A few days before departure, the team is officially presented with Explorers Club Flag No. 12 in New York, continuing the tradition of this storied institution.
This flag has accompanied several expeditions since its first use during the Crane Pacific Expedition in 1928.
It will join our 2026 traverse, marking its very first presence in the Arctic, as a powerful symbol and a direct link to nearly a century of exploration history.
Dealy Island marks the team’s entry into the field.
It is here that the expedition truly begins, in a place deeply shaped by history. The island served as a wintering base for HMS Resolute, under the command of Captain Henry Kellett, during the search for the men of the Franklin expedition, who had disappeared eight years earlier while attempting to navigate the Northwest Passage.
On site, Hubert, Bertrand, and Mike will see Kellett’s House, built as a refuge in case any of Franklin’s survivors reached the island. Now reconstructed, this wooden shelter once held enough provisions to sustain 66 men for several months.
Starting here is no coincidence. Dealy Island stands as one of those anchor points in Arctic history, from which numerous sledging expeditions set out in search of lost crews and in the hope of uncovering the mystery of the Northwest Passage.
A discreet yet meaningful landmark, Parry Rock, designated a National Historic Site in 1930, marks a passage in the footsteps of early British exploration in the Arctic archipelago.
This sandstone block, several meters long, rises slightly above the shoreline, about 16 meters above sea level.
It was here that William Edward Parry and his men wintered in 1819–1820 with HMS Hecla and HMS Griper. Before their departure, the names of the ships and their captains were carved into the stone, a trace still visible today. The site was revisited several times throughout the 19th century, notably during the searches related to the Franklin expedition.
In 1909, Captain Joseph-Elzéar Bernier installed a plaque asserting Canadian sovereignty over the Arctic archipelago (see photo).
Long before these visits, these lands formed part of a broader space traveled by the Inuit, through seasonal movements shaped by Arctic conditions.
At the western tip of Melville Island, Cape Dundas reaches out toward an open and often hostile horizon.
This cape marks a boundary, a tipping point between known lands and more uncertain spaces. Conditions here are exposed, the wind constant, and progress depends closely on the state of the ice.
It is a demanding passage, where every decision matters and where the landscape sets the pace.
The crossing of McClure Strait is one of the key moments of the expedition.
This stretch of sea, located between Banks Island and Melville Island, is historically known for its difficult ice conditions, which long prevented full navigation. It was in this region that Robert McClure and the crew of HMS Investigator became trapped in the ice in the early 1850s, during the search for the Franklin expedition.
Even today, the passage requires adapting to prevailing conditions and proceeding with caution.
The endpoint of the traverse, Mercy Bay is a place deeply marked by history.
It was here that HMS Investigator, under the command of Robert McClure, remained trapped in the ice for several winters. When Bedford Pim reached the site in 1853, he found a weakened but still surviving crew, marking one of the most significant rescues in Arctic history.
For the team, reaching Mercy Bay means completing the journey by arriving at this place steeped in memory, where endurance, isolation, and hope converge.
Expedition Updates
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