Why have you chosen to lead such an extreme life, living alone with huskies and exploring the Arctic?
I was born in Walthamstow, but spent my school days in Cornwall. My earliest memories are about roaming clifftops and fields, alone. I loved it. In my twenties, I lost the only woman I've ever loved and, for three years, I searched for a reason to stay alive. Then one day I saw a picture of a team of huskies in the Yukon. Within three years I'd made my first journey alone on the Arctic Ocean.
It's not been easy. In the early days, I held down several jobs at once. I ran 10 miles to work and 10 miles back and slogged through 56 hours overtime a week. At night I washed dishes and would eat food off the plates to save money. The chefs knew and in the end they cooked me meals. I've clocked up three years in journeys here now and have been granted permanent Canadian residency. The Arctic is the only place that's ever felt like home.
Have your travels been dangerous?
The Arctic Ocean is the most unstable physical feature on earth. It's only a crust of ice. I've been charged by bears, followed by a wolf pack for days on end and surrounded by rabid Arctic foxes. I've passed blood-spattered ice from polar bear kills and looked behind me after seeing grizzly bear pad marks bigger than my chest. I've spooked myself with legends of the areas I've travelled through, but the biggest fear is always the cold. Here, it reigns supreme. Storms can be bad because they have the potential to break up ice from under my tent. The most horrific storm had me pinned down for days. It ripped in off the ocean, over the tundra, and held down the western Arctic community of Inuvik. Friends here thought the dogs and I couldn't possibly have survived those few days.
Do you ever get lonely?
No. To me, this life has always felt natural. I like the heightened awareness that being alone brings and the sense of achievement you get from completing demanding tasks single-handed. As with pain, I think we all have comfort thresholds. I also don't like to be held back and consequently I'm not the easiest person to travel or live with.
Are there any dangers involved with relying on a team of huskies?
I've always loved working dogs. My first dog was a Jack Russell called Lucy who I took from a farmer who was threatening to shoot her. From that moment on we were hardly apart. I've named icebergs and lakes after her. The Arctic is the domain of the sled dog. Dogs were responsible for getting the early explorers successfully to the North and South Poles over 100 years ago. I have 10 pure- bred Canadian Eskimo dogs. They're the result of ruthless selection over thousands of years in the Arctic and there are only 200 left in the world. Mentally and physically they're phenomenal.
Are polar bears a real threat?
The polar bear is the largest land carnivore in the world and as such will consider stalking and killing me as a source of food. They can weigh in at more than 1,500lb, stand on their hind legs over 11ft tall and bludgeon a 550lb seal with a single blow. I find this threatening as I weigh only 170lb.
They follow open water in order to hunt and have a tremendous and constant drive to find food. Bears attack if they feel threatened and may charge if they have cubs, are protecting a kill or feel cornered. An attack will end only when one of us is dead. However, it's possible to stay out of each other's way and my policy is to remain unnoticed and unchallenged. I've learnt a lot from the Inuit hunters.
And your most recent trip?
I trekked east for 400 miles from the Horton River in the northwest Arctic along the coast into the Nunavut territory with two huskies, Pingo and Hansel, in September. I used maps drawn up from aerial photographs shot 43 years ago, a Recta compass and a Garmin Vista GPS. Like sea ice, the tundra offers little topography to help with bearings. Sometimes the thing I was aiming for moved and turned out to be a grizzly bear.
Do you ever long to take a conventional holiday?
No.
· For further information on Gary Rolfe and his expeditions in the Arctic, visit www.garyrolfe.com
