Posts Tagged ‘arctic’
Shackleton? Endurance? Why so excited?
So what is it about Ernest Shackleton and the Endurance? Why so much excitement about the recent discovery of an old wooden ship at the bottom of the Antarctic ocean? In my book Celtic Lightning, I devote a chapter to Irish-born Shackleton, noting that once upon a time, he came that close to becoming an…
Read MoreGrounding of expeditionary ship in the Arctic evokes memories but no worries
Sorry to hear that the Akademik Ioffe ran aground in the Arctic. But the expeditionary cruise ship, on which I have sailed, has already been refloated. The last time something like this happened, with the Clipper Adventurer back in 2010, we were on the ship, Sheena and I. It wasn’t fun, obviously, but we were…
Read MorePolar Bears explain the Fate of Franklin
What happened to the Franklin Expedition? Researchers have been debating that since 1847, two years after Sir John Franklin disappeared into the Arctic with 128 men. From the note found at Victory Point on King William Island, we know that in April 1848, 105 men left the two ice-locked ships. The note tells us that…
Read MoreSay goodbye to defenders of the Royal Navy narrative of the Northwest Passage
A few days ago, in the comments section below the Globe and Mail review of Dead Reckoning, I placed a link to my rejoinder. The review’s author, Janice Cavell, has responded in that same forum. She says nothing about my two main criticisms, and so apparently concedes — first, that her review short-shrifted the Inuit,…
Read MoreDead Reckoning hailed as transformative masterpiece
By Dave Obee Victoria Times-Colonist Oct. 15, 2017 Dead Reckoning: The Untold Story of the Northwest Passage By Ken McGoogan HarperCollins, 438 pp., $33.99 The Arctic is not the place it used to be; climate change is taking care of that. It is still a challenging part of Canada, but warmer weather and the relative…
Read MoreSailing Out of the Northwest Passage launches Dead Reckoning
More Dead Reckoning events are in the works. But at this point, Our Hero is sailing with Adventure Canada Out of the Northwest Passage from Sept. 7 to 23. After that, the confirmed schedule looks like this: Sept. 27: Toronto: Ben McNally Oct. 1: Stratford Writers’ Festival Oct. 14, 15: Calgary Wordfest Oct. 17: Victoria:…
Read MoreJohn Rae Centre will celebrate Orkney, the Arctic, and the Inuit
I do love this image created by Orcadian photographer James Grieve. He has combined photos of the Stromness statue of explorer John Rae and the Hall of Clestrain, where Rae was born in 1813. Having visited the Hall a few times over the years, I still most vividly remember the first time, in 1998, when…
Read More‘Franklinistas’ are surfing an Arctic tsunami
KEN MCGOOGAN Special to The Globe and Mail Published Saturday, Mar. 18, 2017 Ice Ghosts: The Epic Hunt for the Lost Franklin Expedition, by Paul Watson. M&S, Penguin Random House, 384 pages, $34.95. Minds of Winter, by Ed O’Loughlin. House of Anansi, 481 pages, $22.95. The headline is telegraphic: “How quest for Northwest Passage turned into…
Read MoreCelebrating Farley Mowat at his boat-roofed house
To kilt up or go Arctic. That’s the dilemma I face. It’s prompted by the moving of the Farley Mowat boat-roofed house in Port Hope. Come October, an international crew of professional stone-wallers will arrive in that town, 100 km east of Toronto. They will dismantle and then reassemble the boat house, placing it at…
Read MoreWho owns the Arctic?
Meanwhile, at the Globe and Mail, we find a review of Who Owns the Arctic? Understanding Sovereignty Disputes in the North, by Michael Byers, Douglas & McIntyre, 147 pages, $22.95 Reviewed by Ken McGoogan Published on Monday, Jan. 18, 2010 For Arctic explorers seeking to enter the Northwest Passage from the Atlantic, one of the…
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