Ellesmere Island locationThis page provides access to images taken during an attempted circumambulation of the Viking and Ad Astra Ice Caps in Quttinirpaaq National Park on Ellesmere Island. Ellesmere is at the far northern extreme of the Canadian Archipelago. The northern tip of Ellesmere Island is almost, but not quite, the most northern point of land on earth. At the northernmost point on our route, we were within 925km (575 miles) of the north pole. We were stopped about 30km short of our intended ending point by high water, necessitating a helicopter evacuation back to the airstrip at Tanquary Fiord. Ours was not the only trip to encounter high water sufficient to warrant evacuation. At about the same time, groups on nearby Axel Heiberg Island and on Baffin Island to the south had similar experiences. The cause in all cases was unusual and prolonged high temperatures in the Canadian arctic in the summer of 2011, which results in substantial increases in glacial melting and runoff. Of course, it is important to note that warming temperatures in the polar regions has implications far beyond the inconvenience of a few hiking groups!

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©2011 William B. Thompson