Kerry McCluskey
Northern News Services

NNSL (Jun 22/98) - Steven Kooneeluisie wasn't exactly scared, but he couldn't stop thinking about a big pizza while his party was stranded outside of Pangnirtung earlier this month.

"I wasn't scared because we have plenty of fish, tea and sugar, but no bread, no piles of biscuits, nothing. I wish I had a big cake and I thought of a big pizza," said Kooneeliusie after he had been home for a few days.

The ordeal began when Kooneeliusie and his friends, Pituilie Eeseemialiee and Naimee Akpalialuk, along with their two children planned a fishing trip about 15 kilometres from Pangnirtung on Uvataqtuq Lake.

They left early in the weekend and went to the place where Kooneeliusie goes every spring to catch char.

"We were only supposed to be there in the fishing place, only for two days. But the third time we're going to sleep, it was windy -- around 40- to 50-kilometre winds there that night. The tent was almost blown away. Good thing it was tied on the qamotiq," said Kooneeliusie.

Because of the high winds and the warmer-than-usual temperatures, the snow around their campsite melted fast and the group woke after hearing a loud noise.

"The tent was really close by and I woke up and kind of an avalanche happened. It was close by, near the river and I woke up and hear a boom because of the avalanche."

The combination of falling and melting snow destroyed the trail they had planned to use to go home. After discussing it, Kooneeliusie and Eeseemialiee went to get a closer look.

"We saw the same avalanche, the same slushy snow and that means, I think, we're stranded. The trail was melted and the river had lots of water."

Well acquainted with the land and search-and-rescue procedures, the group knew it had to stay put until a search party could be organized to find them.

While they waited, however, another problem presented itself.

"The water everywhere was melting on top of the ice at the fishing place. I think we have to get out of this place because the water is going up on the ice," said Kooneeliusie, who added that the move required them to make a difficult decision -- risk travelling by land or venture out on the soft ice.

"We had to go east, about three miles down the river. The ice on top was kind of soft but we checked it twice and started to move out.

"We had to go right away and it was the only way to go further. The other way was by land and we tried that once and it was too soft and the snowmobile got stuck."

After safely reaching their new camp, they realized that all possible trails were gone and their only option was to wait for the search party.

"The second day we heard a plane nearby and we knew they checked the river. They knew we moved and we heard the plane but didn't see it and it didn't see us."

Kooneeliusie said he felt relieved because they were running out of everything but fish and he was down to his last cigarette.

"In the afternoon, we were resting and suddenly we of heard a plane close by. We walked out of the tent and they found us. We were waving and oh, my God, they found us."

The plane dropped a package of food, cigarettes and a CB radio that they used to make sure that everyone was in good health.

The search plane used the radio to guide Kooneeliusie and the group to a safe path over the sea ice, where they met a rescue crew who got them home by snowmobile and canoe.

"The first thing I did was eat a big meal. I ate lots and lots of bread."

Kooneeliusie said he had never seen such fast melting conditions in his 45 years and that most of his concerns were for the other members of the group.

"The only thing that I was worried about was that there was a baby with us and it's a good thing somebody didn't get sick. If somebody got sick, I was going to hike back to Pangnirtung."

RCMP members from Pangnirtung said the entire rescue operation cost $6,000.