The saying goes, once you’ve been bitten by the arctic bug, you can’t stop going back to the arctic. Nearly 25 years ago, my parents were first “bitten”. My parents did expeditions throughout the Arctic, on foot, kayak and ski. They skied to both poles, roamed the tundra during the summer and, in 2000, started Arctic Watch. Finally, the perfect spot in the arctic. As my brother and I came into the scene, we also, somehow became bitten by the “arctic fever”. Go figure.

Now you may ask, what exactly is the arctic bug? The arctic bug is the sheer beauty that the north has to offer; untamed, untouched and unspoiled. The arctic is one of the last “untouched” places on earth – you could have arrived to the same location hundreds of years earlier, and it would still have been just as wild. Once you’ve experienced this – you just want to keep going back to the arctic.

To say the least, it’s pretty clear we’re passionate about what we do. And we’re passionate about sharing it. The trick is, how did we “show” people our passion?

For many years, we tried different recipes; different types of websites, tried to advertise through magazines, travel shows, etc…

In 2010, we nailed it – a company called bv02 and a creative, talented group of people who worked there. Two people from bv02 joined us that summer, Andrew Milne, bv02 president, and Matt Davidson, media strategist. They too became bitten by the Arctic bug. They understood what we were trying to show people; and gave us the best strategy for it – We now knew how to present the Arctic Watch Experience to people who came across our website.

Both Matt and Andrew will be joining us this summer, to help us continue to deliver awesome videos and pictures to you, the adventurer.

Enough said. First up, Matt Davidson:

Matt Davidson created all the Arctic Watch videos on our website (of which one was nominated for a Webby – the equivalent of the Academy Awards for the internet!). His first time at Arctic Watch, he quickly became part of the Arctic Watch team. His talent, passion, creativity and patience has helped to make the Arctic Watch Experience reachable.

Andrew Milne:

President of bv02, Andrew’s creativity helped make our website possible. He understood what we were looking for, and, in just one week at Arctic Watch, was as “bitten” by the arctic as we are. His, Matt’s and the team at BV02′s hard work are greatly appreciated.

We look forward to having them both back at Arctic Watch this summer, for more adventure.

As the summer at Arctic Watch is quickly approaching, I’ve had several guests ask me what there is to be done in Yellowknife, NWT. Guests flying to Arctic Watch depart from Yellowknife, leaving the Northwestern Territories, for the final 4 hour flight, over to Nunavut and north to the Arctic Watch.

The city of Yellowknife, located on Great Slave Lake, NWT, is home to roughly 20,000 people. First settled by the Dene indians, and later for mining and accessing villages north of Yellowknife, the locals speak 5 languages (English, French, Denesuline, Dogrib, South and North Slavey). Officially settled in 1935 with the gold deposits in the area causing a post-war gold rush, the town’s industry is now focused on diamonds, transportation, mining, tourism and education.

Overnighting in Yellowknife, on your way back from Arctic Watch is always recommended. There’s plenty to do and plenty to see. From the old bush-pilot community, to the colourful house boats, friendly and relaxed locals, great hiking and fishing, you can easily spend a day exploring the frontier of Yellowknife, NWT.

Bullock’s Bistro (Voted best fish and chips!)

This is a must do while you’re in Yellowknife. Voted best fish & chips, this small and cosy atmosphere holds only a few tables with a small patio attached. A good spot to mingle with locals and hear a few great stories! The fish is freshly caught in Great Slave Lake and they offer seasonal caribou and Arctic Char. The kitchen is central to the restaurant, where you can watch the chef cook your meal, right at the bar.

See the house boats

The laid back community of house boats on the water in from of Yellowknife is always an experience to see. Be sure to rent a kayak and check out the bay area.

Go fishing with Carlos from Yellowknife Outdoor Adventures:

An afternoon of fishing with Carlos will give you the opportunity to experience some of the best northern pike fishing in Canada. Great fishing, great guide and a good way to experience the surroundings!

Thorton’s Wine & Tapas Room
Arctic Watch Chef and co-chef at Thorton’s Jeff Stewart has helped turn this little restaurant into Yellowknife’s best dinning room. Be sure to sample the tasty tapas and excellent wine flight!

http://www.tripadvisor.ca/Restaurant_Review-g154966-d2241096-Reviews-Thornton_s_Wine_Tapas_Room-Yellowknife_Northwest_Territories.html

To say the least, there is plenty to do and plenty to see in Yellowknife. Don’t forget to include a stop-over in Yellowknife on your trip to Arctic Watch.

We have a new lodge on Ennadai Lake,  located in the south west corner of Nunavut, above the Manitoba – Saskatchewan border. Ennadai Lake is approximately 84 km long by 23km wide and part of the Kazan River. The lodge was built as a fishing lodge in 2002, closed in 2005. The area is home to the 350,000 strong Qamanirjuaq caribou herd, wolves, barren ground grizzly bears, muskox and northern lights.  The plan is to open over the next year and a half. Arctic Watch Staff members Sven and Nansen are currently spending 50 days exploring the area.

So much for spring. We woke up this morning to a damp and cold 1°C outside, with a fresh new blanket of snow on the lake. For the last three days we have had a combination of rain, hail and snow. However the snow and hail dosent seem to keep the wildlife at bay. The caribou herds are still migrating by the lodge throughout the days. We had roughly 150 pass through, just yesterday. This morning we had a bear at the front door. It gave Sven a bit of a spook as he stumbled out of bed to in his boxers to get some wood. Good thing he happened to look out the window first!

With the bad weather, we have been mostly staying around the lodge. Doing chores such as rolling fuel barrels, getting the dump truck and packer working, doing laundry. Being stuck indoors has its advantages it has given us more time to do some baking. Sven is the master baker and has been making bread, we have also make cake with blueberries picked from last fall. These are nice changes to our simple diet. Which as been mostly consiting of fish several times a day accompanied with scalloped patatoes or mashed potatoes, with a side of canned vegetables. We only have three kinds of vegetables, peas, peas and carrots and green beans. We still have a month left and we are all ready fed up of eating canned vegetables! We have had to ration the good ingredients like butter, condensed milk, bacon and chocolate. We need to make them last the duration of our stay. The bright side is that you learn a lot of fish recipes. Dont try use Frenchies yellow mustard as a substitute for Dijon….it does not taste good!

Even with the bad weather we have been going for hikes up and down the esker. We noticed each time we go hiking, our tracks from the previous days have wolf tracks on top of them following our entire trail. Its good to know the wolves are close by.