Polar Bear Alert

It's only one week to go now. Today, I woke up thinking, or rather, worrying, about Polar Bears. We have been told by the organiser that we are unlikely to see any Polar Bears in the Auyuittuq National Park but, being the investigative journalist that I am, I have been doing some research. Firstly, I decided to call the Hunters' Association in Pangnirtung (our destination) and spoke to a very nice hunter who told me that they had shot a Polar Bear the day before. I was, infact, calling the Association to find out how Climate Change had affected their lives but he just dropped into his answer this little bombshell about the Polar Bear. I then asked him how cold it was and he said -30, colder than last year. I definitely need to find some thermal knickers. I'm sure I was told it would only be - 10! Despite the cold, I carried on with my research into Polar Bears. I found an old story about a group who went to Baffin Island and were warned that there was a Polar Bear roaming around the Auyuittuq National Park. They were advised to sleep in huts in the park which are located every ten miles or so. They didn't get to meet the Polar Bear but they did get so cold they couldn't even wee outside. Instead, they used their rehydrated food bags to wee in. In the morning they woke to a bag of frozen urine. Thank God I've got my Little John and Lady Jane pee bottles! I bought a lovely DVD starring that handsome chap, Ewan McGregor, all about Polar Bears. Some people watch romantic comedies at night. It just shows how much this forthcoming trip is affecting me. Next, I will report on what I need to do if I do encounter a Polar Bear. Thanks to Ray Mears I am reading up on the best tactics. My natural instint may be to run but I have a sneaking suspicion I may just freeze.