All posts by: Nera Cornell

Follow 15 year old Nera's blogs as she sailed to Greenland and the Canadian Arctic in the summer of 2014 in an attempt to transit the Northwest Passage. Nera sailed aboard Aventura with her grandfather Jimmy Cornell . She is a Blue Planet Odyssey Ambassador for the northern route.

Musk ox of the North

The Australian yacht ‘Drina’ first informed us of these shaggy ungulates via a boat email telling us to keep our eyes peeled for Musk ox and walrus on the rocks and tundra of Cuming …

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Roundup and Farewell

We’ve been stuck in ice, walking among ivory animal bones, talking with Canadian Inuit, and lots more over this 2014 summer.

We’ve seen Dundas Harbour and the great Polar bear (Ursus maritimus), Cuming inlet …

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Erebus & Terror Bay, Beechey Island

There were already two boats anchored in the bay when we arrived – Manevaï and Lillian B. They were, like us, waiting for the ice to melt so the Northwest Passage might become navigable.

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Passing Baffin Island

Yesterday we finally escaped the grip of Lancaster Sound and reached the open sea. We are now sailing past Baffin Island with icebergs dotted about around us, but easy to …

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People of Arctic Bay

Immediately when we jumped off our orange dinghy and into the frigid waters of Arctic Bay we were met with a sea of expectant faces who all clamored and hollered for our attention. All boys, …

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Secchi in ice

The earliest recordings of measuring the clarity of water was by the German naturalist Adelbert von Chamisso during a Russian expedition in 1815–1818. The Secchi disk was invented in 1865 by Pietro Angelo Secchi who …

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Beset in ice

Aventura motoring through ice

Well, since the last of my logs, we have acquired a new experience to tick off our bucket-lists.

By our decision to sail to Arctic Bay, we were …

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Arctic Tundra

When you picture the Arctic terrain, you imagine rolling ice sheets and sky-high glaciers, right?

Well, ever thought about what happens in the summer when all that begins to melt and some of the ground …

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Polar Bear Sighting

Did he raise his shaggy head in defiance and in his mind scream his annoyance at us humans bringing our metal craft to disturb his cold domain?

“The name ‘Arctic’ is derived from arctos, …

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Trawling for plastic

On the boat we have an ongoing science program which includes the Secchi disk which I haven’t had a chance to use yet and will include in later blogs, and also the plastic trawl which …

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Life in Aasiaat

In Aasiaat the local people were quite interested in a yacht like us coming into the port. The rest of the boats were a mixture of fishing boats and little dinghies with outboard motors so …

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First ocean voyage

Nera crosses the Arctic circle

I knew in the back of my mind that I would get seasick, but the reality is a lot less appetising than the thought. I threw up twice …

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Wildlife in Nuuk

Oddly enough, when you arrive at a harbour, you expect it to be filled with squawking gulls. There really aren’t many: a few gulls and some huge and loud crows. This …

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Journey to Nuuk

Three aeroplanes, London to Copenhagen to Kangerlussaq and onwards to Nuuk. It’s fine large airbuses with lots of people, but down to a small 37 person plane I was not particularly comfortable. …

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Preparing for the Northwest Passage

Rochelle and Secchi disk

I created the Secchi disk at my school – Rednock School – in their tech department. We used the laser cutter to cut the 30cm white disk with two …

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Introducing Nera

My name is Nera Cornell. I am a 15 year old British teenager, and I go to Rednock School in a small town called Dursley in the UK.

My hobbies are horse-riding, art, and Explorer …

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