The Arctic Post

Life Adventures in the Canadian Arctic

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First snowmobile ride

Today we were invited by a few people in town to take a trip on the land on the snow machines.  We were excited to finally get out on the land. We haven’t really been out since the snow fell. The temperature before we left was only -16ºc, but there was some strong and cold winds. We bundled up and hoped for the best.

In total there were 6 of us that went out.  We had 3 snowmobiles and 1 Qamutik. We drove out for about an hour or so before we decided to stop for tea and a snack. We layed out the Polar Bear hide and all sat on it and enjoyed tea, bannock and Tim Hortons French Vanilla Cappuccino. It was really nice to be able to sit, relax and enjoy good company. Even if it was cold.

Yesterday we decided to splurge and buy a $80 thermos from Co-Op. Boy, are we thankful we did. It was still steaming hot when we stopped to drink it. Etienne almost burnt his mouth on it, it was so hot. We got back a couple of hours ago and i’m still enjoying hot tea from it. It is 2 quarts, so there is more than enough to share with others.

After we enjoyed the warm drinks, we packed everything up we drove for a bit longer. After a few minutes, we decided it was getting really windy and most people were starting to feel the cold. We then decided to turn around and head home.  We got back around 2:30 and it was starting to get cold. I checked the weather when we got back and it was -19ºc with 45km/hr winds and a windchill making it feel like -33ºc. There are also blizzard warning for our area. It’s a good thing we got back when we did.


Overall it was a really enjoyable time. Etienne’s hands got cold because the hand warmers don’t work on the snowmobile. One of the guys with us lent him his Dog mitts. Yes, they were mitts made out of dog. They were much warmer than the mitts he was wearing.
I have to say that my Parka was extremely warm. I could feel the cold air, but I wasn’t cold. If that makes any sense at all? My toes started to get cold by the end of the trip, but in general I was warm. I guess we dressed appropriately for the weather ;) .

I’m sorry there are no pictures. At one point we stopped and I took the camera out to take a pictures of Etienne with the dog mitts, and the battery was dead. I’m sure we’ll go out again, and I promise to have the battery fully charged!!

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 6th, 2009 at 16:46 and is filed under The Experience. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

8 Responses to “First snowmobile ride”

  1. December 6th, 2009 at 17:15

    Pat says:

    Sounds like a fun, but cold, outing. Tim Horton’s???

  2. December 6th, 2009 at 17:42

    Etienne says:

    Tim Horton’s is available up here, they just opened a store in the middle of nowhere!!! ;-) Just kidding, you can get it in a can now. Just mix the powder with hot water or milk and it feels just as if you’re there!

  3. December 6th, 2009 at 21:03

    Pat says:

    Gee, I thought they opened a Tim’s just for the police!

  4. December 8th, 2009 at 17:13

    Rhonda says:

    Thanks for the update! I was starting to have withdrawls….
    It’s not any warmer “down south” so we feel your pain with the cold and wind.

  5. December 9th, 2009 at 00:37

    Auntie Kathy says:

    Sounds like a good trip. The thermos sounds like a good one but like they say you get what you pay for!!!

  6. December 9th, 2009 at 02:03

    Fred says:

    Hey, come “north” to Detroit. We have a Tim Horton’s right on my corner, and it’s a downright balmy 25 degrees (F) here! [Yes, Detroit is the only U.S. city north of Canada, so I couldn’t resist!) Bet that coffee tasted darn good.

  7. December 9th, 2009 at 17:09

    Pat says:

    Did Cisco go on the outing?

  8. December 9th, 2009 at 19:29

    Etienne says:

    Nope, nowhere to put her…

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