Arctic tourists notice climate change's effects

Some tourists and guides who have come to admire the stark beauty of the High Arctic's glaciers and ice caps say they've noticed changes in the environment that could be attributed to climate change.

Several of those groups have been kayaking and hiking on eastern Ellesmere Island and near Qaanaaq, Greenland.

David Weir, a kayaking guide who had gone to Qaanaaq four years ago, told CBC Newshe was shocked to see a different landscape when he returned there this summer.

"The tundra was drier when you walked around, the flowers were well ahead of schedule," Weir said in an interview. "Pools of water that used to be there for drinking water weren't there anymore."

He said the most remarkable change was in the glaciers, with some receding by several kilometres. Weir said he noted more subtle differences on the east coast of Ellesmere Island, especially on a small island they've frequented where red-throated loons have their chicks every year.

"You wonder, how much smaller will this pond get before these loons can't reproduce here anymore?" he said.

Calgary resident David Cousins, who recently finished a two-week kayaking trip off eastern Ellesmere Island, said he thinks the effects of climate change could be better seen up North.

"So I think the global warming and the ice melting aspect, this is one place where you can surely probably get a good look at it, if it's happening," he said.

Weir said he feels he may be contributing to the changing landscape in the High Arctic, since he flew North on airplanes in order to undertake the kayaking trip.

He said he understands why Inuit in the North are disturbed by rapid changes to their environment.