Rolling in the Arctic with Swan Hellenic: Lindsay on Location

I have been lost in the Arctic for 17 days with Swan Hellenic. The journey was pure magic. Full of dancing, rolling, singing, polar plunging, kayaking, hiking, and creating moments that turn into forever memories. I learned so much about the history, soaked up the nature, and floated through the icebergs. Very grateful for this adventure and can’t wait for you all to experience it with me, and I hope to motivate you to get lost in the Arctic too. P.S. I will meet you there!

So many people get the Arctic and Antarctica mixed up. Of course one is north and one is south. But, also one is a continent and the other is an ocean. 

The Arctic is the northernmost region of Earth, centered on the North Pole. Something that really surprised me is the amount of countries that have parts in the Arctic Region. Canada, Russia, USA, Greenland, Norway, Finland. Sweden and Iceland all have parts in the Arctic. I was also surprised to learn that around four million people call Arctic home.

The Arctic Ocean is the smallest of the major oceans, but it’s not small at all. It covers 14 million square kilometers. Greenland is the world’s largest island and a territory of Denmark. One of the many reasons I keep traveling with Swan Hellenic is the takeaway. Everyday there are ways to learn and grow.

The Arctic and all its ice caps sheets, and glaciers are home to 10% of the world's freshwater supply.

For the history fans. There are lots of Viking settlements that you can discover. Erik the red is the first viking to discover Greenland and is credited for giving the country its name 'green land'. His son Leif Eriksson is credited in history as the first Viking to discover North America.

I am still looking for that very special ‘unicorn of the sea’- the infamous Narwahal. and the Polar Bear. Both only found in the Arctic. If you get to see them, I want to be the first to know!

Our home was Swan Hellenic Diana. This beautiful ship took us to places others can not. You can only access so much of the icy world of the Arctic by small Expedition ships. We left from Nova Scotia then to Newfounland, Greenland and ended in Iceland. Everyday is full of adventures and excursions. Swan Hellenic does a great job creating options and something for everyone. You can cruise on the zodiac, hike, bird watch, kayak, or create your own adventure. They have a full expedition team that is there to teach and help you along your journey. Each specializing in something different. Bringing so much to the table.

When you travel to extreme parts of the world and never know what the waters and journey might bring, you want to feel safe and comfortable. SH Diana is basically a floating five star hotel. One of my favorite days was sitting in the hot tub with a glass of bubbles watching the icebergs float by.

You only live once. So when you get the opportunity to polar plunge in the Arctic. You not only jump, you back flip into the icy waters. Watch HERE!

The Arctic is known as the origin of modern kayaking. Greenland’s skin-on-frame kayaks date back to the 16th century. They were once essential to the Inuit people of this region, who used them to hunt seals and other sea mammals for survival. They also had to be able to “roll.” What is rolling? It is when you capsize in the kayak to emerge once again upright on the water. They needed to know how to roll to survive. Today, they are trying to preserve its heritage, and to teach the youth about the tradition and its history. This is why they began the annual Greenland National Kayaking Championship.

This was all very new to me. James Roberts (Kayak Master on SH Diana) showed a documentary that he made called, Greenland Bound- A Paddler’s Pilgrimage. The film is about his journey 10 years ago competing in Greenland National Qajaq Championships. We just so happened to be heading to Qajaq. The city where they have this annual competition. James had not been back since he competed. He found his kayak and showed us all how a pro rolls! I could not let him have all the fun. I asked James if I could learn to roll. We rolled three times in the kayak. This was one of my favorite things I have done. Such a rush and thrill.

I decided to have my own Greenland Competition. It is made up of 4 categories. I did 3 out of 4 of the categories.

1. Race kayaking.

2. Rope Gymnastics. (only fell on my face once)

3. Rolling- Check out the video- Rolling in the Arctic

4. Harpoon throwing- (not sure why no one would let me do this one ; )

***Key thing. You have to plug your nose with your top lip. You can't use your hands. Turns out I am a natural. Can you do it? 

I love that Swan Hellenic encourages its guests to be a citizen scientist. In the Arctic I became a cloud observer and now basically work for NASA. You can too! Just download the Globe Cloud Observer app and then help NASA receive info about the clouds from wherever you are in the world. Anyone can do it. NASA has satellites that document from the sky, our job is to do it from the ground. You just walk through the steps to record and take pictures. Then you will be a black dot on a map. I was the first to document from off the coast of greenland. This is a great thing you can do with the entire family. Anywhere in the world.

Would you kiss a real fish? We did! To become an honors Newfoundlander you have to join the Royal Order of Screechers. What do you need? A master of ceremony. (I am available), Screecher (rum) and a fish. So get the rum and fish ready and repeat after me.

The traditional Screecher ceremony means kissing a cod. Why? Because, kissing the cod meant a simple bon voyage to those who were sailing South and returning with the rum! They would trade fish for rum. Now, let’s get you all part of the royal order.

You have to say this:

“From the waters of the Avalon, to the shores of Labrador,

We’ve always stuck together, with a Rant and a Roar.

To those who’ve never been, soon they’ll understand,

From coast to coast, we raise a toast, We love thee Newfoundland!”