Even though we had two lousy nights, the company was quite entertaining and the blubber food was fatteningly good. After a breakfast of more artery clogging delights, we went over to hear a lecture from a local Inuit woman named Caroline who told us about Inuit culture and how most families were destroyed by the Canadian government when the Inuit children were ripped from their families and put into camps to teach them how to assimilate into the dominant culture. She was a fascinating woman and shared her battles with alcoholism as a result of the depression she suffered from being interned in the camps. She has now been sober for many years and tries to focus on the positives in life rather than dwelling in the past.

Then we spent the afternoon dogsledding. Perhaps all the blubber food has made us all too heavy, but the ride was really slow. We sat two to a sled. The poor dogs needed some horsepower to pull our heavy asses because the ride was really slow. After riding it was time to go back to the diner to fill our tanks. Thank heavens the heavens were clear and the third night was the charm. We were privy to the most glorious celestial show on earth.

The lights started out as a thick grey band across the sky and then we just waited for it to grow and change color. Our little hopeful group was sheltered in a trailer with two attics with Plexiglas bubbles. To reach the bubbles I had to climb up a ladder and then scoot inside. There were little stools to sit on and a 360 view of the sky. I sat in the bubble waiting with anticipation and then it started. I knew it would take me 15 minutes to shimmy down the ladder and pile on the many layers of fleece and down so I opted to stay in the bubble, forego photographing them, and shout to the others to go outside. I yelled, “Hurry, hurry!!!! Put on your coats and get out there with your cameras. It’s starting and it is AMAZING.” And indeed it was. The grey band slowly twisted into a dancing fat ribbon of pale green, then the edges glowed to a darker green, and the whole light flowed like liquid being poured from above and then it started dancing and twisting and growing and glowing and then the edges started showing a pink glow. Then it all faded and it was time to sit and wait again for the next show. I bounded out of the attic to see the photos that the others got.

To get ready for the next round, I put on half of my layers and climbed back into the bubble with the rest. That way, I could dress in the bubble and just scoot down the ladder, grab my preset camera on the tripod and dash out the door. I had also taken a blanket so I could just lay in the snow and watch the green lights dance above me. It was truly a magical night. Unfortunately the wind was so strong that the snow drifts were piling up on the roads and we had to head back to the hotel around 1:30am.