Lynn Lau
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Mar 18/02) - Two dozen British soldiers clad in yellow-and-black Gore-Tex landed in Tuktoyaktuk last week to undergo arctic survival training.

The soldiers, based at the British Army Training Unit in Suffield, Alta., usually take a trip North each year, but this is the first time they've come to this neck of the tundra.

Maj. Martin Travers said the trip went so well, the unit will likely plan similar trips annually.

"It was fascinating," Travers said. "Any soldier needs to be ready to operate anywhere in the world. As British people, it's the chance of a lifetime to come this far North, inside the Arctic Circle."

The first group of 12 drove from Suffield to Dawson City, Yukon, earlier this month. In Dawson, a group of Canadian Rangers took them through back-country exercises and some hunting and trapping techniques. The soldiers then drove to Tuktoyaktuk March 10 and spent two days in town going through survival training with Ookpik Tours.

They learned some hunting basics, skied, rode with dog sleds, drove snowmobiles, and built iglus to sleep in. "The real surprise was the iglus," Travers said. "There was some real skepticism about the iglus and people were really impressed with the fact they worked so well." He said it took about four hours for the group to find the right snow and build the shelters.

Last week, the first team drove back to Inuvik where they swapped equipment and vehicles with a second team of a soldiers that arrived by plane Wednesday. That group, led by Capt. Kate Gibbs, underwent the same exercises and also visited the schools in Tuktoyaktuk and Inuvik to speak with students.

Coming in off his Tuk tour Wednesday, warrant officer Michael Cox said he was surprised how civilized things were in the Arctic. "It was very interesting. We see it on TV and we hear about it in school, but we never get a chance to come up and visit. It was the chance of a lifetime."