Thursday, April 12, 2012

On the ice!

The team reports today that they are comfortable in their tents after having soups and hot drinks, and they are ready to hit the sack. They had an "awesome" day and they are looking forward to skiing all day tomorrow and putting some miles behind them. Their current location is N 89.01.319, E 164.29.246. The temperature is -29C and there is a light wind.

The charter flight from Longyearbyen to Barneo, the base camp on the pack ice, was approximately 2.5 hours in an Antanov plane. Onboard, passengers take turns peering through the Antanov's windows (there's only a couple near the front), and take in the surreal aerial view of the icecap. There's only a few places on Earth that can match the cold, vast, seemingly flat icy vista. Despite the icecap's obvious lack of major topography, the team can already tell you from experience that it more closely resembles an wintery boulder field than an frozen prairie. Flat, I suppose, is a relative term.


Tomorrow the team will settle into their expedition schedule, and that means rising and breaking camp at consistent times each day, putting in 6-10 hours of skiing and helping one another navigate pressure ridges and leads. Check back soon for more updates.


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