ABSTRACT
Now and then one foot falls through a soft spot as we maneuver over a low ridge formed last fall and covered with hard-packed snow until this week’s thaw. After some tugging, huffing and puffing and straining against our harnesses, we manage to “lurch” the canoe over the top. Thud! The bow of the canoe hits the hard smooth ice on the other side. We take a few trotting steps to regain our balance, then lean into the harnesses when the canoe bogs down again in soft snow. Sometimes we “march” fast and smoothly across flat pans of ice, and our boots and ski poles sound like soldiers or horses’ hooves if we’re not in step. Occasionally, we find open leads, so we have to jump across. I think everybody likes the challenge of jumping across even a small part of the Arctic Ocean!
