In a notebook carried through Arctic storms and to the depths of the earth, Francis Robindaine Duchesne records life at the edge of the world. His words move between doubt and determination, awe and exhaustion, reflections written at the end of long shifts, in the middle of blizzards, or while walking toward a frozen lake under red-code weather alerts. Deep beneath the tundra of Nunavut, where visibility collapses to five metres and exposed skin burns in seconds, Francis drills through ancient rock in a remote gold mine. A writer at heart and an explorer by nature, he lives between two extremes: the brutal physicality of northern labour and the quiet interior life demanded by isolation and darkness. Out there, warmth is not a luxury, it is survival. Francis faces whiteouts, hurricane-force winds, and sub-zero treks layered in Milo & Dexter knitwear, garments built for endurance and worn day after day in conditions where clothing becomes a second skin. Milo & Dexter was given privileged access to Francis' journal that shed light into his thoughts, feeling and beliefs in the far north.
Journal Writings:
to 2026!
I wish for more
strength
life is hard
that is what gives it
its full meaning
I am going to walk
in the blizzard
I managed to reach
the Meliadine Lake
on foot
one kilometer from the camp
in a red-code blizzard
perhaps it is stupidity
or pride
but it is also courage
and determination
it is beautiful because it is extreme
at least the year ends in
beautiful ways
Why am I so afflicted
by this sadness
I am not even capable
of walking to the lake
I must make
a second attempt
enough failures in 2025!
it is not madness
to do great and beautiful
things
I work in a subterranean cathedral
drilling holes
hundreds of meters long
far beneath the earth
it is another world
impossible to describe
for those who never descend
to live the immensity of nature
in a brutally moving way
red code for a white world
impossible to walk
visibility limited to five meters
ski goggles covered with frost
in a few seconds
the slightest millimeter of skin
burns raw with cold
in these hurricane winds
the far north is a
magnificent place
you have to live it
it cannot be described
going underground
cannot be described either
beneath hundreds of meters of
rock with bolted mesh
la vie est dure
c’est ce qui lui accorde
tout son sens
tout le temps que je perds
à ne pas vivre ces moments
touchants et sincères de lucidité
Je mien vais marcher
dans le blizzard
peut-être est-ce de la stupidité
de l’orgueil
mais c’est aussi du courage
et de la détermination
c’est beau parce que c’est extrême
L’année se termine au moins de
jolies façons
Pourquoi suis-je ainsi affligé
de cette tristesse
je ne suis même pas capable
de marcher jusqu’au lac
Je me dois de faire une
seconde tentative
ça suffit les échecs en 2025 !
Il n’est pas folie
que de faire de grandes et belles
choses
c’est un autre monde
impossible à décrire
pour ceux qui ne descendent jamais
vivre l’immensité de la nature
de manière brutalement émouvante
code rouge pour un monde blanc
impossible de marcher
visibilité à 5 mètres
les lunettes de ski se couvrent de
givre en quelques secondes
le moindre millimètre de peau
à vif brûle de froid dans ces
vents d’ouragan
le grand nord est un
magnifique endroit
il faut le vivre
ça ne se décrit pas
Descendre sous terre
ça ne se décrit pas non plus
sous des centaines de mètres de
roche avec ce grillage boulonné
tranquille obscurité dans les profondeurs
