When Santo and Jakob first arrived on the island a week or so ago there was ice in the cove, a bitterly cold wind, and the tundra was pretty brown. A day later when Andy and Isla arrived the ice had gone, with the temperatures starting to warm up slightly. Preparations began on the drones along with other set up tasks, however the wind and rain prevented flying in the first few days. The tundra began to green in a big way, with the willows unfolding at a great rate.
A week or so later the sun broke through, allowing for Shrubcopter and Droney to be taken out to the floodplain for their test flights. Shrubcopter fared very well, whilst Droney had a bit of a power consumption issue. Nevertheless, both drones went airborne and some imagery was collected – so that is an accomplishment!
Yesterday, though still sunny, the wind picked up and shifted to the west- this usually means bad weather on the way. Santo bid a fond farewell to the snow patch out of the window, which is melting away at a rapid speed. Spring has definitely gone now and summer is here with warm weather, green tundra and mosquitos!
Sometimes the Arctic feels really far away from everything else, and yesterday was one of those days. Team Shrub is proud to be an international team and as news trickled in about Brexit, a fuzzy kind of disbelief hit our European team members. Right now our minds are running wild with possible scenarios, with so little information reaching us on the island.
It was a hot summer’s day here in Kluane yesterday as we headed up the plateau for our first hike of the field season.
We went up to set out our latest tea bag experiment, which involved stopping every 125 m elevation in boreal forest, dense shrub land, and beautiful tundra meadow. At each elevation we set up ambient, temperature and moisture manipulation plots, which we will go back to collect at the end of the summer.
Setting up an experimental plot at the shrubline
Once we left the tall shrub line we had spectacular, panoramic views across Kluane Lake, surrounded by beautiful flowers. Haydn noticed that they seemed to be in bloom higher up than last year, evidence of the even earlier spring.
Along the way, John and Eleanor tried to brush up on all of the new and exciting shrubs and plants that they came across.
Two adult grizzly bears were spotted grazing far off the distance, but they stayed away from us.
Some snow still remained as we reached the top, catching John out as he ended up knee-deep whilst trying to navigate across a snow pack.
John and Eleanor hopping their way across the snowpack
With some time to spare we decided to head up right to the top of the peak, where we were greeted with even more spectacular views of snow-capped mountains and interesting rock formations. Once we had taken it all in we headed back down, the thought of a hot meal and a cold Yukon ale at the forefront of our minds.
A spectacular sand castle awaited us on the other side of the highest ridge
Yesterday it was 26℃. Today it is raining. We have nine hours to buy all our food, gear and equipment for fieldwork and I accidentally booked the car for tomorrow instead of today.
“Hi, I’m just wondering if you have a car available for hire that I could pick up this morning?
“Sorry, when do you want it?”
“This morning”
“Uhhhh, we have nothing available until the 12th of July”
**
Many phonecalls later…
**
“Well, we have a truck…”
The truck was delivered within the hour and things started going a little more smoothly. John arrived on time, and with all the bags; we supermarket swept Superstore in record time, whirled through Canadian Tire, Home Hardware, etc., and even had time for lunch with Meagan, a trip to Yukon brewing, and a tour round the animal room(s) at chez Grabowski’s in the evening. The room is now full of boxes, we are full of pizza, and John is asleep in the corner. What a difference a day makes.
Ok blogosphere. It’s on. Team Drone may have taken the early lead but now Team Kluane have landed. You’ve heard about logistics, mountains, made up words, and more logistics, but now is time for the rest of Team Shrub to get to work. And with my cutting wit and effortless humour you’re in for a thrilling ride.
No?
Well, at least Sandra will be writing some of the time.
#TK (Which I admit is not nearly as easy to pull off as #TS)
With the arrival of all of our equipment in Inuvik (as in today – at the very last minute!), we’re finally ready for the final leg of our northward journey to Qikiqtaruk. An advance party of Santo and Jakob departed today with the first 850 kg of equipment, including some 192 loo rolls. Hopefully the plane will return to take Isla and I tomorrow with another 1000 kg.
We’ve all been super impressed with the detail and fidelity of the farewell cake made by Andy’s sister Jo! Especially with the flowering flora across the tundra, the red fox near its den and the belugas hunting char and krill off the coast. Fingers crossed we will see most of these fauna over the next two months, although perhaps the polar bear from a safe distance!
What is better than ‘super awesome’ – the Anglo Canadian catch all phrase for excitement – a porch discussion here in Inuvik determined the phrase ‘superduper awesome’ had to mean the most awesome-est-ness. And where might the most superduper awesome place in Canada be…
Team Drone on a barefoot Ice Fields run!
As a pinnacle to our Kluane trip on our very last day in Kluane ‘Team Drone’ decided at the very last minute to schedule a flight out to the Ice Fields. The weather was supposedly good out over the ice, if a bit cloudy in the front ranges, and Tom the pilot was game, so the four of us piled into the Helio Courier and headed out on our epically Canadian trip to base of the tallest mountain in Canada and largest in the world by girth and volume – Mount Logan.
The Ice Fields jumping shot!
The start line for the barefoot Ice Fields run.
Tingling and freezing feet after the bearfoot Ice Fields run.
Santo on his mobile phone – not really, we didn’t have our sat phones with us.
Pilot Tom giving us the low down on the high up places of the Wrangell St. Elias Range.
An epic looking photographer photographing epic things.
Ice Fields Discovery Camp from the air.
The weather turned out to be perfect out and it was a fabulous flight up and back with a magical time spend gallivanting around on the ice. We threw snow balls, took some Logan selfies, did a barefoot run and of course did some epic jumping shots!
The Kaskawulsh Glacier.
Glacier ice looking like elephant skin.
Crevasses filled with blue water.
More glaciers and tracks of moraine.
The Slims river looking rather slim water-wise at the moment since the outflow for the Kaskawulsh has changed so that most of the water is heading down the Kaskawulsh River valley.
Thanks Pilot Tom and Ice Fields Discovery for the fabulous trip to perhaps my favourite place in Canada – well Saturna Island is pretty awesome, and of course I love Qikiqtaryuk where we are headed next… anyhow the Ice Fields are a totally superduper awesome place! You must all go visit some time if you get the chance.
Tomorrow marks the beginning of the Team Shrub Qikiqtaryuk – Herschel Island 2016 field season, as Jakob and I (Santeri) fly out to the island 26 hours ahead of Isla, Andy & the remaining gear. Tomorrow also marks the end of a very arduous, yet rewarding, period of Team Shrub spring logistics. Technically this journey already started in the end of the 2015 field season, and has lasted throughout the winter with many collaborators giving their best efforts to the TS cause (Thank you everyone! You know who you are 🙂 !). I will however only describe the tales of packing, switching, repacking, moving, hauling, purchasing and shoving,from the start of June when Andy, Isla, Jakob and I met at Whitehorse for the first time.
Packing in Whitehorse at the Grabowski front lawn before the journey down the Alaska Highway to Haines Junction and onwards to the Kluane Lake.
The logistics efforts started in Whitehorse, where one of the bigger items to be purchased was a gas (petrol) pump, which was to be hauled to the Kluane Lake Research Station to pump water to the Common Garden. After a respectable effort from the Team; the pump, over a 100m of hose, all of our personal items and even ourselves, fit into our wee Chevy (pictured). Luckily, we had been upgraded at the car rental the day before, as arriving to Whitehorse, we were all stuffed in a small sedan wondering how to bend time and space and luggage…
Lunches at Kluane Lake are tasty as tasties get.
On our ‘day off’ on Monday Andy, Jakob and I climbed Sheep Mountain. We went up. Then down; as per Andy’s instructions.
Luckily we also had time to unwind. Somehow all of the photos seem to be related to ‘down time’. We worked so hard there was no time for photos then I guess 🙂
Andy attempting to deal with the bleak state of the Kluane inventory ‘system’.
We were fed well, even Jakob’s breakfast managed a crooked smile before its imminent demise…
After a wonderful night at the Grabowski’s and a delightful drive down the Alaska Highway we arrived to the Kluane Lake Research Station. Here, TS updated the storage inventory, sorted flights, tended to the Common Garden (which included installing and uninstalling the pump), played rugby on the beach, setup satellite phones, performed a thorough phenology review of the garden, visited the Ice Fields (stay vigilant of a post about the trip!) and started the eternal ziplocking of little things into larger bags into even largerer bags.
After a lovely five days in Kluane, the next stop was to be Whitehorse again. Before the flights to Inuvik, the items that could not be found above the Arctic Circle had to be planned, purchased and bagged…
The story of the Pump that was. This little guy did well for 200 litres of pulling and pushing water up to the Common Garden from Kluane Lake, before coughing up its last fumes and quitting on us. We’re not mad wee Pump… We’re just disappointed.
The next days in Whitehorse involved a lot of burying our faces into our hands, pulling of hair and muted screaming in the efforts to purchase all essentials before the Inuvik flight. In the end however, as always, the Team pulled through and everything on the list was eventually bought. Including these items beginning with the letter C: cheese grater, can opener, camp toaster, cheese slicer, crocs, Catan, coffee, constipation medicine, contact lens solution, cards (SD) aaand choice tea. Also a cup.
Coffee and little treats are integral to succeeding at shopping speciality items for two months. Midnight Sun Roasters, the Chocolate Claim and Alpine Bakery get honourable mentions.
The evening before the morning flight to Inuvik. Everyone in terrific spirits sipping local ale and learning how to say “I am an apple” in Finnish.
Here’s Jakob giving an exemplary performance of face burying during the morning meeting on the last Whitehorse day.
Shopping for fancy chocolate, TVP, herbal tea and other yummy bits at Riverside 22h store.
The following week, we then spent in Inuvik preparing for the eventual & long-awaited departure to Herschel Island (departure now only 9h away). During the first days, after yet another upgrade on the size of our car (pictured), TS frantically zoomed around town in attempts to track down all of the packages delivered for us in Inuvik – before the epic food shopping on the weekend. The aforementioned car – a beast called the YUKON XL (though Inuvik is Northwest Territories duh) – would prove very essential in hauling the industrial loads of beans and bagels from Stanton’s to our storage facilities at the Aurora Research Institute, and onwards to the airfield hangars.
The beauties and the Beast
I can happily state that all of our deliveries (including but not limited to: drones + equipment, quinoa and satellite phones) have arrived, with all of the food shopping completed as well. We are now officially and nutritionally prepared for the coming two months at Herschel Island (as authenticated by the iPad and all of its to-do & shopping items checked over).
Drawing wee shrubs on jerry cans
Yoga midst repacking food items is integral to success
Let’s roll
The humble receipt from Stanton’s after the first day of food shopping
All of the drone equipment safely arrived at Aurora Research Institute calls for a Team photo
Isla in grips of terror. Not the actual final price.
I will leave you with a few interesting numbers from the Stanton’s food shopping days: 1200 slices of toast, 36 cans of chick peas, 336 granola bars, 42L of UHT milk, 283.5L of water, 25kg of cheddar cheese, 96 apples, 360 spinach wraps & 1 can of pineapple.
We’re back in Kluane! Returning back to the Yukon and getting back out to the field feels a bit like a time warp, it is like the winter was just a dream and we never really left after last summer.
A slightly more snowy Kluane Plateau from the last time that we saw it.
After being here for a few days, the glacial dust and sunshine of Kluane is now starting to turn our once pasty Scottish complexions rather brown.
Glacial dust off of the Slims River flood plain.
Returning to Kluane makes me reflect on people from the TeamShrub past:
Joe, we were chatting on the drive out about how we probably won’t be listening to as much ’80s music this summer without you around to suggest those classic tunes, Jakob was bemoaning the fact that you weren’t there to share with him in his ‘toast feast’ midnight snacks and of course we are missing your witty banter – though we are stoked you are still on Team Shrub as a dissertation student for next year! – P.S. We almost forgot the team shrub handshake, but we studied up from some videos and are back greeting each other in the traditional way now!
Joe Boyle
Clara, passing the sauna pond makes reminds me of our cold spring resort idea and makes me want to start my cold water training now in preparation for the Arctic. But, then I put my feet in the water and remember that I have definitely softened up and the cold water of early June just seems a bit too cold. I guess I am just not as hard core as you! If you were here, you would have been swimming for sure! Update: I went swimming in the lake no less, it wasn’t that cold afterall, I think I will be back swimming in the Arctic Ocean in no time!
Clara Flintrop
Louise, it seems like a long time since you were in these parts now. You would be so impressed by how some of those first willows we planted are doing in the common garden. They are super leafy and vigorous looking, while some of their friends are looking a bit sadder in comparison. We miss your playful spirit up here in the Yukon!
Louise Beveridge
Meagan, well I guess I just saw you a few days ago down in Vancouver, the day of your UBC MSc graduation, so it hasn’t been that long at all. But it was nice as always to reflect on the early days of TeamShrub back in 2009 – you, Amber, Tammy, Natalie, the Yorkshire Lads, Helen – what a good year. Congrats on your graduation – a real mile stone!
Meagan Grabowski
It also seems strange to be separated from the other half of TeamShrub – Sandra, Haydn, John and Eleanor. The ‘Kluane Crew’ are headed up to the Yukon just in time for solstice and will be based down in Kluane until the second half of July when they will join us up in the Arctic.
We have spent some quality time out at the common garden and the pump (or emergency lake-side fire station) is working very efficiently – filling our watering bucket in about 10 seconds or so with some serious water flow. We have pulled out the weeds and tidied up the garden ready for the arrival of the ‘Kluane Crew’ on the 21st of June.
The common garden on the 4th of June with some happy looking willows in the foreground.
We have even made some pretty cool Structure-from-Motion builds of a few of our tundra willows. We will use these photogrammetry techniques with our drone imagery to measure the structure of tundra plant canopies including the shrubs up in the Arctic at our other research site Qikiqtaruk-Herschel Island.
Testing out using Structure-for-Motion to build a 3D model of a willow from the common garden.
So after a bit of common gardening, some inventorying and logistical planning for our upcoming expedition to the Arctic it is time for a few beers in the Sunshine at the edge of the lake.
More quickly than expected the time has come and our field season has begun. Over the last couple of weeks the drone labs have been a buzzing hive in the final push to get everything ready for our departure. Last minute deliveries, calibrations, carbon fibre cutting, soldering, painting and preparing boxes. The list of things to be build, calibrated and tested seemed endless and it felt like a huge relief on Monday evening when everything came together and the boxes were finally packed.
Once more we’re seriously in debt to the UoE Airborne GeoScience team for all the time and effort they put in to make it all happen. And let’s not forget to the fabulous finance team without whom we couldn’t have been able to complete our orders and shipments, the insurance folks for providing our a financial safety net for our pile of equipment and us should anything go wrong, the computing staff and Justin for getting us our field work station just in time, Arthur the servitor of the Crew Building for seeing our shipment off and Richard our safety officer for helping us with first aid kits and risk assessments. Thanks everyone!
Now the boxes are in the hands of the couriers and Santeri and I are on our way to Canada, excited about the adventures that lie ahead of us this summer. This year Team Shrub will be split into two:
Team Drone
The first stop for us on the drone team is Vancouver for a quick reunion with Isla and Andy. From there we’re all heading North to the Yukon to check upon our common garden and to catch up with old friends at ‘base’, the Kluane Lake Research Station, before finally heading on to Inuvik to prepare for our summer on Qikiqtaruk – Herschel Island.
The Kluane Crew
The second team consisting of Haydn, Sandra, Eleanor and John will follow us to the Yukon shortly, starting in Kluane and Pika Camp in mid-June, before joining us on Qikiqtaruk for the peak of the growing season in late July.
We’re curious to find out how our birch and willow is growing in the common garden, how Haydn’s teabags are decomposing and how the tundra will look like from the air this year. Again we would like to invite you to follow us on our journeys through this summer. So please come back here for updates from the North.
Team Shrub 