Reaching the Geographic North Pole: July 2008

By Barry Griffiths:

This summer, I was on board the huge Russian nuclear icebreaker "50 Years of Victory", on its maiden voyage from Murmansk, Russia to the Geographic North Pole. As we entered the solid sea ice of the Arctic Ocean, it quickly became evident that my long-awaited experience of being on board an icebreaker that crashed through stubborn sea ice and took repeated runs at high pressure ridges, until it agonizingly broke through, just wasn't happening. Expectations, based on the TV and movie episodes of large icebreakers laboriously extracting ice-bound ships from their tight bonds, or slowly leading a conga line of ships and crushing the ice ahead of them to break a path out of the ice to open waters, were not being met.

Something was obviously amiss, for our behemoth icebreaker was, in fact, slipping through two and three metre pack ice and thick pressure ridges like a hot knife through butter at 14 knots. No steel hull clangs, violent movements or sudden stops for this ship as it sported some of the most sophisticated ice-breaking systems that leading-edge technology could provide: a newly designed spoon-shaped bow, a stainless steel ice belt 5 metres wide that surrounded the ship's hull, and a bubble system that almost eliminated the friction created by hull and ice contact.

As we arrived at the North Pole, 48 hours ahead of schedule, it was clear that the battle of the ice was over for the "50 Years of Victory" technology had triumphed!

Galapagos Islands: October 2007

By Charlyn Krahn:

We were walking along the shore on Santiago where we stopped to see some marine iguanas. It seemed the iguanas were as curious about us as we were about them, because as I crouched to look at them, several more came walking over toward me. As they were waiting for their colleagues to join us, the three in the photo were watching me expectantly, as though they thought I would impart some words of great wisdom (of course they were probably just positioning themselves for the best sun exposure, and I was in their way!).

I love marine iguanas anyway, and this particular experience felt like an amazing interaction. I will be going back to the Galapagos Islands in January, 2009, and look forward to many more incredible experiences.

Safari in Northern Tanzania: Spring 2006

By Annette Bering:

I traveled with a group of 15 people ranging from teenagers to grandmothers in age on safari across Tanzania. We drove in 3 Toyota Safari vehicles heading north from Arusha through the Serengeti towards the Kenya Border, following the migration of tens of thousands of zebras and wildebeest plus the predators, lions, hyenas and vultures, that follow along with the herds.

One of the highlights of this trip for me personally was when we stopped at a large watering hole and just observed. We admired the beauty of the zebras, each having their own individual stripe design, the mares with their long haired foals alongside, the comical looking wildebeest which look like a mixture of a goat and a pony, the most odd looking mammal of Africa to me. It was interesting to observe what seemed to be the hierarchy of the herd, an organized approach and instant retreat from the watering hole these animals had in order to fill their bellies with the much sought after water on their long journey north to more lush grasslands. A group of zebras would approach the water together, line up in a semi circle all heads lowered drinking at once. Then, as if one zebra gave the telepathic sign, they would all reverse and gallop out of the water at the same time for safety from their predators. The wildebeest and the zebras would take turns drinking in a small group with their own kind, always very wary of their surroundings.

The overwhelming neighs and bellows from these two species when you are in the middle of thousands of these beautiful creatures sends shivers up and down your spine and you cannot help but stop and think how special these moments in Africa are to us. That these beautiful creatures run free on the Serengeti for us to admire and capture with our cameras. When I think of the wildebeest, how "goofy" they look and behave with their bucking and shaking their heads I cannot help but smile at the memory.