CHARBONNEAU: The odds of making it through the Northwest Passage
IF I WERE A BETTING MAN, I would bet that we’d make it through the fabled Northwest Passage. Adventure Canada has had good success with our ship, the Ocean Endeavour. Eight of the last ten attempts have made to Kugluktuk.
However if you wanted me to bet on John Franklin’s chances in 1845, I would be more hesitant.
There were times when it didn’t look promising for us. Ice sloshes back and forth in the channels and it takes a skillful captain to pick a way through the ice. Some days one path would open up only to close up the next.
Many explorers tried to find the Northwest Passage, but probably the most well-known was Sir John Franklin. He left England aboard HMS Erebus and HMS Terror. We visited the grave sites on Beechey Island where two of his men perished where they overwintered.