Where I work, some have asked, so here it goes!!!

Hey there,

Some have asked where I work and what I do so here it goes....

I work at a diamond mine in Canada's arctic. We work two weeks at site, then enjoy two weeks off at home. We are a fly-in only camp, but this time of year we have a iceroad that you may have heard of from the first season of Ice Road Truckers, that is on the history channel. But camp life is not so bad, there is satalite TV, internet, phones, full size gym, areobics room, squash courts, weights, sauna, and common areas for pay per views and movies. Also the whole accommodations has a cleaning staff and a catering company that cooks 3 times a day and has pretty healthy choices for lunches and snacks. The only downfall is the extreme cold weather, and being away from home for two weeks, but it pays well, and I guess I actually only work half the year, and I get 6 weeks holidays a year, so I guess I work less than half the year.

The area in the winter time is extreme, exposed skin can freeze in a minute, and people have to work in pairs if going outside. Buildings are connected by corridors that we call arctic corridors as they shield us from the cold. It is not uncommon to see vehicles running all times, and some even run their vehicles for their two weeks, cause once they get cold the take forever to warm up again, if they start again. All the power here at site come from diesel generators that are fed by fuel and we get all our fuel on the ice road for the 6-8 weeks it is open. The mine is acually on a small island so the two pits in the pictures are half formed on land and have been carved out in the lake and a dike had to be built to hold back the water. The mine also goes underground and there is a labyrinth of tunnels under the surface. There is almost every type of heavy equipment here from large cranes, two story dump trucks that can carry 300 tonnes, loaders, graders, dozers, and school busses to transport all the workers. The place goes on 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

It is hard to believe that anything can live up here since the place is pretty much flat with no trees, but there is an abundance of wildlife up here from wolverines, grizzley bears, foxes, wolves, rabbits, mice, martins, falcons, and other little critters. There is foliage on the ground that changes colors in the spring, summer and fall but in the winter this place is like the moon... flat, white, and very desolate.

Here are some recent pictures.


IMG_0580 by legend1973, on Flickr


IMG_0584 by legend1973, on Flickr


IMG_0555 by legend1973, on Flickr


IMG_0516 by legend1973, on Flickr


IMG_0513 by legend1973, on Flickr


IMG_0590 by legend1973, on Flickr