Life at the Edge of the World: My Travels in the Arctic Circle

It only took a few interesting photos from a magazine article about the High Arctic. I immediately fell in love. The year was 1994 and I suddenly knew I had to visit this place. The feeling came from my spirit of adventure. 

For three years, 1995 to 1997, I visited the High Arctic several times. The experiences changed my life in ways I cannot fully describe. 

At that time, I had just received my full portable licence, allowing me to practice medicine anywhere in Canada. I decided to visit in March, when the days and nights are more or less equal. I didn’t want to deal with only two hours of sunlight each day. Nor did I want to go in the summer months, when there is only daylight and you see the sun at 2 a.m. 

I started inquiring about opportunities for short-term work, meaning I would take over for a doctor on sick leave or vacation. I also had to figure out how to get there. You can only fly to the High Arctic. There are no roads. These pilots are enormously skilled to safely fly in harsh conditions. Even then, sometimes you can be stranded for days waiting for a snowstorm to pass by. After a bit of work, I found a job for March, gathered all my warmest clothes and began the experience of a lifetime. 

I loved every second in the High Arctic. It was surreal to me. I especially loved riding a sleigh pulled by those huskies. Most of the locals now used ski-doos, which were also very fun. 

I worked in beautiful Pond Inlet and Grise Fjord on Ellesmerre Island.

I was also in Pangnirtung, which we called Pang or “Little Switzerland.” It is a breathtakingly beautiful community.

While there, I met an incredible woman: an American and former truck driver who had relocated to this community a few years later. She went by one name: Georgia. She was very educated, had any classical music CD's and many books. She told me many interesting things about Pangnirtung and life in High Arctic.

When I told my friends where I have worked recently they all said that I was nuts. A few years later however, Germany’s chancellor Helmut Kohl visited Canada and was curious to see the High Arctic. 

He was invited to Pangnirtung — a place that he adored. In the major national newspapers appeared beautiful photos of Pangnirtung and Chancellor Kohl visiting. All my friends now called me to ask how one could get there!

I loved my work there, but there were certain days of the month I disliked -- the days when alcohol was delivered to the community. The village only received a certain amount, which had to last for a month. Of course, it never did. They were “done” in less than two days. They got very drunk and sometimes violent, and I was the doctor. There were many brawls and I had to stitch up residents constantly during this time. Once the alcohol was gone, they would develop withdrawal symptoms, including life-threatening seizures. It was not fun. 

I had picked this community for its picturesque qualities over other “Dry Communities” where my work might have been less stressful.

I also really enjoyed the “First Nation Art,” which consisted mainly of stone carvings. Pangnirtung was also the only community with beautiful locally made tapestry. They were colorful and depicted the lives of the local people. Before leaving, I received a personalized wall hanging from the locals. I still have it. It now adorns the wall of the cozy apartment I keep in Romania.

One night, the village of Igloolik celebrated The Community’s Birthday in their community center. They had trained dancers that were a joy to watch. I was also surprised to realize that their music was well-known to me. Knowing music well, I recognized it as influenced by Scottish music. I later learned this was because of the Scottish whalers that frequently visited these communities more than 100 years earlier. The local folks picked up their music and their dances and in turn passed them along to the younger generations.

Food was enormously expensive there. The local people had to complete a request for food for one year (flower, sugar, cooking oil, meat, coffee, etc.). The food would be delivered by boat in the summer at Toronto prices, which was a true blessing.

Water was also in short supply and was delivered biweekly to each home. In the bathroom they would have a transparent “tower,” which was full at the time they received the water. They could see how the water supply would decrease gradually. When they had 3-4 days until they could get water again, they learned to be extremely cautious with the water. No waste there.

I learned so much in this time. I learned how to build an Inukshuk, which are man-made stone landmarks, and I learned why they were building them. I also learned how to build an igloo, which in case of a snow storm is most definitely life-saving. I learned to eat raw arctic char. It was so much fun.

My work in isolated places in Newfoundland and my adventures in the High Arctic gave me confidence by the truckload. 

I was now ready to start exploring the rest of the world.