In this episode of Explore, podcast host David McGuffin speaks with Canadian climber and expedition leader Shira Biner, who led the first female-plus team to establish a new 600-metre route on Eglinton Tower in the remote fjords of Baffin Island. Biner recounts the 2025 expedition, which was partly funded by The Nat Gillis Adventure Photography Expedition Grant awarded by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.Over 29 days, the team travelled entirely under human power, skiing 150 kilometres across Arctic sea ice with teammates Kelly Fields, Heather Smallpage and Nathalie Afonina to reach the towering granite walls of Eglinton Fjord.From navigating crevassed ice and polar-bear country to sleeping on narrow ledges high above the fjord, Biner shares the physical and emotional demands of exploratory climbing at the edge of the world.Through her work as an expedition leader and a climber, Biner explores the intersection of human-powered travel, alpine climbing and geographic discovery. Based in Squamish, B.C., she approaches mountaineering as both an athletic pursuit and a form of storytelling. In 2023, Biner received an RCGS Expedition Grant to support an alpine rock-climbing journey on the east coast of Baffin Island. In 2025, she received the RCGS Nat Gillis Adventure Photography & Expedition Grant, recognizing her leadership and visual storytelling in the North.Topics covered:* The 2025 Baffin Island expedition and first female-plus ascent of Eglinton Tower* Skiing and hauling gear 150 kilometres across Arctic sea ice* Climbing with Kelly Fields, Heather Smallpage and Nathalie Afonina* Team dynamics, leadership and risk management in remote climbing* The legacy of the late Natalie Gillis and women-led exploration* Why human-powered travel remains central to adventure and storytelling

“From 1875 to 1975, there were 6,000 shipwrecks on the Great Lakes — one a week for a century. Everyone remembers one: the

" Hubert Darrell is the greatest explorer of all time that no one has ever heard of. The Norwegian great Amundsen, the first to the South Pole and first person to sail through the Northwest Passage successfully, actually met Darrell in the Arctic. He was in awe, and he wrote that with men like Darrell, 'I could go to the moon.'"In this episode of Explore, RCGS Explorer-in-Residence and bestselling author Adam Shoalts discusses his latest book, Vanished Beyond the Map, which chronicles the life of the nearly forgotten Arctic explorer Hubert Darrell.Darrell, once a legendary figure from the early 20th century, made incredible solo journeys on foot across the Arctic, from Alaska to Hudson's Bay and onto the Arctic Ocean, earning the respect and praise of more renowned explorers like Roald Amundsen, Vilhjalmur Stefansson and many others Shoalts shares his exhaustive, years-long research process, which includes tracking down archival materials and retracing Darrell's steps in remote northern regions, seeking the answer to the mystery of Darrell's disappearance in 1910. The conversation delves into Darrell's respect for Indigenous cultures, his disdain for conventional society and the enduring call of the wild.Adam Shoalts is a Canadian explorer, adventurer and bestselling author renowned for his epic solo journeys through some of the world’s most far-reaching northern landscapes. Shoalts has paddled nearly 4,000 kilometres alone across Canada’s Arctic, mapped uncharted northern rivers, and authored books like Beyond the Trees and Where the Falcon Flies. Shoalts currently serves as the Explorer-in-Residence at the Royal Canadian Geographical Society (RCGS) and is a passionate storyteller about wilderness, history and adventure.This episode also features a brief interview with my 26-year-old nephews, Callum and Cianan McGuffin, who are on the final leg of a three-year sailing expedition around the world. They are currently navigating one of the most challenging passages on Earth, the Canadian Northwest Passage. You can follow their journey on social media at @mcguffinbrothersadventures.For listeners interested in learning more about Shoalts’ expeditions and his latest book, they can attend a fireside chat, taking place on October 17th at 8:30 p.m. at the Arc’teryx Store located in Toronto at 339 Queen St W, ON.

“I think in any exploration there’s a nobility of purpose — it’s more than just pounding my chest and saying, ‘Hey, I’m on top of Mount Kilimanjaro.’ It’s about filling a knowledge gap or serving the greater good.” — Richard Wiese, President, The Explorer's ClubJoin us for a fascinating conversation with Richard Wiese, world-renowned explorer, Emmy Award-winning host of Born to Explore and the newly re-elected 46th President of The Explorers Club (https://www.explorers.org/), a role he has held seven times, including as the youngest-ever club president in 2002.Wiese has spent decades leading expeditions around the world, from skiing to the North Pole to summiting Mount Kilimanjaro 18 times, all while championing conservation, inclusivity and the future of exploration. In this episode, he shares incredible stories of adventure, discovery and resilience, along with his vision for what comes next in the world of science and exploration.We also delve into the 2025 Global Exploration Summit (https://www.explorers.org/calendar-of-events/glex-ottawa/) (GLEX), which will take place from September 12 to 14 at 50 Sussex Drive in Ottawa, headquarters of The Royal Canadian Geographical Society and Canadian Geographic (RCGS).Hosted in partnership with the RCGS, this landmark event will bring together explorers, scientists, and storytellers from around the world to chart the future of exploration and celebrate the shared human pursuit of discovery. This year’s event will also mark the first time GLEX will be held on Canadian soil.Founded in 1904, The Explorers Club, headquartered in New York City, has supported legendary figures such as Jane Goodall, Dr. Sylvia Earle, James Cameron, Sir Edmund Hillary, Tenzing Norgay, and the Apollo 11 crew, among many others.

“On a paddleboard, you‘re vulnerable to tides and winds. You don‘t fight them—you learn to fit into natural rhythms.”Journalist and author Dan Rubinstein joins the Explore Podcast for the second instalment in our annual canoe/paddling series to share the story of his epic three-month, 2,000-kilometre paddleboarding journey, which took him from Ottawa to New York City and back via the Ottawa River, the St. Lawrence River, Lake Champlain, the Hudson River, the Erie Canal and Lake Ontario. Along the way, he explored the idea of blue space—the powerful impact of water on our bodies, minds, and communities. In this conversation, Dan reflects on his new book Water Borne, the physical and spiritual pull of water, and why paddleboarding offered a unique way to connect with people, places, and history. From Mohawk communities reclaiming their relationship with the St. Lawrence River to grassroots activists restoring the Hudson to strangers offering kindness along the Erie Canal, Dan’s journey reveals how water shapes us, heals us, and connects us across boundaries.

“Days on the water have produced in me the intensifying feeling of somehow growing together with the river: not thinking with it, but being thought by it.” - Robert Macfarlane, Is a River Alive?This episode of Explore was recorded live in May 2025 at the Ottawa International Writers Festival.Robert Macfarlane’s latest book asks the question: Is a River Alive? To answer it, the award-winning British author, academic and environmentalist spent four-and-a-half years exploring rivers and their watersheds across four continents. His journeys take him from an Ecuadorian cloud forest, where pristine waterways are threatened by Canadian gold mining interests, to Chennai, India, where activists are working to bring dead rivers back to life.Macfarlane also led a personally transformative kayak expedition down Quebec’s Magpie River, or Muteshekau Shipu (https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/i-am-mutehekau-shipu-a-rivers-journey-to-personhood-in-eastern-quebec/), on the territory of the Innu Nation. In 2021, the Magpie became the first river in Canada to be granted legal personhood, a landmark effort to prevent it from being dammed by Hydro-Québec.  This conversation explores the rights of nature, environmental activism and the interconnectedness of rivers and people. Through his book and this dialogue, Macfarlane underscores the need for a reimagined relationship with nature, emphasizing the importance of rivers as living entities and the hope found in environmental guardianship. It's a great and thought-provoking talk. Enjoy! Robert Macfarlane is the bestselling author of the award-winning trilogy on landscape and the human heart: Mountains of the Mind, The Wild Places, and The Old Ways, as well as Landmarks and Holloway. His work has been translated into more than a dozen languages and published in more than 20 countries, and widely adapted for television, film and radio by the BBC among others. Macfarlane has contributed to Harper’s Magazine, The New York Times, The Times Literary Supplement

This special live episode of Explore features a thought-provoking conversation about the deep importance of our relationship with water between host David McGuffin and acclaimed Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg scholar, writer, and musician Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, recorded at the Ottawa Writers Festival in May.Leanne discusses her latest book, The Theory of Water: Nishnaabe Maps to the Times Ahead, a genre-defying work that weaves together traditional storytelling, theory, and land-based knowledge. Through various lenses — skiing, eels, beavers, canoes, shorelines — Simpson reflects on the interconnectedness of people, water, and the natural world, and on how we might reimagine our relationships in a time of climate grief and transformation.This live conversation touches on land based learning, Indigenous ethics, and the hopeful possibilities of communal learning, all grounded in Simpson’s unique voice as both an academic and artist.Leanne Betasamosake Simpson is an award winning, best-selling Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg scholar, writer, artist, and musician. She is the author of eight books, including the award-winning Noopiming: The Cure for White Ladies and As We Have Always Done: Indigenous Freedom Through Radical Resistance. Her newest work, The Theory of Water: Nishnaabe Maps to the Times Ahead, continues her powerful exploration of land-based knowledge, community, and hope.Simpson has been widely recognized for her contributions to Indigenous thought, activism, and the arts. She is a member of Alderville First Nation and is based in Peterborough, Ontario.

Canada does funny really, really well. So today we're poking that Canadian funny bone in conversation with Luke Gordon Field as he discusses his journey and experiences as Editor in Chief of The Beaverton, a popular Canadian satirical news site. Over 15 years, Field and his team transformed a side project with humble beginnings into an internationally recognized name in satire. Field recounts anecdotes from the early days, including a pivotal moment involving Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield that catapulted the site to fame (" (https://thebeaverton.com/2013/05/hadfield-comes-home-to-1-37-million-rogers-phone-bill/)Hadfield comes home to $1.37 million Rogers phone bill" (https://thebeaverton.com/2013/05/hadfield-comes-home-to-1-37-million-rogers-phone-bill/)). He talks about the challenges of producing timely satire with impact, the influence of American political comedy, and the unique nuances of Canadian humor. Field also shares insights into their funding model, discussing their successful Patreon campaign that allowed the site to continue and expand. How they escaped Facebooks Canadian news ban. The conversation touches on the creative process and Field's reflections on the comedian's life in Canada.This episode was produced by David McGuffin and ExploreProductions.ca (ExploreProductions.ca) Clare McGuffin - assistant producerDo you have any questions about or suggestions for the podcast? Drop us a line: explore@canadiangeographic.ca or DM me on instagram: @david.mcguffin

“It's the reason why this Canadian Geographic thing means a lot to me. It’s about people and how they live and how we interact and celebrate how beautiful and natural this life can be.”We’ve got a new honorary RCGS Fellow on Explore today! George Stroumboulopoulos is one of Canada’s great interviewers and broadcasters. In the span of his 30-plus year career, he has talked with thousands of people from King Charles to Gord Downie, from Maya Angelou to Lady Gaga and so many, many more. For decades he has served as a cultural prism for Canadians on MuchMusic, and CBC shows like The Hour, George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight and The Strombo Show. He was also a breath of fresh air, for too brief a time, as host of Hockey Night in Canada. He’s now on Apple Music, which has him dividing his time between Toronto and Los Angeles. Active in giving back, Strombo is, among other things, a UN ambassador for the World Food Programme, which has seen him traveling to many of the world’s danger zones. For all his good works, he was inducted into the Order of Canada in 2023. I’ve always enjoyed George’s work. The best interviewers are proxies for their audience, asking the questions we all want answered. There is a warmth, empathy, sense of humour, curiosity and connection in George’s presence that make him one of the very best at what he does. So, I’m really thrilled to be turning the tables on him in this episode. We get into it on a number of fascinating topics, including his childhood in the rough and diverse Jane and Finch area of Toronto, the books, music, movies and concerts that opened up his young mind, interviewing musical heroes like Joe Strummer and The Tragically Hip’s Gord Downie, how Canada’s landscape shapes the music we love, why motorcycles are his preferred mental health escape, and what it’s like living as a Canadian in the U.S. during this “Elbows Up” moment. It’s a great talk. Strap in and enjoy! Do you have any questions for me? Or suggestions for the podcast? Drop me a line: explore@canadiangeographic.ca or DM me on instagram: @david.mcguffin

"It was brutal again. There was a very good chance we wouldn't succeed. And if it's a foregone conclusion that you're going to be successful, is it really an adventure?" - Kevin VallelyRCGS Explorer-in-Residence Ray Zahab and his exploring partner and RCGS Fellow Kevin Vallely have just completed an extraordinary expedition – skiing 500 kilometres across Ellesmere Island, one of the most remote and unforgiving regions in the Canadian High Arctic. This journey, completed in March and April 2025, marks a triumphant return after their 2022 attempt was cut short by extreme weather and treacherous snow conditions (listen to that adventure here (https://canadiangeographic.ca/podcasts/crossing-ellesmere-island-with-ray-zahab/)). Armed with experience and revised plans, the duo set out from the Eureka weather station and traversed to Grise Fiord, enduring relentless sub-30 degrees Celsius temperatures (not including wind chill), whiteouts and punishing terrain. Along the way, they were rewarded with moments of awe: encounters with 31 Arctic wolves, Muskox, Arctic hares and fresh polar bear tracks – reminders of the raw and untamed wilderness they were navigating.Join us as Zahab and Vallely share stories from the trail, reflect on what they learned between expeditions and offer a rare glimpse into a part of Canada few will ever see. Tune in to discover what it takes to journey through the Canadian High Arctic in deep winter.We are also thrilled to share that two of Explore's Passing the Mic sessions are linked to recent Canadian Geographic story nominations for the National Magazine and Digital Publishing Awards. Our podcast training sessions (https://canadiangeographic.ca/podcasts/passing-the-mic-part-2-the-goose-hunt-with-tyler-agligoetok-and-sinclair-lyall/) for Inuit youth in Cambridge Bay inspired an article (https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/diving-deep-in-cambridge-bay/) in the special Nunavut Anniversary issue (https://canadiangeographic.ca/nunavut-25/) of Canadian Geographic, which has been nominated for the Digital Publishing Award’s Best Large Digital Editorial Package for the magazine’s coverage of the 25th anniversary of Nunavut’s establishment as an independent Canadian territory. Canadian Geographic’s associate editor, Tom Lundy, is nominated for a National Magazine Award for his article, Protectors of Aqviqtuuq (https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/protectors-of-aqviqtuuq/), which looks at the attempts to create the first Inuit conservation zone. This story was inspired by Explore’s Passing the Mic session in Taloyoak (https://canadiangeographic.ca/podcasts/aviqtuuq-the-worlds-first-inuit-protected-zone-and-conserved-area-with-jimmy-ullikatalik/), NU. Congrats to everyone involved! 

"Buffalo are renewal. We know that — it’s baked into who we are."This week on Explore, David McGuffin sits down with award-winning filmmaker, scholar, and advocate Tasha Hubbard to discuss her latest documentary, Singing Back the Buffalo.This powerful film delves into the deep, sacred relationship between buffalo and Indigenous Peoples, highlighting how these iconic animals are more than just symbols of the past — they are key to cultural, spiritual and ecological renewal. Singing Back the Buffalo tells the story of the 2014 Buffalo Treaty, an unprecedented agreement now endorsed by over 80 First Nations, committed to restoring buffalo herds to Indigenous lands and traditional territories.Through a focus on the bison reintroduced to Elk Island, Banff and Grasslands National Parks, Hubbard explores how the return of these herds is helping to heal both landscapes and communities. The conversation touches on the interconnectedness of Indigenous knowledge and Western science, the resurgence of biodiversity and the role of buffalo not just as survivors, but as teachers and guides for a more sustainable future.Hubbard is a professor at the University of Alberta and a member of Peepeekisis First Nation in Treaty Four Territory. Her award-winning work challenges colonial narratives, centres Indigenous storytelling and envisions hopeful futures grounded in collective memory and resilience.

In this episode, Explore host David McGuffin is joined by Glynnis Hood, one of the world's leading beaver experts, to mark the 50th anniversary of the beaver as Canada’s national animal. This conversation focuses on this iconic Canadian animals significance in our country’s history. Hood shares her insights into the beaver's resilience, ability to modify landscapes, role as a keystone species, and its substantial impact on its environment. They delve into the beaver's history, from its near extinction to its current resurgence. They highlight the beaver’s role in maintaining biodiversity, regulating water systems, and potentially mitigating climate change and wildfires. The episode also explores human and beaver conflicts and the coexistence strategies that emphasize the beaver's crucial role in shaping Canada’s environment.Glynnis Hood is professor emerita of environmental science at the University of Alberta and an adjunct professor at the University of Saskatchewan.Hood’s research interests include aquatic ecology, biology, and human-wildlife interactions. For more than 20 years, Hood has integrated her research on beaver ecology with more focused studies of beaver management to enhance human-wildlife coexistence. She is the author of Semi-aquatic Mammals: Ecology and Biology and The Beaver Manifesto: Conservation, Conflict, and the Future of Wetlands, which will be released in its second edition this fall. Her first children's book is A Cabin Christmas. Learn more about the beaver in this recent Canadian Geographic (https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/the-dam-the-myth-the-legend-50-years-of-the-beaver/) feature by Brian Banks.00:00 Celebrating 50 years of the beaver as Canada's national animal00:22 The beaver's role in Canadian history and Indigenous culture00:58 Personal beaver encounters and observations01:51 Introduction to beaver expert Glynnis Hood05:32 The beaver's comeback story07:32 Beaver population and historical impact16:53 Beaver's ecological engineering and climate impact21:58 Beavers and wildfire resilience24:30 Epic beaver dams in Wood Buffalo National Park26:05 The impact of beavers on biodiversity28:28 Beavers in the Arctic: challenges and changes30:58 Historical context and the beavers' return32:32 Beaver dam construction techniques39:06 Beaver coexistence tools and strategies41:37 Personal encounters and reflections46:38 Conclusion and final thoughts

In this special episode of the Explore Podcast, we delve into the current and unique intersection of hockey, politics, and patriotism in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff war against Canada. Featuring an insightful discussion with Roy McGregor, award-winning Canadian journalist and author, this episode explores the politically charged 2025 4 Nations Face-Off, where Canada's triumph over the U.S. in the final helped revive a nation feeling battered by its southern neighbour. The conversation touches on where this hockey moment ranks in Canada's history of international triumphs (up there with the '72 Soviet-Canada Summit Series, says MacGregor), the impact the game had on international tensions and Canadian politics, Wayne Gretzky's awkward friendship with Trump, the rise of Canadian patriotism and the interwoven histories of hockey and politics in the country. The episode also reflects on the broader implications for Canada's national identity and political landscape in the face of recent events.Please also check out episode 44 of Explore (https://canadiangeographic.ca/podcasts/roy-macgregor-no-canoe-no-canada/), featuring MacGregor talking about Canada and the history of the canoe and episode 47 (https://canadiangeographic.ca/podcasts/the-greatest-comeback-remembering-the-72-summit-series/) with author John U. Bacon on the importance of the 1972 Canada-Soviet Summit Series.MacGregor is an award-winning author, columnist and feature writer for The Globe and Mail. He has also reported for the National Post, the Ottawa Citizen, Maclean's and the Toronto Star. He is the author of nearly 40 books, including one with former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and another, Home Game, with Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens Hall of Fame goalie and Liberal cabinet minister. His latest book, a memoir, is Paper Trails: From the Backwoods to the Front Page, a Life in Stories00:00 Introduction 4 Nations and the 1972 Soviet-Canada Summit Series00:34 Meet Roy McGregor: A Canadian journalism legend01:37 The Intersection of hockey and politics

In this milestone 100th episode of the Explore Podcast, host David McGuffin welcomes back world-renowned cave diver and RCGS Explorer-in-Residence Jill Heinerth. This episode dives into Heinerth’s experiences, including her new, award-winning documentary Diving into the Darkness, her extraordinary career in underwater exploration and the risks and rewards of diving. Heinerth discusses her Antarctic expeditions, her struggle with decompression sickness, and the evolution of her exploration philosophy over the years. The conversation also touches on the challenges of making documentaries in the current media environment, the impact of climate change narratives and the importance of valuing and understanding our natural world. Additionally, Heinerth emphasizes the need for flexibility, multi-skilling and ethical exploration in today's changing world. To learn more about her documentary, visit divingintothedarkness.com (http://divingintothedarkness.com/)00:00 Introduction to Jill Heinerth's diving adventures01:01 Celebrating 100 episodes of the Explore Podcast04:52 Introducing Jill Heinerth's new documentary05:00 Behind the scenes of the documentary06:05 The making of the documentary13:36 Jill's Antarctic dive experience15:07 The impact of climate change on diving18:00 Touring the documentary18:58 Challenges in the media landscape19:37 The future of documentary streaming21:35 The evolution of exploration and science21:57 Navigating career advice for young explorers23:48 Early challenges and determination27:55 Facing life-threatening situations36:41 Reflections on exploration and ethics42:22 Concluding thoughts and future plans

In this episode of Explore, we dive deep with Canadian whale biologist Shane Gero (https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/exploring-the-inner-lives-of-sperm-whales-with-shane-gero/), who shares his journey from a landlocked childhood in Ottawa to becoming a leading researcher in whale communication and conservation. Gero discusses how his early fascination with whales began, his fieldwork in Dominica and the intricate social structures of sperm whales. The conversation then delves into Project CETI (https://www.projectceti.org/?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAiAw5W-BhAhEiwApv4goONQDI2Wx2EXj5Hq5QKxyprMNprgUJy5RlZA6kiHB1d8aUe27ykh9RoCUC0QAvD_BwE), which aims to decode the complex language of sperm whales (https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/out-of-our-depth-speaking-to-the-whales/) using machine learning while exploring the cultural identity expressed through the whales’ unique codas (a series of clicks). In this conversation, Gero emphasizes the complex cognition of these animals and their emotional lives, sharing personal experiences of witnessing whale births and the significance of interspecies communication. Incidentally, the pod of whales who he witnessed give birth are named after author and RCGS Fellow Margaret Atwood and her novel, Oryx and Crake.Gero highlights the challenges sperm whales face due to human activities and the need for both individual and systematic changes to protect them. He expresses hope for the future, rooted in the connection between humans and nature, and reflects on his personal journey in understanding these magnificent creatures.As well as being a Scientist-In-Residence at Ottawa’s Carleton University, Gero is also the founder of The Dominica Sperm Whale Project, a long-term research program focused on the sperm whale families living in the Eastern Caribbean. He is also the Biology Lead for Project CETI, applying advanced machine learning and robotics to decipher sperm whale communication.This interview is exactly the kind of unique Canadian storytelling that is supported by your donations to the annual Canadian Geographic Polar Plunge taking place on Sunday, March 9, 2025.To help Canadian Geographic tell Canada's story and support critical programming, please consider donating at Polar Plunge 2025 (https://donate.rcgs.org/event/polar-plunge-2025/home). 

Few people have been to the summit of Mt. Logan, and even fewer people have been to the summit and stayed for more than 24 hours. But for the sake of science, RCGS Fellow and world-leading ice core scientist Alison Criscitiello (https://canadiangeographic.ca/articles/exceeding-expectations-on-canadas-tallest-peak/) and her team took 10 days to summit Canada’s highest peak, where they camped for 16 days. In her new documentary, For Winter, Criscitiello takes viewers on a gruelling journey to the top of Mt. Logan, where she and her team of six researchers extract the longest ice core ever drilled at a high altitude: 327 metres. The goal was originally to drill 250 metres, but the team was able to go deeper, successfully extracting an additional 77 metres of valuable data about our climate and environmental history. For Winter premiered at the Banff Film Festival this past fall and was produced by National Geographic. Along with being a National Geographic Explorer, Criscitiello is also the director of the Canadian Ice Core Lab at the University of Alberta and a leading high-altitude mountaineer who has led expeditions (many of them all female) up some of the world’s highest peaks. In this week’s episode, we get into her early days as a US Park Climbing Ranger in the Pacific Northwest and her journey into ice core science, which has taken her all over the Arctic, the Antarctic and many fascinating places in between. Enjoy!

Welcome back Explore listeners! We are thrilled to have award-winning photographer and explorer Jillian Brown as our first guest of 2025. Based in Squamish, B.C., Brown has an epic list of adventures. She was the first Canadian to paddle across the continental US, from Oregon to Louisiana and the Gulf of Mexico. Brown was also part of the first crew to paddle down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon in a sea kayak, which is not made for whitewater, as she explains. As a survivor of trauma and abuse, Brown is a strong and vocal advocate for those suffering from PTSD, promoting the importance of connecting to nature as a tool for healing while working with military veterans, first responders and more.Brown’s adventures have taken her up mountains and down rivers across North America.I couldn’t help noticing that many of her stories ended with the phrase, “But we survived!”  So buckle in and enjoy!And good news, the Canadian Geographic Polar Plunge Fundraiser is back! This year, the plunge will occur on March 9th in Canada's lakes, rivers and oceans. Check-in on the Canadian Geographic website and social media to learn more about how you can contribute and support Canadian Geographic’s mission of making Canada better known to Canadians and the world!

Oscar nominated! Congratulations to Canadian Geographic Contributing Editor Julian Brave NoiseCat for his and Emily Kassie's Best Documentary Academy Award nomination for their film Sugarcane. Please enjoy this encore presentation of NoiseCat's interview with Explore, which was originally posted in September, 2024.We're thrilled to welcome Julian Brave NoiseCat to Explore to talk about his award winning documentary Sugarcane, the powerful and very personal story of the multi-generational trauma caused to his family and members of the Williams Lake First Nations by the physical and sexual abuse endured for almost a century at St. Joseph's Mission Residential School in British Columbia. The documentary won the Director's Award at the Sundance Film Festival and is showing in cinemas across North America and around the world.Julian will be familiar to many of you for his work as contributing editor at Canadian Geographic and his many smart and thoughtful articles in the magazine around First Nations issues. His award-winning journalism has appeared in dozens of publications including The New York Times, The Washington Post and The New Yorker. His first book, We Survived the Night, will be published by Knopf and Penguin Random House in fall 2025. 

"So, does Christmas eliminate distance?"Happy holidays from Explore! For this Yuletide episode, we’re dipping into our Canadian Geographic files for the reading of a story written by RCGS founding President and Arctic explorer Charles Camsell who recalls a memorable Christmas he had on the trail to the Klondike in 1897.In the early 1900s, travelling by canoe and horseback, Camsell mapped hundreds of thousands of square kilometres of Canada’s north for the Geological Survey of Canada. Born at Fort Liard, N.W.T., in 1876, his father Julian was an English fur trader with the Hudson’s Bay Company. His mother, Sarah Foulds, was Metis, with deep roots in the Red River. After graduating from the University of Manitoba, Camsell returned to the Northwest Territories just in time to get swept into the Klondike gold rush. Like thousands of young men and women at the time, he and his friend Arthur Pelly set off for the Yukon to seek their fortune.Lynne McGuffin, Camsell's granddaughter, found the following story in his personal files. It was dated 1937, around the time he was writing his memoir, Son of the North. For the past two decades, it's been a tradition of host David McGuffin to read this to his wife and children on Christmas Eve as they moved from continent to continent, country to country, often celebrating the holidays far from family and home.So, pour yourself a favourite drink, settle into a comfy chair by the fire and enjoy this reading of Christmas at Devil’s Portage. To learn more about the Camsell family and their role in the fur trade, check out Season 2 of Explore, which features fascinating full archival recordings of Charles Camsell (https://canadiangeographic.ca/podcasts/explore-presents-the-hudsons-bay-company-bonus-episode-life-at-fort-simpson/)and his brother Philip Scott Camsell (https://canadiangeographic.ca/podcasts/explore-presents-the-hudsons-bay-company-part-43-treasures-of-the-fur-trade/) looking back on their Arctic childhoods.

Laval St. Germain’s journey to Afghanistan’s highest mountainToday’s conversation with extreme athlete and adventurer Laval St. Germain is fascinating as we journey through Afghanistan to its highest peak, Mt. Noshaq, which stands at 7,492 metres. On the way, St. Germain reveals the current state of a country that was a central focus for Canadians and the world for almost two decades, post-9/11, during the War on Terror. Afghanistan was home to Canada's longest war, and you hear little about it today, not since the US and NATO pulled out of the country in August 2021. That retreat cleared the way for the extreme Islamist group, the Taliban, to take back control of the country for the first time since being ousted by the US and NATO forces in 2001.I am fascinated by the place. In 1979, I got my first shortwave radio for Christmas, and I remember the first thing I tuned in to was Radio Moscow reporting that Soviet troops had gone into Afghanistan at the "invitation" of the Afghan government in what would be a long and bloody Soviet defeat. Decades later, in the spring of 2008, as a CBC correspondent, I spent two months embedded with the Canadian military in Kandahar, Afghanistan. I went out on regular patrols with Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry in armoured vehicles, where every bridge and every culvert crossed was a potential roadside bomb. I went on foot patrol in Kandahar city, visited schools newly opened for the education of girls, and ran for shelter at Kandahar Airfield to avoid incoming Taliban missiles.I was impressed with what the Canadians were able to do then, maintaining a degree of peace in the Taliban heartland and doing all that with fewer than a thousand combat troops. Still, in that dry, stark, beautiful, mountainous country, that peace and our presence always felt tenuous. So, what is Afghanistan like now? St. Germain helps peel back some of the layers of that onion as he travels to Mt. Noshaq, talking and travelling with locals from the capital, Kabul, in the centre to the north of the country near the Tajikistan border. As St. Germain confirms, the Taliban deserves its record as having one of the worst human rights records of any government in the world, largely because of its brutal treatment of women. Hunger also remains an issue, with one in four people needing food aid, according to the UN. And as St. Germain notes, that is not as dire as many had predicted. We also get into the debate about the pluses, minuses and dangers of travelling in a pariah state.As much as he’s an extreme adventurer, doing amazing things like climbing the highest peaks on all seven continents or rowing solo across the Atlantic Ocean, what I love about St. Germain is that he is also a student of history, geography and current events, and he brings all of that to his expeditions.He's got a great story to tell. Enjoy!