{"id":38338,"date":"2026-03-31T00:00:41","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T07:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/community.nrs.com\/duct-tape\/?p=38338"},"modified":"2026-04-13T14:41:41","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T21:41:41","slug":"baffin-island-expedition-part-1-ice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/community.nrs.com\/duct-tape\/2026\/03\/31\/baffin-island-expedition-part-1-ice\/","title":{"rendered":"Baffin Island Expedition \u2013 Part 1: Ice"},"content":{"rendered":"

In July 2025, Heather Smallpage, Kelly Fields, Shira Biner, and Natalie Afonina traveled to Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic for a five-week, human-powered exploration of the island. A cache of climbing and paddling gear, food, and extra supplies were sent to their base camp in advance.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

The crew departed from Clyde River, a small Inuit community, and skied across the frozen Arctic Ocean before entering a fjord named Arviqtujuq Kangiqtua. Over the next seven days, the crew traveled on sea ice until they\u00a0 entered the fjord with their\u00a0 climbing objectives \u2014a little over 100 miles in total.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

After setting up base camp, Kelly, Heather, and Shira spent 49 hours establishing a first ascent on the mountain Eglinton Tower. They named their ascent Lemnos in the Clouds (5.11 A0). It was the first technical ascent in Arviqtujuq Kangiqtua, notably by a team of female+ individuals.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

As the weather veered from the forecast, the group decided to leave base camp early to avoid travel through the ice as it began to break up. With hundreds of pounds of gear, including the extra supplies from the cache, the group moved towards Ayr Pass\u2014a 6 km pass that began as a moraine, slowly changing into loose talus, slippery lichen-coated rocks, and finally, a meadow that sapped nearly all of their momentum. To get their gear across, each crew member had to traverse the pass five times in total.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

After the pass, they walked across Ayr Lake, still frozen and much easier to transport their gear across. The lake ended at the mouth of the Kuugaaluk River, where the group took a few days to rest. From here, they descended the Kuugaaluk via packraft. Much of the river was still frozen; they were forced to endure an icy mix of paddling and portaging. Finally, the crew walked the last 26 km back to Clyde River.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

In total, they traversed more than 300 km of ice, rock, and water by ski, foot, and boat\u2014and made history as the first team of female+ individuals to establish an alpine-style big wall in this area.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

***<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTo be alive is the biggest fear humans have. Death is not the biggest fear we have; our biggest fear is taking the risk to be alive\u2014the risk to be alive and express what we really are.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

– <\/span><\/i>Don Miguel Ruiz, <\/span>The Four Agreements<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

I read this paragraph for the first time a few days into the expedition to Baffin Island last summer. Tucked into my sleeping bag, exhausted from another day of skiing dozens of kilometers across the frozen Arctic, my nerves kept me awake as I recalled the massive polar bear footprints we had seen earlier. I was wondering what motivated me to make this journey to the Canadian Arctic, and found my explanation in these words.<\/span><\/p>\n

I was there for an experience that would remind me of everything life can be\u2014the risk, and the reward.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"
(C) Heather Smallpage<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Nothing in the Arctic comes easily. Even my decision to embark on this adventure was stagnant, debated, and re-assessed for many different reasons. I went, open to the possibilities, challenges, lessons, and beauty of this landscape, unclear of my motivations yet certain that spending five weeks in one of the most remote and isolating landscapes would likely do me some good in one way or another.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I was, in part, running\u2014from parts of myself I didn\u2019t want to face, and from a world that felt saturated in grief, division, and violence beyond my control. An expedition could be a productive distraction that, in the past, had rewarded me with gifts from nature or a deeper connection to other humans and the earth. I knew going to Baffin Island wouldn\u2019t be easy, but I was in need of a challenge; something to remind myself of my humanity; to feel the body I exist within, explore its limits; to reconnect with myself in a new landscape. I needed a break.<\/span><\/p>\n

The farther away, the better.<\/span><\/p>\n

I know I\u2019m likely in the minority of people who would make that decision\u2014going to one of the most remote and hostile places on earth to see if I\u2019d feel better. Yet I was feeling claustrophobic in society, unable to escape my anxiety and the constant bombardment of distractions, decisions, plans, and goals. Escaping that noise felt impossible.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n