Jul
Ice Roads
I watch a series on cable that deals with truckers who ride on ice roads. They work in upper Canada. The winter freeze turns lakes and rivers into solid, thick sheets of ice. In one region, the ice roads connect with diamond mines. In another, they support various towns along with oil and gas exploration.
The diamond mine region is mostly frozen lakes. The ice season is the best time to ship heavy equipment. Heavy trucks can get to various mines and other facilities. They have two months to haul a year’s worth of supplies. Once the ice thaws, the only way to move heavy equipment is by helicopter, if at all.
The region for natural gas exploration is even colder. The rivers and a branch of the Arctic Ocean freeze. The ice roads go over the frozen sea. Alongside the road, ships are in a line, immovable. The ice has locked them securely so that they cannot be moved. Meanwhile, large tractor trailers pass on the nearby ice road. The same ice that blocks one type of transportation makes another type possible. Without the ice, trucks could not haul supplies. Both regions try to get as much hauling done as possible during the ice road season. After the ice thaws, the various installations and mines are unreachable by land.
The ice makes a road, but it does not make it safe. Roads have to be checked frequently to make sure they are thick and stable enough. The roads are slippery. They are vulnerable to weather and the waters underneath them, as well as a passage of trucks. Each region has its own special hazards. Ice over rivers and Arctic Sea presents different hazards than ice over rivers and lakes.
The Isa Rune depicts the principle that underlies Ice. It can create an obstacle or create a temporary passage. Ice can be treacherously slippery and amazingly firm. The same thing that makes a trap can also be an asset.
The action of ice is one manifestation of the Isa Rune. The principle and power of the Rune has other manifestations, as well. Ice is a good place to start experiencing the Rune. Isa the Rune is a paradox. The same thing can have two opposite reactions. Isa can block or allow passage. It can open a way where none existed, or close the way and bring everything to an abrupt standstill. The example of the ice roads is useful in perceiving more of the Isa Rune’s essence.
********
During its War with Russia in 1939 and again from 1941 to 1944, Finland pioneered the use of ice as a weapon. The Finns developed ice roads. They preferred to fight in winter, when ice made the enemy accessible. In other seasons, much of Finland is impassable due to forests, lakes, rivers and swamps. The Finns would find a good route over the ice. Using various sleds, they would prepare the surface of ice roads and “ski roads.” Their enemies were confined to the year-round road system. Finns used their ice roads to bypass and ambush the Russians.
Because of their development of ice roads and other aspects of living in Arctic conditions, the Finn created the means for work in the Far North. Arctic exploration owes much to the Finnish army’s tactics during World War II.
