Faced with a short but impassible section of river, veteran Arctic traveler Will Steger, 81, aborted his 1,300km solo expedition in Canada’s Northwest Territories almost within sight of his destination.
Steger’s original route. Rather than trend west by packraft along a river, he headed cross-country due north toward the village of Paulatuk.
Steger began 69 days ago at Great Bear Lake, hauling sleds during the Arctic spring. Over the weeks, winter receded, and spring breakup forced him into long vigils as he waited for the river ice to clear so he could raft the open water.
The ice never fully disappeared. As the above map shows, he planned to follow a river west to the coast, then double back to the Inuit village of Paulatuk, his final destination. Instead, he shouldered a 34kg pack and headed due north cross-country toward Paulatuk. Ultimately, then, his total distance will be considerably less than 1,250km.
A recent campsite. Photo: Will Steger/Instagram
Earlier this week, he endured a strong storm that had him leaning against the inside wall of his tent so the wind wouldn’t collapse it. Once the sleet and sheets of water subsided, he tackled three river crossings. He managed two, but a 10m section of deep, fast water on the third one stymied him. His last travel day was June 8.
“I don’t put a lot of stock in the destination point,” he explained in an audio message about his decision to end the trek. “It’s the journey.”
Best known for doing the first unsupported journey to the North Pole and for traveling by dogteam the long way across Antarctica, Steger says he now travels to enjoy the landscape and “a quiet mind.”
He has done five long solo journeys since 2018 and says that even at 81, he is in perfect health.
