It was a dizzying whirlwind of an expedition but we’re thrilled that our journey around Cape Breton (Unama’ki) & Sable Island was an overwhelming success. From the day we landed in Halifax, to boarding our ship the Polar Prince, to returning back to Mulgrave, Nova Scotia, with a surprise welcome back from SOI’s Viceregal Patron, the Governor General of Canada, Her Excellency Mary Simon! An amazing way to conclude our SOI expedition.
It was an inspiring journey on so many levels. We connected with place, people, culture, history, nature, and definitely the ocean! Protected and conserved areas were central to most of our days, including visits to National Parks, National Wildlife Areas, a Biosphere Reserve, and future Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas.
The time we spent together before we set sail was full of introductions, team bonding and visits to friends and partners in Halifax. We got to know our expedition team, educators, and each other a bit better. We felt like one big family as we learned through games, song, and dance. Lynda Brown from SOI and Jody Tulurialik, one of our fellow expeditioners, surprised us with a traditional throat singing performance, one of the many opportunities we had to experience the cultures from coast to coast to coast across Canada.
“We’re all different in our own way, but we have these similarities in how we treat one another, how we treat the land…” Tukai Augiak, SOI youth participant
In Halifax, we had the chance to visit with industry partners when we spent time with our friends at COVE, the Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship and learned about some of the exciting innovation that is happening in the blue economy. In Port Hawkesbury, we had a private tour of the Nova Scotia Community College Straits Campus. Not only did they show us the wave simulation pool, but we also got to check out some of their other amazing simulation technology. This was an opportunity for us to try our hand at captaining a ship, and working in the navigation and engine rooms. A visit to the Friends United International Convention Centre was a chance to see some extraordinary Indigenous art from across the country and to meet an inspiring Mi’kmaq artist named Loretta Gould! We also took this opportunity to discuss two-eyed seeing, a way of looking for solutions with both a scientific and cultural perspective. As the day wrapped up our excitement to board the Polar Prince, our floating home and classroom for the expedition ahead was building!
“With the Ocean, you don’t only have to be a scientist or a researcher, you can be an entrepreneur, you can be an engineer, you can be working on artificial intelligence, there are so many different avenues you can take which is really inspiring” – Emma Touchie, Ocean School youth representative
After a last-minute visit to the Mulgrave Maritime Museum and a surprise trip to the adjacent ice cream shop, we excitedly strolled down the shore to the Polar Prince! There was still a flurry of last-minute preparation underway, and some of our team were immediately put to work helping to load provisions!
All SOI expeditions over the past two decades have been made possible thanks to so many generous partners (individuals, organizations, governments) and teamwork. Miawpukek Horizon Maritime Services, the owners of the Polar Prince are one of those partners that made this summer’s expedition possible, and we thank them so much. Welanin!
Finally, it was time to board the ship, meet the Captain and crew, and have our first amazing meal on board prepared by Gail, Jeff, and Tenille. Later that evening, we set sail out of the Canso Canal!
Some of SOI’s extraordinary partners help to send educators, scientists, elders, and experts as members of our education team on each SOI expedition. We were so fortunate to have Dr. Katriina Ilves from the Canadian Museum of Nature, Sue Abbott from the Canadian Wildlife Service, and Mathieu D’Astous from Parks Canada, as three members of our team on this expedition. Not only did they help us find the answers to our questions like, “what type of bird is that?” but also served as mentors and inspired us with a new sense of excitement and interest.
Our very first landing was on St. Paul Island. This small island located between Cape Breton and Newfoundland has so much cultural, historical, and environmental significance. In the early morning fog, we geared up in our expedition vests and hats generously provided by Canada Goose. That first Zodiac ride was awfully exciting! When we made shore Katriina jumped right in with a seine net workshop where she caught a sculpin, gunnel, and some ctenophores with many of our youth team. We made sure to make the best of our time here and packed in numerous educational moments and activities including learning more about the island’s geology and why it is on track to become a new National Wildlife Area.
The expedition days ahead were all packed with discovery, awe, and wonder as we sailed the coastline of Unama’ki and entered Bras d’Or Lake, a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve.
Our first stop was to the town of Baddeck to visit the Alexander Graham Bell National Historic Site. The spirit of innovation was in the air as we got to explore this location. We even had a “white-glove” tour where we saw some inventions and prototypes of Alexander Graham Bell that few people get a chance to see. After lunch, we were very fortunate to actually visit the private Bell Estate known as Beinn Bhreagh, where we were warmly welcomed on the beach by several descendants of the Bell family. We could not have asked for a more beautiful afternoon to explore and hike together. We were even given the opportunity to go inside Bell’s mansion for a private tour.
At the top of Beinn Bhreagh or “Beautiful Mountain,” we visited Alexander and Mabel’s gravesite. Incredibly, 2022 marks the 100th Anniversary of their passing and the incredible impact they had on the world. With the view out over Bras d’Ors Lake, there was a peaceful and contemplative feeling in the air. Keeping the concept of two-eyed seeing in our minds, one of our youth expeditioners Ryan Toney conducted a tobacco offering to honour the spirits of Alexander Graham and Mabel Bell, and show our respect and appreciation for being able to experience this place. We got a strong sense of what Etuaptmumk can mean.
The cultural learning continued the next day as we made our way to Goat Island in Eskasoni. Here we learned about different facets of past and present Mi’kmaw life; trade, hunting, fishing, dancing, medicines, and more. We cooked bannock over an open flame and participated in a smudging ceremony, conducted by one of our 2018 alum Dre Toney and his brother Ryan.
Our next destination was Louisburg, a reconstruction of an 18th Century French fortress, now a Parks Canada living history museum and a National Historic Site. During our visit, we had a chance to learn a bit about how Parks Canada is currently working to further include Mi’kmaq history and Etuaptmumk into the story of the fort. Our SOI team offered to follow up with some ideas and suggestions. We also went on a few hikes around the area. Some of us went with Peter Croal on an archaeological walk of the ruins in this area, while others went with Sue Abbott (Canadian Wildlife Service), and Clayton (an ecologist from Parks Canada) to do some bird spotting. We were able to identify over 10 different species of bird including; yellow warblers, American goldfinches, and Savannah sparrows. The final portion of our team joined Katriina at the intertidal zone and tried to identify more crabs and periwinkles.
Then we were off to Sable Island!
Our early morning arrival was a foggy one for our first landing was at East Point. Landing on the immense sandy beach with hundreds of Grey Seals curiously watching from us the shore, along with a half dozen wild horses staring down at us from the dunes, is something we’ll never forget. This was the first moment of two incredible days to follow.
At East Point we hiked to the ruins of an old building which belonged to the family that ran the lighthouse, now being swallowed up in the ever-shifting dunes. Despite the pouring rain we managed to keep ourselves relatively dry. OK, not really! We went on to conduct experiments including eDNA testing, population sampling, weather-related research, and digging for fresh water (like the horses!)
And oh those incredible and unique wild horses that call Sable Island home! With a shorter life expectancy and smaller stature than the average horse, the Sable Island horses have earned themselves the distinction of being their own species. There is now an estimated population of 569 horses on the island, and we were so fortunate to have numerous encounters with many of them!
In the afternoon on our first day at Sable, we all hiked to the top of Bald Dune – the largest and highest sand dune on the island. We had an incredible view of both sides of Sable Island and the beautiful blue ocean that surrounds it. George played us a moving piece about a glacier receding in Greenland. It served as a perfect and peaceful moment to reflect about the environment and our place within it as we sat on the sand dunes, with wild horses in the distance. Later in the day Jody joined George for a performance and sang what very well could be the first song performed in Inuktitut on Sable Island. This spilled over into a beautiful conversation about music, and life in general.
Our second day was filled with more of the same science, wonder, awe, and discovery, except this time under the bright and warm Atlantic summer sun. We visited West Light and helped a research group work on the FATIMA project, which is focused on the fog that lingers on Sable Island. Our work continued as we visited the main research station established by Parks Canada. We conducted a survey of the Tern colony, being extra careful not to step on any of the adorable brown fuzzy chicks! They sure were cute but the parents did not appreciate our presence and continually swooped and dive-bombed us.
We were able to meet the incredible Zoe Lucas, who has called Sable Island home for the past 50 years. She initially came for the horses and stayed on the Island to conduct more and more research, including her ongoing project focused on plastics in the ocean. Zoe helped us to look for culturally focused solutions to climate problems and challenges like microplastics in the ocean. We were present, we were thankful, and we were grounded.
We were all sad to leave Sable Island but Geoff Green, our expedition leader informed us that we were going to stop at one more island. This island was part of the 100 Wild Islands – one of the last remaining intact and ecologically rich island groups of this size in North America. Up to 85 percent of this area is protected, with more work being done for the final 15 percent.
Once again in the early morning fog, we landed at a beautiful beach protected from the high winds. We explored the geology of the island with Peter Croal, who helped us understand the impact that climate change had on the rocks just in front of us, and discovered some searocket with Sue Abbott. Some of our brave expeditioners found out it tastes just like a peppery arugula! Finally, we kept up the SOI tradition of a cold ocean swim, “Polar Plunge Atlantic Edition!” And Danika showed us an Inuit game called the one-foot-high-kick, with many of our team giving it a try.
As we wrapped up our final day on expedition, in between all of the packing, we had the chance to reflect on our journey. It will take weeks, months and years to digest and process it all. But, we were all feeling grateful for the shared experiences, ideas, friendships, connections, and more. As we always say, the expedition is just the beginning…
“Seeing how big the alumni family is and all the connections that are there, it’s really exciting to think of all the things I can do because I came here.” – Kels Smith, SOI youth participant
There was one last surprise. Their Excellencies, Mary Simon and Whit Fraser were waiting to welcome us back in Mulgrave! As the first Indigenous Governor General of Canada, Mary shared some powerful messages for all of us, including encouraging everyone to keep and learn their Indigenous languages. Whit shared an emotional story about how he and Mary first met, and how incredible their journey has been together, leading all the way to Rideau Hall!
Just as we did on our first day, we went for ice cream, after disembarking the Polar Prince! With more “see-you-soons” and “until next times” than “goodbyes” we all said our farewells. Exchanging emails and @’s made sure we would keep in contact with one another as we venture out into the world with some new perspectives, ready to dive into our own blue futures.
Our incredible journey would not have been possible without the amazing support from our friends and partners. Thank you to all of the organizations that helped make this expedition such a success; Alexander Graham Bell National Historical Site, The Canadian Museum of Nature, Canadian Wildlife Service, Canadian Coast Guard, Canada Goose, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs, COVE, Dalhousie University, The Embassy of the United States in Canada, Friends United International Convention Centre, Inuvialuit Regional Corporation, Makivik Corporation, Marine Institute, Miawpukek Horizon Maritime Services, National Research Council of Canada, Nawalakw Healing Society, Nova Scotia Community College, Nunatsiavut Government, Ocean Elders, Oceans North, Ocean School, Parks Canada, Polar Knowledge Canada, RMBMU, Sable Island Institute, Theresa Baikie.