The Cabin by the River

Jacquie and I had an amazing experience this weekend. We had the opportunity to travel out on the land to a little cabin that is situated on the shoreline of the Sylvia Grinell River.






The Trip out was an experience in itself. The trip was 4 KM and 40 minutes from the end of the Iqaluit airport runway. Our trip took us over the tundra on a path that was the most challenging to drive that we have ever seen. It is difficult to describe the drive out to the cabin. We went though streams, over bolders, up rock cuts, over bog, through mud and along the river at times on angles that we thought for sure would tip the truck.





Tim, one of the two owners who built the cabin, was our driver. Tim has been in the Arctic for 10 years and  he is an amazing character in his own right. He was a champion motorcycle driver in North America in the 1980's and still drives dirt bikes places where you cannot imagine. He is a certified motorcycle mechanic. He is an excellent guitar player and singer as you will see in the next blog, He owns a newer ford F-150 with a 6 inch lifter kit that was definitely a benefit for this trek. He is a very experienced driver who can manouever his truck in ways that go beyond your imagination. J and I had the thrill of a lifetime just making our way out to the cabin.





Once there, the views were spectacular. Adding to the fairy tale type surroundings was the fact that it was snowing hard on June 10th  and the river was raging because of the spring run off. There is a rugged natural beauty that is indescribable. The break-up of the ice has left some beautiful naturally formed ice sculptures along the river and this cabin is situated on the shoreline in the middle of it all.












The cabin is a three room (two bunk rooms and a main area) structure that is fully insulated,heated with a small oil stove and has a propane stove. Tim tells us that in mid winter at -40C, you crank on the stove and within an hour you need to open the windows because it's too hot. There is a small gas powered generator for lighting and any other electrical needs. At this time of year, it doesn't get dark at any time. The sun goes down about 11:00 PM and is up about 2:00 AM  and although the sun sets, it does so just below the horizon leaving us with a twilight rather than complete darkness.





Jacquie and I had an amazing experience and look forward to another summertime visit to the cabin. Thanks Tim for the wonderful experience!

To watch some of our trip click on this link to our trek video  http://youtu.be/0QEB2BjVm8o