{"id":44953,"date":"2017-05-30T15:24:20","date_gmt":"2017-05-30T19:24:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/?p=44953"},"modified":"2017-05-30T16:13:21","modified_gmt":"2017-05-30T20:13:21","slug":"brock-alumnus-embarks-on-arctic-trek","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brocku.ca\/brock-news\/2017\/05\/brock-alumnus-embarks-on-arctic-trek\/","title":{"rendered":"Brock alumnus embarks on Arctic trek"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/b>As modern-day voyageur Adam Shoalts (BA \u201909) ventures to the Arctic this spring on an amazing one-man expedition, he\u2019s doing so with signature red Brock gear that\u2019s sure to stand out against the tundra.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

In mid-May, the 31-year-old Pelham native departed his home in Sudbury, intent on honouring the country he loves dearly with an epic adventure.<\/span><\/p>\n

To commemorate Canada\u2019s 150<\/span>th<\/span> birthday, Shoalts plans to spend five months walking and canoeing thousands of kilometres across the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut. And as he traverses the great northern landscape, following a route from the Alaska border to Hudson\u2019s Bay, he\u2019ll be warmed \u2014 literally \u2014 by reminders from his alma mater.<\/span><\/p>\n

Brock University is a co-sponsor of Shoalts\u2019 exhibition, contributing lightweight, quick-dry outerwear to help during his Ulyssean excursion through forest, muskeg and tundra.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Adam

Adam Shoalts (BA ’09) will traverse diverse landscapes during his 4,000-kilometre trek across the Arctic that began this spring. (Photo credit: Alexia Wiatr)<\/p><\/div>\n

While dreaming up trip possibilities to mark Canada\u2019s milestone birthday, Shoalts began researching a canoeing trek that took teams of travellers from Vancouver to Halifax in 1967 in celebration of the country\u2019s first 100 years.<\/span><\/p>\n

Recreating that journey was appealing, but Canada has changed a lot in 50 years, and today that original \u201967 path would basically bring him to a Tim Hortons every third day. The intrusion of civilization and pop culture were not in his game plan.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cTo up the ante and keep the route in the wilderness, I figured I\u2019d take it to a new extreme and do it across the Arctic,\u201d he said in the days leading up to his sendoff.<\/span><\/p>\n

Shoalts hopes the expedition will encourage Canadians to \u201cthink more about the country\u2019s northern wilderness and what kind of future it might have over the next 150 years.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Few people realize the \u201cincredibly diverse\u201d landscapes the country\u2019s remote north has to offer, he said, with most envisioning a land filled with ice, snow and little else.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll be covering about 4,000 kilometres across a variety of landscapes: the spectacular peaks of the Richardson Mountains, low-lying muskeg, black spruce and tamarack forests, high-walled granite canyons, raging whitewater rivers, slow-flowing muddy streams, sandy deserts, lush tundra cloaked in wild flowers, flat plains, rolling hills, rugged outcrops, and yes, quite a bit of snow and ice,\u201d Shoalts said.<\/span><\/p>\n

With a route that, by necessity, is mainly upstream, the adventurer will brave the elements, experiencing temperatures expected to fluctuate from -15 C to 25 C.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll be travelling at a pretty frantic pace, so there won\u2019t be much time to dwell on anything \u2014 this is a race against the seasons,\u201d he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMy biggest concern is ice conditions and adverse winds. Those are two major factors outside my control that could prevent me from reaching my goal.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n