Guest Post by Willis Eschenbach
I must admit, being an oceanic adventurer myself, I do love to read about outrageous voyages. The feats of Shackleton in the Endurance stir my blood. I’ve stood on the deck of the Gjoa, the first ship to make the northwest Passage, and marveled at how tiny it was, and the steel nerves of the men who sailed it into the unknown.
But the latest crop of Arctic adventurers leave something to be desired. Last year we had the “Row To The Pole“, which didn’t … and in 2008 some other fools tried something similar in kayaks. This year, we have “Arctic Row”, whose stated goal is to make “the first, non-stop, unsupported row across the Arctic Ocean”.
Here’s the ocean in question.
Figure 1. Arctic Ocean. Greenland is the white island on the right, Alaska is at the bottom left, Canada is bottom center, Russia is at the left and top left.
Now, when I read that they were going to row “across the Arctic Ocean”, from Canada to Russia, I thought “No way”. There’s always too much ice in the middle of the Arctic Ocean to make that at all possible. But I hadn’t reckoned on their ingenuity. So how exactly do they plan to make “the first, non-stop, unsupported row across the Arctic Ocean”?
I searched all over their web site for a map showing their route, but I couldn’t find one. However, I did find where they are leaving from (Inuvik, Canada) and where they are landing (Provideniya, Russia) , and with the help of Google Earth I’ve plotted out the likely route of their Arctic crossing for you …
Figure 2. Path of their rowing journey “across the Arctic Ocean”.
I guess that the term “across the Ocean” must mean something different where they come from …
They are asking for sponsors on account of their important scientific work. They are going to record all of the whales that they see, and mark down which direction they are traveling, to determine if whales use their noses to navigate to the nearest krill patch. There was no word about how they would know where the nearest krill patch might be. There was also no word on whether they are asking for sponsors who will pay for the ships and planes in case they need to be rescued … although from the looks of their route if they get in trouble they could just wade ashore.
I note that they say that “The Arctic Row expedition presents an unusual opportunity to conduct scientific research with absolutely no carbon emissions or negative impact on the Arctic ecosystem.” I’m not clear how they plan to get the boats and rowers to Canada and back from Russia without using carbon fuels.
I also note that their web site references, without a hint of irony, the discredited Nature magazine claim that the plankton in the oceans is only half as abundant as a century ago … so they are going to “create a thorough zooplankton sample transect along the entire path”. We’ll see how that goes …
I wish them well, and I do not minimize the difficulty of such a long row. I used to fish commercially from a rowboat, and rowing it eight or ten miles a night was a long and tiring pull. I’ve also fished in the Bering Sea, and I know how changeable and deadly the northern waters can be. I admire their courage and search for adventure, and I wish them a safe journey.
But calling that journey a voyage “across the Arctic Ocean”? Sorry, that’s a coastal voyage they have planned, and is hardly “across” anything but the Bering Strait. I can see why they neglected to put a map on their site showing their proposed route …
[UPDATE] An alert reader yclept “climatebeagle” noticed the following:
I wonder if their route will even cross into the definition of the Arctic Ocean?
http://www.iho-ohi.net/iho_pubs/standard/S-23/S23_1953.pdf
Looks like it could just be the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas.
I looked into his excellent reference, and found the following (click on image for larger version):
Note that their route actually doess cross the Arctic Ocean as they claimed … looks like the crossing will take a couple of hours.
w.
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It’s been done before in kayaks, and not just by the natives. Fairly recent passage going the other way, and farther. http://www.seakayakermag.com/1998/aug98/tt_arctic.htm
And yes, I built the boat used in the trip.
“They are asking for sponsors on account of their important scientific work. They are going to record all of the whales that they see, and mark down which direction they are traveling…”
If thet are in sight of land, my guess is the whales will be traveling parallel to the shore not toward any Krill patches… you know… so they don’t bump into anything solid… or swim out of sight… um…
I’ll take my grant money now.
vukcevic says:
July 10, 2012 at 4:09 am
Dickey’s supposedly high confidence correlation could easily be coincidental overlap through a single cycle. On the contrary, the Pirana River correlation through several cycles is superb, and not at all likely to be coincidence. http://wattsupwiththat.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/colder_drier1.png
–AGF
tIM says:
July 10, 2012 at 3:50 am
Would it surprise anyone to note that most of the team are MBA students from Kellog Business School rather than leading climate scientists?
Nope — leading climate scientists would have planned to start at Little Diomede, row to Big Diomede, and then claim to have circumnavigated the globe.
Hunt Johnsen says:
July 10, 2012 at 7:57 am
It’s been done before in kayaks, and not just by the natives. Fairly recent passage going the other way, and farther. http://www.seakayakermag.com/1998/aug98/tt_arctic.htm
And yes, I built the boat used in the trip.
He did 50 miles a day, too. Now *that* was a challenge and an adventure!
Considering the nature of these people the rowboat is probably real.
I am up in the arctic at the moment, and very pleasant its is too. In tromso in july, it doesnt get dark, and the weather is a balmy 13c, typical for this time of year. We drove up from England in five days, emitting loads of naughty gasses.
There is a stuffed polar bear outside the tourist centre in the middle of the town
If I were a warmist rower spin meister that would be
‘Dead Polar bears in the Arctic as temperatures soar higher than the UK whist emissions rocket due to human activity’
I think walking across any ice they may encounter while pulling their boat will be considered part of the row regardless. Even if they did have to walk the whole way, the headlines on their website will read “Global Warmiing allows team to row across the Arctic”.
agfosterjr says:
July 10, 2012 at 8:18 am
the Pirana River correlation through several cycles is superb, and not at all likely to be coincidence.
I have data for one hundred year period 1890-1990 and this is what I found:
http://www.vukcevic.talktalk.net/Aa-CAM.htm
I can already feel myself taking this story to the Press Complaints Commission when reported in the British “quality press” (again!)….
leftinbrooklyn says: “Wonder if they’ll last as long as it would have taken the ‘HOAX?’ ice to melt….”
Which gives me an idea. Perhaps they should have a rowboat made of ice. It would encourage them to paddle faster.
“The Arctic Row expedition presents an unusual opportunity to conduct scientific research with absolutely no carbon emissions …”
So while the rowing crew will be accomplishing this feat, they will not be breathing or defecating. They will be achieving their goal while being clinically DEAD.
Yet again the bed-wetting hysterics, manage to forget that carbon is life itself.
“I’m not clear how they plan to get the boats and rowers to Canada and back from Russia without using carbon fuels.”
Now. come on Willis , you’re underestimating their ingenuity again. They’ll just use nuclear powered ice breakers. No “carbon emission”, see.
Larry says:
I wish there was a way to require them to make a deposit equal to 150% of the Coast Guard’s estimate of actual costs to rescue them.
Presumably such a deposit to each of Canada, USA and Russia.
Mark says:
July 10, 2012 at 12:36 pm
Larry says: ‘I wish there was a way to require them to make a deposit equal to 150% of the Coast Guard’s estimate of actual costs to rescue them.’
Presumably such a deposit to each of Canada, USA and Russia.
I’m sure they’ll insist that any rescue be made using carbon emission-free assets.
Those nuclear-powered SAR helicopters are *expensive*, too…
I have confirmed that there is a long history of very extensive kayaking by the native Eskimos in the southern tip of the Arctic Ocean, immediately offshore of Point Barrow, Alaska – the northernmost point of the United States.
From http://www.akhistorycourse.org/articles/article.php?artID=151
“The ancestors of Inupiaq Eskimos, whose presence may be documented by archaeological evidence, arrived in Alaska before 4,000 years ago. Bands of Eskimos moved north and east across Alaska and northern Canada to Greenland around 4,000 years ago…”
“Inupiaq Eskimos developed two types of boats to help them in their quest for food, clothing, and shelter. They used umiaks to hunt whales and walrus and to travel long distances. About twice as large as hunting umiaks, traveling umiaks measured about 30 feet long, 6 feet wide, and 3 feet deep. Up to 40 people could travel in such an umiak. Inupiaq men used one-person kayaks when hunting seals or ducks close to shore.
To make kayak and umiak frames the people used driftwood. They lashed the frames with rawhide cords. Next they stretched cured bearded seal or walrus hides with rawhide cord. Finally, they coated the boat with seal or whale oil.
Travel over the tundra was practically impossible in summer. The top few inches of the permanently-frozen ground melted. The ground was waterlogged, making walking very difficult. Thus, most people traveled by boat in summer.
During the dark, very cold winters, Inupiaq Eskimos traveled little. When they did, they went overland hugging the coast or following frozen rivers. They usually traveled in groups. The northern people used sleds and sometimes used up to four dogs to pull them. The northern Eskimos established a network of winter trails. Some trails connected coastal and interior areas…
Northern Eskimos rely on large sea and land mammals
Some of the coastal Inupiaq Eskimos who lived north of the Arctic Circle depended on whales for much of their meat. A large bowhead whale provided several tons of food. The people stored the meat in holes dug into the permanently frozen ground. Because hunting and butchering whales required the work of many men and women, coastal Eskimos lived in larger villages than did inland Eskimos. In the mid-1700s Wales, which in 1980 had a population of 130, had a permanent population of 500.
Bowhead whales, migrating to their summer feeding grounds in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas, passed Point Hope and Point Barrow in April and May. They followed leads, or breaks in the ice, that opened close to shore. Near Wainwright, however, leads might be 20 miles from shore. The whales returned south in late September and early October following the coast.
In late March the people moved from their villages and established camps at the edge of the landfast ice. From high points they watched for whales. They maintained their watch 24 hours a day. The annual spring hunt lasted as long as whales were in the vicinity. Captains of the crews agreed among themselves when to end a season’s whaling.
When they sighted a whale, four to eight hunters ventured onto the water in an open, skin-covered boat called an umiak. Most crews consisted of a captain, a harpooner, and six paddlers. The harpooner sat in front and threw the harpoon when the whale surfaced close to the boat. Sealskin floats were attached to a harpoon to make it difficult for the whale to dive. When tired, the whale was killed with a lance. To bring the dead whale to shore required a number of umiak crews. Villagers worked together to butcher a whale and divided the meat and blubber among all village members.”
Burt Lancaster swam home in the movie The Swimmer using backyard swimming pools. Anyone who has seen the movie can tell you that it didn’t turn out too well for Burt. Will our Arctic explorers suffer a similar fate? Will their delusions slowly be stripped away as they get closer to Russia until the naked reality hits them like block of ice off a ship’s mast? I’m guessing no.
Do any of the climate alarmist have beach front property! Wouldn’t that be basically admitting you don’t believe what you say?
… or else it shows their commitment to getting everyone else to act.
They are using a crowd source fund raising Site to raise money for this and appear to be doing very well with it.
http://www.indiegogo.com/ArcticRow
There is a lot more info here than on their own website, including some video.
Launch in three days. If they hug the shore (i.e., staying within 100 meters of land) between Inuvik and Prudhoe Bay, they should be clear of the ice, but they won’t be able to follow their planned, straight line route until they pass Point Barrow…
Arctic row the route
http://www.arcticrow.com/route/
Looks like Thor Heyerdahl’s record is about to be broken.
So, feeling less cranky these days?
<8-)
One brief audio posting on their blog on the 17th after finally launching, but nothing since. 4 crew, 2 hrs alternating rowing and sleeping in pairs, 24/7? I doubt they can keep that going very long.
Brian H says:
July 21, 2012 at 6:57 am
So far, he said they’re still in the McKenzie River.
I’ve done four on, four off for long periods at sea … but it’s no fun, and likely you couldn’t row for that long. They may end up with another system of watch-standing. I assume they can all four sleep or rest inside at once, so they may go to a “row a while, everyone rest a while” kind of of setup.
While I can belittle their claim that they are “crossing the Arctic Ocean”, they are undertaking a most hazardous voyage in a very small boat … I sure hope they’ve prepared for all eventualities.
The good news, I suppose, is that if they are smart they will stay close inshore, and not venture off-shore except when they absolutely have to. If the boat sinks a mile offshore and you have your survival suit on, you have a chance to swim to land. If it sinks ten miles offshore, not so much … the bad news is that they may have more testosterone than trepidation and go a-roaming into deep waters unnecessarily.
So, I continue to wish them well, it’s fun to watch from the safety of dry land.
w.
Ah, they’ve made it out of the river and into the joys of the open ocean. From their web site:
Given that this is their first day on the open ocean after leaving the Mackenzie river, one might expect some teething problems. The real issue is that it sounds like they set out without sea trials, which is generally not a brilliant move, after all that’s why God invented sea trials, she figured that we’d need them …
I continue to wish them all the luck that the ocean can spare,
w.