Getting winter quarters in shape and laying floor. Getting stoves set up. At 4 p.m. with the help of Mr. Chipman, Mr. O’Neill, Mr. Cox, Mr. Blue the engineer, and myself, we took the Alaska out into deeper water to leave her freeze in for the winter, as the ice was already forming on the surface. We got her out to 10 feet of water and wished to get a bit farther out, but the ice got too heavy, the last 100 feet taking us 3 hours to go, with continuous backing and bucking into it. Then we could not shake her loose any more by running back and forth across the deck. I left her to freeze in which did not take very long, owing to the cold weather which has already set in… At 9:30 p.m. we tried to get ashore but found that the ice would not bear our weight, so we stopped aboard for the night.
Otto Nahmens
Captain of the Alaska
Diary of Otto Nahmens © Canadian Museum of Nature
When does the Arctic Ocean freeze? Well, it really depends on where you are. The ocean freezes after the freshwater ponds and lakes are frozen over. Generally speaking, the lakes freeze in September, the ocean in October. New sea ice is more flexible than freshwater ice and it may actually bend under your weight without breaking. Obviously you don’t try this without an experienced guide! I hear from Elders in many communities across the Arctic that the season of hunting and travelling on sea ice has been getting shorter every year. The traditional knowledge of timing and thickness of ice is no longer dependable, but the knowledge of how to safely travel and work on ice is of even greater importance.
David
I agree 100%