This podcast episode covers all the details and preparations for a long solo trip in the Arctic that I'm starting today! After 30 hours of driving and a 2 hour bush plane flight to Nueltin Lake I'll be heading north of the treeline direct into the Barren Lands of the Arctic.

Once there, I'll be completely alone and out of touch for 30 days. The only written description of the river is a few pages in a book written by a missionary in the late 1800's.

The trip spans the Thlewiaza, The-Tinne, Kognak and Tha-Anne rivers and will probably include caribou and bear encounters, whitewater and giant ice-covered lakes, and insanely complex navigational challenges.

Once the trip is underway, I'll be sharing a few photos from the field a small satellite device So if you're interested in adventure and how well jiu-jitsu works against giant Hudson Bay Polar Bears then follow along!

The best place to stay current is probably on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/essentialwilderness/), although this page on Essential Wilderness (https://tinyurl.com/nunavutsolo) should have a map that updates with my location once I'm on the water

I believe that pictures from this trip will also get cross-posted on

Threads (https://www.threads.net/@stephan_kesting)

Tiktok (https://www.tiktok.com/@essentialwilderness), and

Youtube (https://www.youtube.com/@essentialwilderness/community)

I'll be back to the world and jiu-jitsu in late July. Hopefully!

Cheers, Stephan

P.S. I'm telling my publisher that this is my official book tour, so if you haven't yet pre-ordered Perseverance, Life and Death in the Subarctic (the story of another trip I did up there) then please help me out!

You can grab it at Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/Perseverance-Death-Subarctic-Stephan-Kesting/dp/1639368612/

https://www.amazon.ca/Perseverance-Death-Subarctic-Stephan-Kesting/dp/1639368612/

Barnes and Noble

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/perseverance-stephan-kesting/1145682384

And Indigo. https://www.indigo.ca/en-ca/perseverance-life-and-death-in-the-subarctic/9781639368617.html