Alone and adrift upon the Arctic Ocean, a stranded Inuk hunter was anticipating an overdue rescue late Sunday night, two-and-a-half days after the ice floe he was snowmobiling across broke away and began floating aimlessly across the Northwest Passage.
David Idlout, a 39-year-old hunter from Resolute, Nunavut, set out from his home Friday morning to check on the sorry state of local hunting grounds when he ran into trouble.
For much of the winter, warm weather had softened his favoured sealing grounds, turning them into a chunky porridge of floe ice. With temperatures plunging below minus-30, Mr. Idlout hopped on his snowmobile to see if conditions had improved.
They hadn't.
As he roared homeward from the floes, making sure to re-trace his icy path, he noticed the trail ahead fall away into an expanse of open water. He realized then that the pan of ice he'd been whizzing across had broken away and was now drifting slowly across the Arctic Ocean.
A seasonal hunting guide, he was prepared for disaster. He dug a satellite phone from his gear and called his common-law wife, Tracy Kalluk.
“I kind of panicked,” Ms. Kalluk said. “But he was very calm. He even managed to calm me down and tell me who to call.”
Authorities in the 252-person town notified the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, based in Trenton, Ont. Within hours, the Centre scrambled two Hercules cargo planes from Winnipeg and a Cormorant helicopter from Greenwood, N.S.
But the first of the Hercs wouldn't arrive for several hours. As the day wore on, the temperature fell to -50 in the wind and Mr. Idlout built a makeshift windbreak out of snow.
Eventually the planes dropped a tent, a stove, food and extra sat-phone batteries.
“He's set up the tent, popped up the stove and, from what I understand, made himself quite comfortable,” said Canadian Forces spokesman Captain Noel Paine.
Delays have tested that comfort. During its trip north to Iqaluit, the Cormorant helicopter developed a mechanical problem, postponing the last 850 kilometres of its 1,950-kilometre journey to Resolute until Sunday afternoon.
It was expected to arrive at Mr. Idlout's location by 10 p.m. local time. The floe has drifted at least 15 kilometres since Friday, but the family said Mr. Idlout had an emergency locator beacon to assist rescuers in finding him.
“I know he's safe and he's not cold or hungry or thirsty,” said Ms. Kalluk, who's waiting at home with friends and the couple's two children, eight-year-old Natasha and 11-year-old Joshua. “But he's tired of being out there. That helicopter is coming all the way from Nova Scotia. I'm not sure why they don't keep one closer by.”
A spokesman for the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre said that Cormorant helicopters are best-suited for the job. They are currently stationed on the West Coast and East Coast, but not the North Coast.
“This was the closest Cormorant we had,” said Scott Miller. “Unfortunately, there are no helicopters for charter up there.”
One of Canada's northernmost communities, Resolute lies roughly 1,000 kilometres north-east of Yellowknife.
Late Sunday afternoon, Ms. Kalluk, was agonizing over how to properly welcome Mr. Idlout home.
“I have to figure out what to cook,” she said. “Luckily he's not a picky eater. But before any of that, I'll tell him he should be more careful.”
Stranded on a floe since it broke loose while he was snowmobiling across it on Friday, 39 year-old David Idlout is huddled in a tent dropped by rescue planes awaiting the arrival of a rescue helicopter that is scrambling from CFB Greenwood, Nova Scotia, the closest rescue helicopter to Resolute, Nunavut.

While many places are experiencing cold temperatures, much of the Arctic has had an unusually mild winter. Too much so for professional hunter and hunting guide Idlout, who was out checking if conditions had improved after a cold snap. The breakaway floe is just more evidence conditions are still too warm, the ice too soft.

Idlout's survival gear included a satellite phone, and he called his wife Tracy Kalluk as soon as he became aware the floe had broken free and was drifting into the Northwest Passage. She in turn contacted local authorities in the population 252 remote village, who got in touch with the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre, based in Trenton, Ontario

The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre scrambled two Hercules aircraft which were able to drop gear to the stranded man on Friday. The floe has been moving into the water between Griffith and Cornwallis Islands, and is approximately 15 kilometres from Resolute Bay. The supplies included a tent, stove, and additional communications gear including a locator beacon.

Now well into his third night on the ice, Idlout's rescue is expected within hours. An earlier attempt was delayed when the helicopter, after its long journey from its home base, experienced mechanical failures when trying to lift off from Resolute. Weather conditions are not helpful either, as Resolute remains under blizzard warning with poor visibility and 50 km winds. His wife is speaking with Idlout every two hours, and expects the helicopter to lift him off the ice early Monday local time.