As I opened my eyes a glowing sunrise greeted me. Winnie needed to stretch her legs so I let her out to play in the snow as I stood there admiring the warm and radiant colors off in the distance.
The last bit of the drive was rough. Deep potholes and all kinds of bumps challenged my focus as I tried to weave my way around them the best I could. Soon that brutal road took me to the destination I’d drove up north for, I’d arrived at last in Tuktokuktuk, land of the pingos. Pingos are a neat natural phenomena as freezing and thawing water in the earth create all sorts of bumps that rise up from the earth.
I drove to the end of the hamlet right up to the edge of the Arctic Ocean. I’d made it! I took my boots off and dipped my feet in the freezing waters. It was the coldest water I’d ever felt, with the icy waves numbing my feet in seconds. I’d done it though, I finally dipped my feet in three different oceans, an achievement that I’d talked about accomplishing for years.
There was only one restaurant in town, Grandma’s Kitchen. I drove up to the house and knocked on the door where a friendly face greeted me and invited me in. The kind lady along with her husband and daughter sparked up a conversation with me as my meal was prepared. Being this far up north I had to try something unique so I got the muktuk, the outer part of the beluga whale along with some miqpuk, dry whale meat. Both had quite the interesting taste. The muktuk was kinda sweet and meaty where as the miqpuk was like steak with a hint of fish flavor. Both were incredibly delicious!
I did some more exploring of the tiny hamlet. The locals were very friendly, often waving as I drove by. I wanted to pick up a souvenir but the store that sold them was closed for the season. I asked around, seeing if anyone knew where I could get any collectibles when I came across an old lady that told me she had something. I drove to her house and she brought out some handmade moose hide gloves. Being that she’d spent her entire life in the town, she was full of interesting stories and I eagerly listened as I tried on my new gloves for the first time. I was ecstatic, I had obtained the best possible souvenir I could possibly ask for! Her neighbors were quite friendly as well, sparking up a wonderful conversation with me.
Having spent the day wondering about, chatting with locals and admiring the town, I returned to the shores of the Arctic Ocean where I watched the sun slowly go down over the chilly water.
The sky was quite clear as darkness arrived and I was feeling lucky about seeing the northern lights. After a lifetime of waiting they finally revealed themselves! Pictures don’t do them justice, not even close! The light danced rapidly across the sky, like a musical symphony orchestrated in beams of light. I laughed as I stared at the natural phenomena, words could not express the joy that flooded my heart, I’d waited my entire life to see this and it was even better than I’d ever imagined. I put on my new moose hide gloves, keeping my hands nice and toasty as I stared at the sky for hours. At last the show came to an end and with great fulfillment I fell asleep.
What an amazing day in the north. So glad you got to see the Northern Lights. What a site they are.