Nunavut
Robert Vassov As Canadians
living in the southern most reach of British Columbia, we rarely get the chance
to experience the vastness of our great Country. Sure, living in the lower
mainland we are blessed with scenic mountains, the ebb and flow of the ocean,
and endless beautiful parks and trails. This all however is no equal comparison
to the simple purity of Canada’s untouched Nunavut.
The territory of
Nunavut (which means "our land") stretches some 1.9 million square kilometres
and is nearly one-fifth the size of Canada and became the newest territory on
April 1st, 1999. The author experienced this land during the month of August
while on a gold exploration project. While the search for gold is an adventure
unto its own, the discovery Nunavut land and animals will forever be etched on
his soul.
Working and traveling on the tundra, one feels the sense of the
urgency given by the fauna and flora. Low lying plants compete for space and
nutrients growing between rocks and crevices absorbing the summer sun over a
short growing season. Caribou, the tundra’s lifeblood can be found in abundance
foraging in solitaire or small groups. Mothers and calves stay close together
and feed continuously, irregardless of human presence which seems to stoke the
Caribou’s curiosity for something new to investigate warily. Everything in
Nunavut it seems has a purpose and life and death are ever present in their
constant dance of survival of the fittest.
On one particular occasion,
the author witnessed a tundra wolf in slow pursuit of a wounded Caribou. While
working on a raised rock outcrop a limping caribous passed between he and a lake
approximately 100 metres away. Not more than 30 seconds behind, the caribou’s
predator stalked slowly but purposefully giving little heed to the human
watching with trepidation. Soon after both were out of site and the author could
only imagine what happened next. A mixture of emotions flooded the author’s
soul, from fear to sympathy for the caribous’ impending doom and exhilaration
from witnessing one of natures plays unfolding in front of his eyes.
At
first glance the barren tundra appears lifeless and foreboding. After a period
of time however, your senses begin to tune themselves to what makes the tundra a
special place. The wind is always present and seems a hindrance, but soon it
becomes a constant companion bringing clear crisp air unpolluted air. Breathing
Nunavut air became a daily gift no matter what the weather was
like.
Writing about the Tundra would not be complete without speaking
about the weather. The author arrived on August 1st, and the daytime temperature
would reach a balmy 18 degrees Celsius during the day. Over the course of just
one month, every type of weather imaginable occurred on what seemed like a three
day cycle. Gorgeous sun filled days without a cloud in the sky, overcast and
constant rain, fog and mist, and a snow squall on August 25th that shut down
camp and operations and flights to and from. The weather also dictated was type
of bug day it would be.
When the humidity was high and the wind low you
knew you were in for it. Imagine the worst bug day you have ever had. Now
multiply those bugs by 50 million and place them all around you! It’s hard to
believe so many bugs can exist. Sometimes it felt like you were the only blood
meal on the entire tundra with no escape. Luckily, bug jackets and insect
repellant offered some protection and definite necessity for anyone spending
time on the tundra.
For all the hardships experienced nothing can sway
the author’s opinion about the beauty and magnificence of such a breathtaking
place. Each and every day brought a new landscape ever reaching to the horizon.
One spectacular place of beauty is Wilberforce Falls found on the Hood River
(both named by the explorer John Franklin) about 50 km before entering the
Arctic Ocean. Wilberforce is a triple falls with dropping the main portion of
the Hood contents 52 metres into a pool below. The remote location added to the
experience as did knowing the Franklin Expedition once stood in the exact same
location in the early 1800’s.
Nunavut’s splendor is something of a
Canadian treasure and the author wishes everyone could visit this place at least
once in their lifetime. The purity and untouched landscape has left it’s mark
and the hope that others can experience the same and learn what our great
Country has to offer.
努纳伐特之行
译文：凡凡
对于居住在BC省最南端的加拿大人来说，要体会加拿大的“大”，非人人得以领略其意境。事实上，生活在低陆平原的我们，有着得天夺后的优势，我们习惯于眺望美丽的山峦，观赏海水的潮起潮落，寻觅那数不清的公园和小径。这一切的一切较之于努纳伐特的单纯来说，却无法相提并论。
努纳伐特自治区（Nunavut意思是“我们的土地”）占地190万平方公里，几乎是整个加拿大面积的五分之一多，它成立于1999年的4月1日，是加拿大最后建立的一个独立自治区。今年8月份，我借以一个探测金矿的项目，来到了这片土地上。探测金矿本身是一次冒险的经历，但努纳伐特这片土地，还有这片土地上的动物，它们永远刻在了我的心里。
在冻土地带工作和旅游，动物群和花卉会给你一种“光阴如驹”的紧迫感。那些在礁石和岩石缝隙中生长的植物，低浅地匍匐着，在一个较短生长期的夏季拼命地吸纳阳光，争夺着生长的空间和营养。冻土带生活的驯鹿，它们生命的足迹遍布于各色各样的冻土植物，它们或单独觅食，或三三两两结伴外出。母鹿和鹿仔紧紧依偎，鹿妈妈无视人们的打扰，更不在乎我们对它们好奇心的探究，不停地喂着她的小宝宝。努纳伐特的每一件事物都孕育着生命的意义，死亡似乎从未降临过，它们在与生存的搏斗中生生不息地舞蹈。
一次独特的经历，让我亲眼目睹了这片寒冷土地上一匹狼对一只受伤的鹿的追逐。那只柔弱的驯鹿，就在我作业的突出岩层上穿行，那儿离湖泊有100米距离。驯鹿的天敌――狼，慢慢地尾随在它的身后，保持着大约30秒的距离。狼只无暇顾及我在那儿浑身颤抖地观看，就在刹那之间，鹿和狼都消失得干干净净，我知道这一幕的结局。我的内心泛起复杂的感觉，我惊恐，我怜悯，我体会到驯鹿面临步步紧逼的生命的威胁，而此刻我却浮起另一种欣喜的感觉，那是我见证自然界生命追逐游戏的演变。
当我第一次见识这片贫瘠的冻土地时，我无以看到生命的任何迹象。在过了相当一段时间后，你的感觉才会调整，才明白冻土地带是一个特殊的地方。风，无处不在，阻碍着你，但顷刻间，它成为你的盟友，带给你清新的毫无污染的空气，无论是什么样的天气状况，呼吸着努纳伐特的空气，这是上苍每日奉献给我们的礼物。
要表述冻土世界，不去描写一下“天气”似乎是不可能的事。我到达努纳伐特的时间是8月1日，此时的日间温度较为温和，达摄氏18度。在一个月之内，你能想像到的的天气状态全部演示一遍，频率是三天一变。努纳伐特的天上挂着灿烂的太阳，天空纯净得不带一丝云彩；忽然是阴沉沉的天，接着是连绵的雨，随之而来的是浓雾、薄雾；后来，暴风雪就铺天盖地呼啸而来。就在8月25日，我们的驻营地被狂风大雪掀翻，作业只好停顿，唯有的行动便是和撕啮的风雪搏斗。这里的天气，也同样可以预示虫子的来临。
当空气中的湿度较高时，风，压得很低很低，你知道你被风包围了，你知道一切都缘自于风，你从未有过如此糟糕的虫子围困日，有那么多的虫子围裹着你，更糟糕的场景还在后头：5千万只虫子又加盟而来，彻底包围住你，那是什么样的感觉？我无法想像这么多的虫子可以生存，在这一片冻土地，我感觉自己是唯一一顿供全体共享的带血餐食，我无处可逃。幸好，我的防虫夹克外套保护了我，看来每一个想来冻土带转悠的人士都得弄一件这样的防虫外套。
但是，我所有的痛苦经历依然动摇不了我对这片冻土地的赞美，它的惊艳绝美，足以让人晕眩。每天，当太阳升起至地平线，又一个崭新的风景呈现。最美丽的风景地当属威尔伯福斯大瀑布。这个瀑布位于胡德河上（这两个名字都由探险家约翰富兰克林命名），离北冰洋入海口仅50公里。威尔伯福斯大瀑布由三组瀑布联合，胡德河大部分的水量经瀑布飞泄而下，坠落于52米下的深谷里。我要加以说明的是，我来到的这个偏僻的地方恰巧也是1800年初探险家富兰克林站立的地方。
努纳伐特的辉煌是属于加拿大人的宝藏，我真诚地希望，每一个加拿大人在他的有生之年，能够至少有一次机会来看看这片土地。这片纯净的未被开垦的神奇土地留下了它的标记，它的希望，它让我们亲身体验我们这个伟大国家赐赠予我们的礼物。
Rob
is my friend who comes from Winsor of Ontario, he is living now in Vancouver as
a forestry counsultant. This article is based on his true experience in
Nunavut.
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