Ray finished in 27 hours and Chuck in 31. They had originally told us that they were hoping for 12 hours. I know the hummocky and boggy north section slowed them considerably.

A stunning, 1200m face located across the Owl River from the June Valley Shelter.

Bryan, GPS'ing another notable point along the trail.

Hiking south along the Owl River.

Looking along the Owl River near June Valley.

At long last, we could see Asgard.

Asgard and company in the central portion of Akshayuk Pass.

Stoked to see the gorgeous peaks of Cumberland Peninsula.

The warden position isn't all glory...

Man, do I ever want to come back and climb that thing. The left skyline of Asgard is roughly where the Scott route goes. The dividing line of sun/shade on the NE portion is roughly the line of "Line of Credit", a route by Sean Easton et al.

Bryan hiking in the moraines between Glacier Lake and Summit Lake. The Highway Glacier is in the background.

The one time that sun hit my bare legs all summer...

Another river crossing, this time the Norman River.

Bryan GPS'ing an Inuit gravesite in the park.

The view of Thor Peak from a side trip up the Northumbria drainage. We came within 75m of the summit of an unnamed peak, but had to bail due to a rapidly approaching storm and the lateness of the day. We got hammered by nasty winds and rain halfway down. I had to be convinced by Bryan to head down near the top. At the point that the weather crapped out, I was thanking him for his good decision.

Climbing trip...hah!

2007-09-24T04:55:00.001-07:00

Welcome to Baffin, Dan. Hope you like the two weeks that we have mosquitos in this area!

Dan was absolutely punched at this point of day one. He had a crying baby on his front, a monster 90 lb pack on his back, and a new appreciation for hiking before having kids. The kinks got worked out after this day and things were much smoother the rest of the trip.

A lemming near our 2nd camp.

Hard to imagine that everyone's hands were as small as this.

Cold, glacial-fed water for washing...nothing more needs to be said.

Breadablik emerging from the clouds.

We were up at 3am to climb the Swiss Route on Asgard, starting from Summit Lake. We never fully saw the route that morning, as rain showers accompanied a low cloud ceiling. This was the best weather we saw for the 3 days we waited at Summit Lake. Needless to say, with time running short, we had to bail on the hopes of climbing Asgard. Definitely a bummer!

This was the most we saw of Asgard for the 3 days we were up near it, waiting to climb.

Heading down the Caibou Glacier after bailing on Asgard.

Cinquefoil.

Dan, Alice, and Koby (in Alice's jacket) crossing Half-Hour Creek.

Jen and Joy coming across Half-Hour Creek. You know Jenisn't too concerned with the current when she's screaming from the temperature of the water. The glacier feeding the creek is a kilometre up the slope.

A happy mother and daughter after the crossing.

Mushrooms and moss on Baffin.

After scrapping the Asgard plans, we headed south and climbed Thor Peak. We had hoped to climb the super-exposed south ridge (5.9), but changed our plans as the rains just wouldn't go away. We ended up nearly circumnavigating the peak until finding a line up the NE face, which went at 4th class for several pitches. The rain eased up just when we needed it to, and the clouds lifted enough for route-finding. A bit of tricky navigation saw us get up the thing.

On top of Thor Peak.

The vertical drop off the west side of Thor is 1100m from the summit to the base of the cliff face, 1400m from the summit to the river. To peer over the edge was like walking out on an airplane's wing. Frightening how big the exposure was!

Looking over at Asgard while descending from Thor. I'll have to come back for that one!

There are a few hardy bees in the Arctic. They are often found huddled in flowers, trying to use what little warmth is captured by the plant to warm themselves up, then scurrying to the next flower and repeating the process. Not an easy life.

Arctic Circle. Everyone needs to have this shot when hiking this trail.

Going for a polar bear dip. Nice nose plug, Dan...

We came across a local Inuk who was successful in his last hunt. This is a walrus skull with most of the flesh off of it. The hunter was boiling the remaining flesh off, then hoping to sell the skull to someone. He was talking about $1000. We turned and walked away.

Boiling the big guy.

First through-patrol

2007-09-24T04:39:00.000-07:00

Icebergs near the hamlet of QIkiqtarjuaq

Lovely exterior decorating in Qik. I wonder if the couch comes in during the winter?

A lovely volunteer prepping the shelter for a coat of black paint.

Sunset above the Owl River shelter.

Near June Valley Shelter.

Matt Nauyuk, illustrating his skill of face painting.

When we arrived at North Pangnirtung Fiord for a pick-up by boat, there were two German tourists who were taking photos. Of course, Jen is naturally photogenic and they chose her for the photo-shoot. I, on the otherhand, was relegated to the viewing room.

Jen in the Rundle River, right before returning back to where I was. We ended up crossing together as the current was very pushy and it ended up being waste deep.

Jen taking a break between June and Owl shelters. We had been sandbagged by the patrollers on the best way to go. It was more miscommunication than anything, but it left us a bit punched by the end of the day.

Jen cresting the final hill before dropping down to Summit Lake.

The morning ritual on this patrol consisted of prodding the patrollers out of bed. Their internal clock was not the same as ours, but we were the most vocal and got them rolling.

I could not catch Jen and Matt, no matter how hard I tried this day. They had slipped some sort of rocket fuel in their water bottles (or maybe a brick in my pack?). This is along the Owl River.

Jen heading north along the Owl River.

Campsite above Owl River, looking west to a rapidly retreating glacier.

As I was saying, rocket fuel...Jen was absolutely ripping along.

Jen prepping for the Rundle River crossing. We should have just crossed without the pants on as the water level was up the waste.

Jen. Cute girl.

Looking north, down the Owl River, near June Valley shelter.

Arctic hare, know as "okalik" in inuktitut.

Patroller Daniel Kilabuk near an inukshuk, close to Summit Lake.

Yours truly, at the beginning of the patrol.

First Foot Patrol

2007-07-16T05:01:00.000-07:00

Matthew Nakashuk in the Rock Garden, Thor in background

An injured patroller awaiting heli-evacuation

The Two Matthews, Nakashuk and Nauyuk

Evening light on Thor Peak

There are a number of stream crossings on the south end, like this one across Turnweather Creek

Matthew working on the suspension bridge

Crossing the Windy Lake Suspension Bridge

Matthew and Nathan on first day

Looking at the Forkbeard Glacier and Thor to the right

Matthew on an unclimbed boulder problem. Now climbed at V0, The Arctic Cowboy

The Little Sculpin...I felt sorry for him but a photo was needed!

Taking another smoke break...

The real prize, delicious Arctic char

Arctic hare

Getting into the park by boat

Asgard, as seen from a ridge north of Northumbria Peak

Finally got out on my first patrol on foot. The land looks much bigger from the ground than it does in a helicopter. That being said, from the heli is pretty cool as well. We managed to complete a bunch of tasks at Windy Lake Warden Cabin and at the Thor Emergency shelter. The temp's went to 22 degrees Celsius in the shade, 28 in the sun, while we at Thor. That may be my only warm blast of summer...

I managed to do a sidetrip after work one day, and ran up a ridge in the Northumbria drainage. It got me higher than Thor, which was across the valley, and allowed views out to Asgard in the north, Odin to the south, and everything fine in between.

Saw a couple of okaliks (Arctic hares), had a great bouldering session one evening with the patrollers, and even had a heli evac of a patroller who sprained his ankle near Summit Lake. We were lucky that a heli was in Qikiqtarjuaq and could respond. I was envisioning camping out for several days, waiting for some air support.

Before coming in, I managed to go midnight fishing with my park manager, Dave, and others. The informal competition between the parkies resulted in a tie, two Arctic char apiece. However, I did manage to bring in a sculpin, so technically I won that night. Of course, the little guy was tossed back into the ocean for another day!

Peaks and local game

2007-07-05T19:41:00.000-07:00

Top of the Swiss Route on Asgard

Swiss Route Headwall

Thor from Windy Lake area

Turner Glacier in front of Asgard group

Monty prepping beluga

Slinging lumber from Windy to Summit

Stunning rib on Pk 1963, south of and across the Parade Glacier from Asgard

Another shot of the top of the Swiss Route

Loki Peak

Low tide around Pangnirtung

Looking down at the office(bluish-green roof), coming in on helicopter

Pk 1963

Monty slapping the beluga blubber around

Breadablik and Thor from Summit Lake

Breadablik

Loki

The past week and a half has been busy, busy, busy. We have a helicopter for 2 weeks to assist opening the park, fixing radio repeater stations, setting up emergency caches, and generally doing things that would otherwise take an entire season to see be completed.

The helicopter was hung up in Newfoundland, then Labrador, then Iqaluit...when it finally reached us, we had lost a week of it's time as it has to move on to the next project. This meant our planning needed to be tight, the weather had to cooperate, and all the stars stayed aligned for a good chunk of time.

It also meant working from early in the morning until late into the evening. Not a problem when daylight isn't a concern! Projects got cleaned up, radios and all the repeaters were tended to, emergency shelters and caches were restocked, and alot of amazing scenery was seen! It was my first time into the park and I was able to fly the entire length several times with work projects. To put it mildly, pictures do not do this area justice, as it blows away the Icefields Parkway and the Bugaboos for scenery, not saying the former two are slouches! This park is amazing!

To wrap up the week, the four western and three northern premiers paid a visit to Pangnirtung and a community feast was held. Several premiers came into the park office for a tour, and I even shook my former boss' hand, Gordon Campbell. Rather humourous that it took removing me from BC to meet the province's head of state! Hah! We shook hands while stepping between seal carcasses at the community feast. The community celebrates a successful hunt, or a visit from dignitaries, by having a spread of freshly caught game. There were seals, beluga, caribou, shrimp, and a few other things that I'm not sure of so I didn't hack off a piece for myself.

My Park Manager, Dave, illustrated the way things are done. You walk up to the large carcass or slab of game, hack off a piece, then retreat to eat it amongst yourselves. All of this is raw. If you go with the attitude that you're at a sushi bar, hell, it's no problem! Kind of weird cutting the fat from some seal meat while it's whiskers are rubbing the back of your hand...southerner gets schooled in the ways of the north!

I just wish my camera was not left at the house for this! I'll make damn sure I have it for the next feast. Some shocking photos will be the result! I love it!

Chris

Trees on Baffin Island!

2007-06-24T18:04:00.000-07:00

You have to look very closely for trees on Baffin. When I say closely, try getting down on your belly and observing the old growth. I spotted some pussy-willows emerging from the frozen ground as I came down from Mount Duvall, the peak right behind town. Thought I would try to educate you southerners that there are, indeed, trees up here! Okay, coming from the Squamish area, they would be considered weeds...

Hope all is well!

Climbing near Pangnirtung, Baffin Island

2007-06-24T08:16:00.000-07:00

I've managed to corral a few folks as keen as me to get out and climb some of the local rock near Pangnirtung. The rock around here is a bit loose, not the solid granite that I'm familiar with in Squamish. During exploration of the hills behind Pang, I managed to come across a very large boulder, which for easy of describing, I'm calling the Big Buddha. The rock was split by several crack lines and it also had a nice overhang leading into a final crack. The cracks were fired quickly, but with lack of pro for the overhanging line, we set up a toprope and dogged our way up a nice .11b/c face line.

The real prize was the Kalunuk Crack, which was situated at the top of a couloir that I skied earlier in May. To get to it, we had to set up anchors from the top and rap in. Of course, along the way, we dislodged all sorts of blocks and loose crap to prevent them from denting our fragile skulls. When I first saw the crack, it looked like it was a hand to fist crack...closer inspection yesterday proved otherwise. The crack went from off-fists to straight offwidth. Yep, came to Baffin to get schooled in the offwidths!

It turned out that there were enough features for feet on the edge of the fissure that there wasn't too much blood left and a good day was had by all.

The term Kalunuk is a term the locals use for southerners, or caucasians. It means "bushy eyebrows / big belly". It is believed the term was coined from the first whalers coming into the area in the 1800's. It can be taken in a derogatory way, but it isn't always meant in a demeaning way.

Kalunuk Crack. 5.10a. Off-fist to offwidth. June 22, 2007, Chris Gooliaff and Bryan Chruszcz. Both of them had a great time grunting up!

Swiftwater Rescue

2007-06-24T08:02:00.000-07:00

The wardens and patrollers of Auyuittuq National Park went through 3 days of swiftwater rescue with Steve Staye of Rescue Canada. Pretty fun course! Throw on a dry suit, review rope techniques and hydraulic behaviours of rivers, then jump in! The weather cooperated, somewhat, warming up and raining the last night and bringing the river levels up to a respectable level. There's nothing worse than being told to jump into the river then pinballing downstream to an awaiting throwbag.

Good fun.

Welcome to Baffin Island

2007-06-07T18:14:00.004-07:00

I made it. Through training, through cancelled flights, through various delays, etc etc etc. Now, I'm up on Baffin Island, soaking up the sun and loving the beautiful summer temp's (-8 degrees Celsius when I arrived). A lot happened between now and the last post.

We were in training in Chilliwack at the RCMP base with law enforcement through the last part of March and all of April. Marching to and from everything we did, there was a bit of adapting for everyone involved. A bit bumpy at the start, but we rallied and figured it out in the end.

After Chilliwack, it was off to Prince Albert, Sask, for firearms training, environmental assessments, and fire management. Upon finishing those components, a decision was made by the Appeals Office stating that the ruling of inadequate safety tools for park wardens will be upheld. With that decision, park wardens are temporarily removed from law enforcement duties and the PC-04 cards that we worked so hard to obtain have been collected, along with all other park wardens' badges throughout the country. We await the next decision, which I believe is the Parliment's to make...

The show must go on, and all the successful new wardens have spread thoughout the country, from Pac Rim to Terra Nova to Quttinirpaaq. We've got the country covered. I was lucky enough to be sent up to Auyuittuq National Park, which is on the Cumberland Peninsula of Baffin Island. My base is Pangnirtung, which is where I hung my coat for 4 days before heading to Ellesmere Island for public safety training.

The trip to Quttinirpaaq National Park (QNP) involves getting to Resolute Bay, on Cornwallis Island. This is a cold, blustery place where people can get hung up for weeks as the weather is too foul to get planes in and out of. The Polar Continental Shelf Project (PCSP) is headquartered here, and any research that is done in the Arctic Islands is probably coordinated through the PCSP. They dealt with the logistics of our chartered twin otter that was to deliver us to northern Ellesmere and QNP.

After a 4 hour flight from Resolute via Eureka, we tumbled out of the otter, repacked at Tanquary Fiord, picked up two more wardens, then reloaded to be dropped off up on a polar ice cap that measures 900m in thickness! The pilot, John, and his co-pilot, Omar, deposited us ~4km from the highest peak in continental Eastern North America, Mt Barbeau. Over the course of the next 9 days, we proceeded to review crevasse rescue techniques, then climb Mt Barbeau and Whisler Mtn, and do a wonderful park patrol/ski traverse north down the M'Clintock Glacier to the Arctic Ocean. We, of course, had to tag the convergence point of 82 degrees N, 75 degrees W. The final northern extent of the trip was 82.5 degrees N, 76 degrees W. Very nearly the most northerly point of land on earth. Crazy!

The snowpack in QNP leaves alot to be desired. With an average amount of precipitation of 6mm a year, you have to pick and choose your lines. Powder? Well, hard pack days on the ski hill are Ellesmere powder! Enjoy the turns down south, you guys!
On day 9 we were fortunate enough to have the twin otter make it in under the clag (the first 8 days were all bluebird!) and pluck us out to civilization (Resolute, woohoo). It was two days later that I returned to Pang.

I've been noticing many couloirs near Pang and had to take the opportunity to climb a few and ski them as well. The snow was funky, shallow, and ONLY in the couloir. There was no straight-lining into the lower angled bowl below. Get your turns, stop, walk home.

Culturally speaking, the population in Pang, they say, is ~1500 people, and at least 90% Inuit. Hunting is a way of life here, and vegetarians wouldn't fare so well in this neck of the woods. Yes, I am back to eating beef, pork, seal, narwhal, and anything else that is offered.

I was extremely fortunate to be asked to join in a seal hunt to the floe edge at the mouth of Pangnirtung Fiord. We headed out on the sled, hauling a qamutiik (sled) with a boat on top. The boat is for retrieving seals that you've shot from the pack ice perch that you patiently keep. Monty, my co-worker/friend/guide/local dude, managed to get one seal, but before we could get the boat in and hook the seal to solid ice, it had sunk and was lost. Apparently this is common at this time of year as the seals don't have alot of fat on them after the long winter. We returned home empty handed.

To say that I'm learning new things everyday is an understatement. I'll try to keep updating this blog more regularly. By the way, did you know that rivers freeze from the base up in the Arctic? Seems foreign to me.

Public Safety Training

2007-03-22T15:41:00.000-07:00

The latest and greatest training segment hit us the past two weeks. The subjects varied from marine navigation and rescue, land search and rescue, and minor bits of ropework that may be needed in all incidences. The training culminated in our being divided into 5 different groups of 5 people, then placed on call for 48 hours.

During the 48 hours, we were called out at all hours, whether it was the middle of the night or in the middle of a meal, and expected to handle the emergency accordingly with, in some cases, limited resources.

It was interesting waking up in at midnight to find out there was a mtn-biker in the woods, ~1km along a trail, with a broken leg, ribs, and possible head/neck injury. The only option is to shake the cobwebs and do the best that you can...locate, package, extricate, transfer to EHS. Pretty fun exercise, all in all!

Other scenarios had missing persons (involving a search), stuck hikers on steep hillsides, forest fires threatening to obliterate an entire island park (evacuate!!!), and a missing kayaker that was located under an ice floe... It was a very real introduction into what you will expect to face as a warden in a national park. In my case, a lot of these scenarios were similar to things that I had seen with BC Parks or with Whistler Ski Patrol. Gotta love previous training to give you a bit of an insight to what to do in an emergency!

Not much is left to do in Jasper. We'll be writing an exam tomorrow, then packing up and shipping off to Chilliwack to resume our law enforcement modules. Unfortunately, there will not be many photos of the training in 'wack as it is in the RCMP training grounds and pictures are not allowed.

Not related to the training, but related to my well-being, Jen was able to make it out from Squamish for St Paddy's Day. We met up in Banff, along with brother Jeff and friend Dan, and worked the Irish pubs. There were sightings of Tom Cruise, as well as Captain Saskatchewan.

There will be pics attached to this story, as soon as Matt can provide assistance...thanks, Matt!

Hope everyone is doing well and I'll see you along my travels!

Chris

Pepper Spray

2007-03-12T15:47:00.000-07:00

We were hosed down with OC (pepper) spray today. Everyone took turns looking ridiculous, then pained, and finally, red-eyed and puffy faced. It was like painting the insides of your eyelids with sand, having someone rub them hard into your eyeballs, then restricting your breathing with 5 litres of snot so only air could be taken in through the mouth. Not a pleasant experience and one that has encouraged us not to use OC spray unless there is no other option.

Christ, it's nasty! However, it doesn't end there...have a shower, repeat the process. Yes, the rinsing effect drains the capsicum oil residue into the nether regions and you're burning where you'd prefer not to burn. Thankfully, we had been forewarned of this effect so most people, including myself, tried rinsing the face/head first before jumping into a shower. It still burns like the worst sunburn you've ever had. A funny, yet disturbing scene at the Palisades this afternoon.

Thankfully, we didn't do it yesterday so I was able to enjoy my birthday in peace and quiet. We all headed into Jasper for the evening, which turned into a little later than perhaps it should have been, and the net result was a tired, pepperized recruit group.

Early night tonight.

Cuffing

2007-03-08T15:28:00.000-08:00

4 hours of take-downs, cuffing, and generally being thrown about has left a few recruits, myself included, a bit sore. Throw in an RCMP trainer who is built like Hulk Hogan, reefing hard on your arm, telling you that you aren't that flexible in the shoulders, and you feel like crying for your mother. Sorry mom, this isn't entirely what I was expecting!

Once I figure out how I can download video onto this blog (ugh), I can send some lovely footage of our suffering!

Thanks for setting this up, Matt. Once I figure out how to change my profile I'll be removing the lies that I want to be like you. Bastard!

Training in Jasper

2007-03-07T21:17:00.000-08:00

Well, you knew at some point there would be an update on what I'm doing, switching agencies and all. It has been an adventure thus far, and some fairly intensive training which looks like it'll continue to ramp up as we head towards Chilliwack and the RCMP recruit camp.

I started this new path by questioning the CEO of Parks Canada, via conference call in our orientation training, day one. I asked him about the possibility of privatization of Parks Canada services. Everyone in the room (~80 people) was a little shocked about the question that wasn't a straight-forward, "feel-good" one. It was afterwards when Al (we're on first-name basis now!) thanked me for the difficult question and moved on to the next one that I realized that I had been grilling the Deputy Minister of Environment in Ottawa. Nothing like trying to keep a low profile...

Next up was a week-long session of Ecosystem management which culminated in a 30 minute presentation for a panel made up of the Director General of Parks Canada, the Superintendent of Jasper NP, the mayor of Jasper, and a list of high dignitaries that grilled our presentation on woodland caribou vs Marmot Basin expansion. Stressful, but handled with a professional demeanor.

Today, the real goods started. We began our lessons on take-downs, handcuffing, and dealing with resistant "clients". Delightful. Coming up soon....full-on boxing, the RCMP driving course, and 7 hours of grappling on the floor with someone who is trying to rip your eyes out.

What the hell am I doing? I thought I was a pacifist!

Oh, need I forget mentioning the aerobics class 3 times a week and yoga at 6am.

This is an experience! Hope all is well amongst you folks and that you're missing me as much as I'm missing you guys! Take care and I'll keep you posted.

Chris