Packrafting Trip Report: Hans Creek

Written by:

Sam and I went packrafting a local creek. We hit up the largest of the creeks (Hans Creek). We paddled ~6km to Husky Lakes, and then hiked ~3km back to the car. The creek is pretty shallow, so wouldn’t be navigable in anything other than a packraft. There are a few trees, shrubs, and woodpiles in the creek; nothing particularly dangerous, but there are a few places where it’s easy to pin and swamp your boat (and lots of things that could puncture an inflatable boat). The shrubs that line the creek edge make portaging annoying, but it’s doable if necessary. Once you hit Husky Lakes, the terrain visibly changes and the temperature drops substantially. The hike out was a bit of a slog, at least until we got out of the marshy/shrubby area onto tundra. It’s possible to paddle around further on the lake, but we had a headwind and packrafts are not the best vessel for open-water paddling. The whole expedition took about 6 hours.

Our travel route

Iqaluit

Written by:

Adam and I had the opportunity to go to Iqaluit (Nunavut) for a couple of days for a union meeting, which has a very different feel to it than Inuvik. Despite being further South, it is much colder and more barren. Here are some excerpts from our adventures:

LARP

Written by:

Maciek and I organized a LARP (live-action role playing game) for that running group we have in town.

All good quests start at a dark and dingy tavern…

And then our adventurers were off!
First, they had to fight some ninjas.
Then convince the hermit to tell them his secrets.
Then fight a werewolf to gain a magic sword.
And go shopping at the local village.
(some of the potions available for sale)
Before getting a final clue from a raven
(and having to cross an unplanned swamp due to spring flooding)
Before finally arriving to fight the Necromancer.