As my Father Hank once was, Steve Lybeck is truly one of those 'special people' of the barrens. Having worked for and been partners with the Faess family tourism enterprises for nearly 40 years, Steve was with us at the infancy of our tundra camps explorations. In fact, in 1971 he actually went to the tundra for the first time with my dad - a year before I did!

As my lifelong friend & mentor, Steve Lybeck is a true naturalist - and one of the few I know who really lives it day by day; both when he is in the Far North leading our trips, or back at his homestead in Wisconsin.

Over the past four decades, Steve - occassionally accompanied by his wife Terri - has been with us on the barrens nearly a dozen times; helping, leading, guiding & servicing some of our most elite trips: and the two of them have gotten my butt out of the sling more than once over the years!

My 'brother' Steve is the one person - more than anyone else - who taught me true love of the natural world, and genuine respect for its wildlife and inhabitants - and in that way, he is more responsible than he probably knows for the creation of the great Canadian Wildlife Adventures we offer today. Ask anyone who has been fortunate enough to have been guided by him - they will no doubt tell you about the deep passion & remarkable wilderness knowledge of this special man, and that he truly deserves the respect we show him here in all regards.

Below, in the 'Lure of the Esker', Steve has finally written 'from the heart' for the website, and has shared his perception of the eskers of the Thelon... I would pay attention to what he writes...

because it comes from the mind & hand of a true wilderness master...

-Tundra Tom

 "I sit and ponder the beauty of the esker as I stare into a small kettle lake."  

"I sip its emerald blue water, cold and clear melt water from the last ice age."

"I think about the several hour flight that puts hundreds of miles of wilderness between me and civilization." 

"I think that with GORE-TEX, satellite phones, GPS’s, freeze dried food and DEET, I still end up in near survival situations out here..."                         

"yet, the ancient peoples survived solely on their wits!"  

"The fragrance of bearberry, crowberry, and spruce combine to carry me into another time."

"I feel a slight connection with the ancient natives, “the caribou eaters”. 

"The beauty, the warmth, the protection from tundra winds, firewood and ideal campsites, all pull like a strong magnet."

  "And trees, white spruce way beyond the tree line!  Perfectly shaped spruces like they were sheared for a fine garden stand proud and stately in bold defiance of the tundra winds and permafrost."

    "The esker itself, groomed and manicured like God’s special garden...

It looks like the gardener or greens keeper did an exemplary job!"

"Each plant and the prudent placement thereof, flow graciously into the esker’s unique landscape."

   "The esker is more than a place, it’s an experience..,

an oasis,

a history lesson both geologically and culturally,

and a reprieve from the vast, wonderful, harsh tundra!"

"I thrill at the thought of traveling beyond the tree line." 

"The open tundra beckons:

“Here, come sample my vastness.  Explore and experience my adventure. 

Move in and beyond the confines of time and space..." 

"Meet Tyrrell, and Hanbury, and Samuel Hearne..."

"See the wolf, caribou, musk oxen, wolverine and grizz.” 

"I hike across open tundra ‘til I see in the distance sand and trees."

"Then I’m caught - caught like a lake trout chasing a Daredevil..."

"caught - by the lure of the esker!"

- Steve Lybeck
Bancroft, Wisconsin

Barry Girard

Dr. Ella Trussell