Last fall, I took part in an unusual residency program in the Arctic Circle. I spent two and a half weeks aboard Antigua, a three-masted sailing ship with 29 artists and writers on an expedition to explore the Svalbard archipelago. It was quite a trip.
I wrote a story about my experience for the current issue of The Journal of Alta California. We hiked on frozen tundra, encountered a polar bear, hunkered down during a howling wind storm, and gazed in awe at the spectral beauty of aurora borealis. My shipmates were artists and writers who’d come from Hong Kong, Berlin, Toronto, Washington, D.C., and elsewhere for an off-the-grid wilderness experience.
Two of the gorgeous photos in the story were taken by the expedition leader Sarah Gerats, a photographer herself when she is not leading groups around the Arctic. The stunning photo of the polar bear we saw was taken by my shipmate Frankie Carino, an L.A.-based photographer. And the startling archival photo of explorer Louise Arner Boyd and the dead polar bear comes from the Marin History Museum.
Several friends have asked if I’m really planning to go back to the Arctic soon (perhaps alarmed by my description of Covid’s arrival on the ship). The answer? I hope so, if I can land a berth on an expedition in the summer of 2024 or 2025. I’ve written to two captains of Arctic boats and have heard back from one of them. I’ve also begun exploring the possibility of joining a commercial expeditions. Wish me luck!
