Posts Tagged ‘John Rae!’
Unique Arctic collection going, going . . . .
The Virtual Silent Auction at the Royal Canadian Geographical Society is coming to a close. You have until Nov. 16 at 9 p.m. to bid on a variety of items and activities, including some spectacular adventures going (rightly) for many thousands. Among more modest items, you will find a collection of signed copies of my…
Read MoreNWP voyagers visit John Rae Plaque
Earlier this week, about 50 Northwest Passage voyagers landed on Boothia Peninsula to pay homage to explorer John Rae by visiting the John Rae Plaque and Cairn. Marine biologist Pierre Richard, pictured above taking a selfie at the site, was the one who let me know. Over the years, while sailing with Adventure Canada, I…
Read MoreAn Open Letter to Explorer John Rae
Dear Dr. Rae: You have been gone from us since July 22, 1893 – precisely one hundred and twenty-nine years. I write from the future to mark the day of your passing. What to report from 2022? Six years ago, I relayed the news that searchers have found the two long-lost ships of Sir John…
Read MoreCelebrating an early champion of the Inuit
Arctic history buffs around the world are today celebrating what would have been John Rae’s 208th birthday. Born at the Hall of Clestrain in Orkney on September 30, 1813, Rae became a doctor in Edinburgh and then entered the fur trade with the Hudson’s Bay Company. After learning from First Nations and Inuit hunters, he…
Read MoreYo, Orkney! Skara Brae to Clestrain
People were living at Skara Brae before Egyptians built the pyramids. By the time other neolitithic folk started work on Stonehenge in England, they had resided here, facing out over the salt water, for three to four hundred years – and even had time to abandon the site. To stand here today, in the 21st…
Read MoreArctic adventurers recreate trek to Rae Strait
The Arctic Return Expedition is all systems go. A reconfigured four-man team will set out March 25, 2019 to recreate the most successful Arctic overland expedition of the 19th century. On his 1854 surveying adventure, accompanied by an Inuk and an Ojibway, Orcadian explorer John Rae discovered both the terrible fate of the lost Franklin…
Read MoreRock band Rhonda and the Cries for Help sing John Rae at the Hall of Clestrain
The trouble began when Fran Flett Hollinrake, aka the Queen of St. Magnus Cathedral, asked in all innocence, “When’s the new album coming out?” We could see what she meant. Tom Muir, Rhonda Muir, Sheena Fraser McGoogan and I had not yet settled on a name for our emerging rock band. But the Beach Boys…
Read MoreThe Canadian Invasion of Scotland
Canadian invasion forces have swept through the Dunfermline area north of Edinburgh, claiming Broomhall House. This impressive mansion, located on a splendiferous, well-kept estate has been in the family of Robert the Bruce for more than 300 years. The Canadian connection comes via James Bruce, the eighth Earl of Elgin, who had his home here. In…
Read MoreBraving storms in search of John Rae
Orkney delivers venue, book-buyers, and a letter about John Rae’s last day
Turns out that Orkney was more than ready for me. Wonderful venue, the Orkney Theatre in Kirkwall. Good-sized audience, well-informed. Excellent introduction by my friend Tom Muir. And all those books we brought? Sold every one. I talked about John Rae, the Hall of Clestrain restoration, the Arctic Return Expedition. Had several fun conversations. That…
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