Beechey Island and Devon Island

These are major sites for the Franklin expedition, as he overwintered here and dug graves for three men who were the first to die. 

We visited Beechey Island this morning. 

I had put my name down for the walk to the top, but I was a bit slower than the others so I dropped out before we got past the bear patroller. The views from there were pretty good.

There was a gorgeous flower. I only saw one of them, and there were very few plants.

In the afternoon we went to Caswell Tower in Radstock Bay on Devon island (it’s the largest uninhabited island in the world).

The island reminded us all of Monument Valley. There are an amazing array of Inuit tent rings and winter whalebone houses here, and the site was occupied over thousands of years. The whalebones were reused in newer houses, so, although not many people lived here at any time, it shows how their architecture evolved. In the first photo below you can see the results of the gradual land rebound after the ice sheet disappearing and the beach receding.

There were plenty of plants here, and I particularly liked this one.