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Explorers Wesley
Archer and Justin
Fornal made
the first attempt in history to conduct a
nonstop swim from Canada to Greenland across
the Nares Strait.
Their adventure started on August 7th.
2022 when the two set off from an airport in
New York in Wesley's single engine aircraft
and flew to Qaanaaq, Greenland, one of the
northernmost settlements on the planet.
From there, Justin and Wesley made their
final preparations and with the aid of local
hunters Argiunnquuaq Qaernagag, Otto Simigaq
and the support of the local community to
head north into the Nares Strait.
The team set off from Qaanaaq in two boats
in the direction of Pim Island, Canada with
the goal of Justin swimming the width of the
Nares Strait with Wesley manning a support
kayak to assist Justin in the event of any
difficulties.
The Nares Strait can have some of the most
extreme weather in the Arctic. The winds can
reach gale force as the result of the Nares
Strait compression zone and the ice flows
are unpredictable.
While en route to Pim Island the team
encountered an impenetrable wall of ice. The
local team would not take their boats any
further towards Canada as they could get
caught between the moving pieces of thick
ice and crushed to splinters. The only
option was for the swim to begin from the
ice wall. On August 15th, Justin jumped from
the Arctic ice-sheet and began his swim
towards Greenland through icy below 40F
water as Wesley rowed in a kayak next to him
full of supplies including food, water, and
hot drinks. Argiunnquuaq and Otto remained
close by in power boats to help navigate,
keep away territorial walruses, and assist
emergency extraction. The entire event was
documented by Emmy nominated film maker
Emiliano Ruprah.
The shifting ice sheets made the crossing
both hazardous and incredibly tiring –
instead of swimming in near freezing waters
point-to-point, Justin and the support team
had to swim around moving obstacles,
“including icebergs the size of
buildings”.
After swimming 7.5 hours and navigating 11
miles of the deadly ice labyrinth. Justin
reached the rocky shores of Greenland where
the team rejoiced. When Justin emerged from
the water he was identified as approaching
level 2 hypothermia, though recovered
quickly with proper medical assistance from
the team.
The Swim was extremely challenging and a
true test of human endurance. While the
team was not able to attempt a Canada to
Greenland swim on this expedition, Justin
completed the first long distance swim of
the Nares Strait in history. The team plans
to return in 2023 to complete the full
swim.,
'The swim was majestic and we learned a lot.
I cannot wait to return in 2023 to complete
the full swim from Canada to Greenland’ -
Justin Fornal
'Every stage of this expedition from flying,
nature, and culture, reaffirmed the respect
I had for them going in. Without respect for
those three, we wouldn't have made it.' -
Wesley Archer
One the Great Arctic Swims supporters, Polar
Bear International regards this geographic
area as one of the last likely places to see
Polar Bears – the ice providing shelter for
the seal population which in turn lures the
bears seeking sustenance.
About Justin Fornal:
Justin Fornal is an international explorer,
long distance swimmer, and writer. Justin
is the expedition Swimmer and will be
central in telling the story of the arctic
and its inhabitants. Justin is also the host
of "Unexplained and Unexplored" on the
Science Channel.
About Wesley Archer:
Wesley Archer is an explorer,
adventurer, and General Aviation pilot with
over 1100 hours in a Cirrus. Wesley is
co-producing and directing logistics for the
expedition and will fly his personal single
engine plane to Qaanaaq. Wesley will also
act as a safety supervisor during the swim.
About The Great Arctic Swim
Justin Fornal and Wesley Archer will fly
from NY to Qaanaaq Greenland in a single
engine Cirrus SR22. They will cross the
Canadian wilderness, ice fields of Baffin
Bay, and land in the remote high arctic.
Once in Qaanaaq, the team will cross over
120 miles of sea from Qaanaaq to Pim Island
Canada. The sea voyage will be led by
Qaanaaq based hunters Argiunnquuaq
Qaernagag and Otto Simigaq. Justin
will complete the first swim across the Nares
Strait between Canada and Greenland. It is a
25 plus mile race against time before winds
and ice prevent the crossing.
Others involved in the expedition include
Emmy Award Nominated filmmaker Emiliano
Ruprah,
who served as director, photographer, and
cinematographer. Visit Greenland has
graciously sponsored travel for Emiliano,
which the crew expressed gratitude since the
self-funded expedition works with a low
out-of-pocket budget to fund the monumental
task.
Mahiautsiaq Eipe of
Qaanaaq serves as the team's translator.
G.W.K. Moore serves
as science advisor and supported the team
from Toronto. Moore has a Ph.D. in
Geophysical Fluid Dynamics from Princeton
University and a B.Sc. in Theoretical
Physics from the University Guelph. He is
currently a Professor at the University of
Toronto Mississauga in the Department of
Chemical & Physical Sciences.
Sakiko Daorana,
was the Greenland advisor and expedition
fixer who is the owner of Ultima Thule, an
expedition support and advisory company. |