2022 Expedition: 14 April - 8 May 2022.
Start Point: Kangerlussuaq, West Greenland.
End Point: Isortoq, East Greenland.
Distance: 575km.
Duration: 25 days. Fast!
Team Size: 9 persons (Ronan Halpin, Peter Gregory, Peter Dereymaeker, Dror Vardimon, Jonathan Mills, Monika Amor-Wilkes, Jocelyn Turnbull) and guides (David Paabo, Maarten Arnolli).
Blog as kindly posted at the end of each day by Andrew Paabo following a brief satellite phone call with the team:
11 April 2022 - Our expedition is close to commencing. Our first day on the ice will be this Thursday. Team is currently on route to Kangerlussuaq.
14 April 2022 (Day 1) - The 2022 Greenland Crossing expedition has commenced and we are on our way! This morning (8am local time) our snow transport will take us up to the starting point (Point 660) of our expedition across the Greenland ice cap. This is the official edge of the ice sheet - although the need for skis is a few days away as we will be making our way through the ice mogul/crevasse fields with crampons over the next few days. The weather (thanks to Weather Online) looks favourable for the next few days - turning cold mid next week (max -23c, min -39c). Everyone is in good spirits and excited to start the adventure.
15 April 2022 (Day 2) - Great start over the last couple of days - we have made very good progress and should hopefully be on skis sometime on Saturday or early Sunday. We are happy where we are - at least mid way through the crevasse zone. Today we sled hauled (pulled, pushed, lifted, carried) - the sleds through tough icy conditions from 8.30am to 6pm. Also plenty of snow drift to negotiate at times.
16 April 2022 (Day 3) - Cold start to the day: -20c which made for a chilly pack down. But once on our way we made good ground and cleared the ice fall at about 11am this morning. A few hours later after lunch a few of us opted for skis and the rest of us on crampons as we headed further up onto the ice cap. As we progress further into the ice cap - the view of the shoreline back to Kangerlussuaq becomes smaller and smaller on the horizon, soon to be gone altogether. We gave some interesting weather coming up mid next week - v cold conditions together with some strong winds - which should keep us on our toes (or our skis.....)
17 April 2022 (Day 4) - Happy Easter and Happy Passover to all followers on the blog! We skied 20km today which was a great effort. The snow conditions and surface were good. After a very cold morning, the wind picked up in the morning from the south which caused the sleds to blow around towards the north - but the wind eased off into the afternoon and eventually calmed by the time we set up camp for the night. Happy to now be in the tents with a few chocolates to celebrate :)
We have some interesting weather coming mid this week ( looking particularly cold Wednesday (-25c : -39c) and strong winds forecast for Thursday (gusts up to 120kp/h) - so we'll make the most of the conditions for the next 2 days.
18 April 2022 (Day 5) - We skied from 8am to 5.30pm today. The ice crystals were heavy in the air this morning as it was a very cold start. After grabbing some breakfast and packing down our 3 tents, we set off in temperatures of -15c (which was the temperature for much of the day), and meant full face protection was required (to avoid frostbite). Our hot noodles straight from the thermoses was a welcome respite come lunchtime. The group shared the lead navigation role today which was a great effort from all in the party (the lead role is generally one of the hardest as it generally involves 'making the track' through the softer snow (so more energy is required) with the added duty of semi regularly checking the compass heading (which is attached to ones chest and neck) to ensure the group is on the correct heading (this is especially hard in the case in white out conditions where spatial disorientation can occur). So there is the additional energy strain plus the additional mental strain. The group did extremely well in these trying conditions and we covered 22.2km by the time we set up camp for the night.
19 April 2022 (Day 6) - This morning we unfortunately required a helicopter evacuation for one of our party. Peter Gregory sustained a back injury on day one during the ice fall. And thereafter he continued bravely on the ice sheet with the help of the rest of the team to distribute the weight of his sled, with the hope that his back would improve as we pushed on. Unfortunately his back has not improved- and we reached the point that it was agreed the safest option for him was for him to leave the ice sheet and not risk further injury. As a consequence of this, we called in the rescue authorities last night (18th April) and they flew out to our position- but due to deteriorating conditions could not land the helicopter. The helicopter returned at 1pm local time and landed successfully- returning to Kangerlussuaq with Peter. We all wish Peter all the best on his return to Kangerlussuaq and a speedy recovery.
The team will carry on this afternoon, sadly without Peter, and we will update our latest position tonight.
20 April 2022 (Day 7) - Very cold today, max of -25c so this meant lots of layers! Thermals, downvest, heavy fleece, full outer jacket, full face mask, heavy mitts. The winds have picked up a little in the afternoon, but expecting some heavy winds throughout the night ( 9 on the Beaufort wind scale - strong gales up to 140kph gusts). Therefore snow walls have been built into the direction of the wind to lessen the impact on the tents overnight. We covered 19km today, into a headwind most of the day stopping at 5pm to build the snow wall. Our googles were freezing up due to the low temperatures - which meant we couldn't see much as we skied, so just shy of 20km today was a decent result. We have 70km (3 -4 days skiing) to go to reach the abandoned Dye 2 radar station (link attached for those interested). All things going well, we'll have a half day rest here to explore this pretty amazing area.
21 April 2022 (Day 8) The winds forecast overnight weren't as strong as originally forecast (although they did somehow manage to blow away our snow wall), so we decided to pack up and head off in the morning. However, by lunchtime the forecast strong winds did hit - and ultimately we only managed 4km before we re-set up the tents (which was quite the task in strong 100km + winds) and built a snow wall. Complete whiteout conditions. So with our position now only 66km from the radar station, and improving conditions tomorrow and on the weekend we should hopefully be there by Monday. Temps are warming up also: -8c : -10c for the next few days.
22 April 2022 (Day 9) Speeds are up today as we glided across the ice cap today - 23.5km covered for the day. Snow conditions were a little less ideal due to sastrugi (wind swept bed platforms similar to sand dunes) in the morning. It also took some time this morning to dig the tents out of the snow from yesterdays storm, but not too cold with a little wind around lunchtime. The sastrugi eased off into the afternoon so we powered on - and we now have about 50km to the radar station.
23 April 2022 (Day 10) Super day today - 26.7km covered, we are now only 23.3km from the radar station. We had some company today - a small black bird was flying about following our convoy for a while - and given we are over 160km from the closest coast - it was nice surprise. Conditions were overcast, snow surface was hard packed and temperatures were good (-10c), which meant good skiing conditions. Everyone in good spirits now in the tent, nice & warm, happily enjoying our freeze dry dinners. Tomorrow in all likelihood we should be at the radar station. We are now 1/3rd of the way across!
24 April 2022 (Day 11) Today we arrived at the radar station! We arrived at approx. 4pm today after it steadily grew from a spec on the horizon to a massive Star Wars type structure in front of our eyes. Made navigation nice and easy today - just follow the little growing black dot. We'll do some exploring this afternoon/evening and kick off again tomorrow morning. In the end we covered 24km covered today, sunny conditions and very little wind - so ideal conditions for skiing. There is a huge crater that has formed next to the radar station about 30m deep that we'll somehow need to negotiate to be able to gain access. Might require some roping up to get into that crater - we'll see, should be fun! There are no other groups here - and no other observable ski tracks upon arriving - so its likely we are the first crossing to arrive.
25 April 2022 (Day 12) It was celebration night last night (24th April) in the radar station (yes, we managed to find a way in). We cracked open some delicious fruit cake (courtesy of Dror), some of Shackleton's finest scotch whisky (thanks to Jon) and some smooth polish vodka (courtesy of Monika). Dror also brought a superb banner with all our names on it together with our expedition logo - which we hung proudly whilst we savoured our assortment of indulgences and chilling out with our drinks and music at the top of the radar station (very nice view from up there). Great day had by all and we eventually made our way back to the tents for the night (Maarten took a interesting scenic route through some ice caves below the station).
Today (25th April) after heading off this morning at 8am - we covered 25.5km, it was the warmest day we've had so far, only thermal tops were required - Jon even opted for just a T'shirt (which was a great effort given it was probably still in the region of minus 5 to minus 10c). With the temp's getting warmer in the next few days - we all might be in t-shirts tomorrow - we'll see.
26 April 2022 (Day 13) A pretty hard day today - although we did manage to cover 28.3km by the end of the close of the day. Visibility was poor in the afternoon so heavy reliance on the compass was required. The surface wasn't ideal either with little sastrugi combined with soft snow under an icy surface (which made gliding difficult if not impossible at times). Even with these less-than-ideal conditions, it didn't slow us down too much as we approach the halfway mark across the ice sheet (likely in the next day or so). We are at an elevation of 2330m - and with the highest point just under 2500m - so we should be at the highest point in the next few days. Although not substantially steep - going downhill is certainly preferable to going uphill - and it does make a difference when gliding on the skis. We are hoping to see the sun appear sometime soon as our electronic devices could do with a recharge. Everyone's equipment, body and mind are holding up well against this truly unforgiving and relentless environment.
27 April 2022 (Day 14) Low visibility all day today - maximum visible distance was about 300-400m, at times felt like even less. So, a fairly demanding day although the snow was a little more hard packed than yesterday which helped. We skied into a headwind for most of the day, which built up considerably around lunchtime, but thankfully eased off into the afternoon. We covered 25.5km today which is pleasing given the conditions. And even more pleasing news is we are now halfway across the ice sheet! (275km completed, about 275km to go). We are at 2415m elevation so very close to reaching the highest point of ice cap which we'll cross over tomorrow, and then we are skiing downhill heading for Isortoq.
28 April 2022 (Day 15) A good day today - we covered 29.3km which is our record day yet - with each team member impressively leading and trail making throughout the day. Good team effort. The sun poked through so the solar panels came out to enable some recharging of devices. Still quite cold, full-face gear complete required with the obligatory build-up of icicles by the end of the day. We are now over the highest point of the cap (currently at elevation of 2417m). The team dynamics are really good - with the team tent allocations mixing up each night. Nice to be finished for the day, set up in the tent watching the sun set over the frozen vastness with a cup of hot chocolate......
29 April 2022 (Day 16) A demanding day today (27.5km covered), poor visibility, cold and cross winds from the south hampered our progress. We unfortunately have broken a ski binding which we are endeavouring to repair tonight (or replace with the spare bindings we have with us). Alternatively, we have a spare ski which we can use - so it's likely not too much of an issue going forward. The small metal bar that connects the boot to the ski has bent - likely due to the difficultly of crossing sastrugi combined with low visibility. We have 215km left on the ice sheet, so it looks likely we'll finish next weekend (although this is Greenland and anything does and can happen!). But with the forecast looking reasonable over the next week or so, and no major storms forecast, we probably have another 7-9 days left on the ice.
30 April 2022 (Day 17) We managed to replace the broken binding late last night on Dror's ski, and the new binding has bound well to the ski and caused no problems today. We covered a solid 27km - after a quick breakfast and pack down, it was a frosty start with a tail wind from the west on our backs. Having the wind on our backs meant our goggles were constantly icing up which made things tough for visibility for those in the lead. The snow surface was crunchy soft, which again was not ideal, but the team did a really good job to rotate the lead as those at the front had much harder time of it today than those at the back (similar to how cyclists would tackle a team time trial). A really great job from the team. Approx. 185km to go!
1 May 2022 (Day 18) An endless sea of soft crunchy sastrugi today. We managed 26km today - a good result given what we had to deal with. With a team of eight and now lighter sleds - this certainly helped get through the constant waves of 30cm-50cm high ridges of snow. Those in the lead needed not much in the way of layers - a thermal top was enough otherwise they were sweating profusely due to the level of exertion required. The offloading and trading of unwanted snacks such as lollies and salami's (in order to reduce sled weight through these tough conditions) has commenced and needless to say there's a few tents tonight having a mini feast tonight :).
2 May 2022 (Day 19) Rifle testing and practice tonight. A few of the party tonight honed their shooting skills just in case they are required (we're certainly hoping they are not required!). Polar bears tend to stick to the edges of the ice cap (more food supply) - so it's generally very unusual to see bears venture into the centre of the ice sheet. But as we move closer to the eastern edge of the ice cap (within say 150km of the edge) - they have been known to roam up onto the ice sheet. Generally, a warning shot into the air will suffice and they will scamper off with haste. Aiming and shooting is a last resort. With the rifle tested and the team members familiar with the rifle - we head back to the tents. With no wind to speak of on a sunny day, we battled the soft snow and sastrugi again today with a gain of 24.5km. We have about 140km to go with a current elevation of 2116m.
3 May 2022 (Day 20) A mixed day today. We skied 24km through the sea of sastrugi. Thankfully colder conditions meant it was a little harder packed than yesterday. The light was low, so the sun didn’t have a chance to soften up the ice. The team opted for skiing in thermals around lunchtime, but we were skiing in down jackets by the end of the day when things got bitterly cold. We have approx. 100km left on the ice cap. On our current progress, we plan to ski into Isortoq on Sunday – but subject to conditions over the next few days (and subject to conditions around Isortoq). As we make our way to the coast wildlife is appearing – a formation of birds overhead surveying our slow passage through the frustrating sastrugi (I’m sure they were feeling sorry for us😊). But with the end in sight (literally, as we should be able to see the mountain formations to the southeast in the next few days) - spirits are high.
4 May 2022 (Day 21) We covered 26km today accompanied by a cold northerly wind on a sunny day. Sastrugi is continuing to keep things interesting for us, and we have spotted our first evidence of the east coast - a faint sign of a mountain on the far horizon. Winds are due to pick up overnight and throughout tomorrow so will make for an interesting day as we close in on our finishing line now only 90km away.
5 May 2022 (Day 22) The winds duly picked up overnight and skiing today was a challenge in very windy conditions. We had the usual frosty goggles and stalactite build up on the face protection throughout the day - but hopefully the stronger winds blow some of the sastrugi away to give a smoother surface tomorrow. Perhaps wishful thinking - we'll see come morning. Nice to be now set up in the tents with chicken korma's (and other types of freeze-dried food) with the wind blowing a gale outside....
We managed 25km today, and likely have a couple more days on the ice sheet itself, and then a 3rd day decent into Isortoq.
6 May 2022 (Day 23) Strong winds continued overnight - eventually breaking a tent pole. Thankfully no other damage to the tent (and the tent pole can be repaired). We woke up to see our sleds and gear completely covered in snow with a little bit red poking out revealing its location. The never ending sastrugi continued – which resulted in a broken ski binding mid-morning. Rather than switch out bindings (which required resetting up tents and taking additional time) – we continued with the spare ski. So, by days end we are 27km closer to our finish – and the wind has dropped down. We have about 50km to go - one more day on the ice sheet (Saturday) and on Sunday we’ll head down the ice cap into Isortoq to our finish line! (subject to everything going well).
7 May 2022 (Day 24) Late finish last night, we skied 37km and set up camp for the night near the icefall on the edge of the ice sheet. Nice sunny day with no wind - perfect for our 2nd last day. Tomorrow we descend into Isortoq. Hopefully we can ski all the way. Isortoq is actually an island surrounded by water - which can be skied to when the surrounding water is frozen, but if not, a boat is required for the last few hundred metres. Everyone is in good spirits and excited given we are so close now - final day coming tomorrow -roughly 17km to go!
8 May 2022 (Day 25) We've made it to Isortoq! Late last night (Sunday) we completed our Greenland ice cap crossing and skied into Isortoq. The last day was one of the most challenging as the route into Isortoq wasn't easy. The day started very warm and sunny so Jon opted to ski in only underpants - seriously! Meanwhile, Ronan managed to lose a ski after it detached and skied off alone into the distance. The spare ski came in very handy at this time. With much of the fjord and surrounding areas of Isortoq being unskiable (given melted snow and ice) - we managed via a mixture of fjords, lakes and overland. Upon descending the ice cap, we skied along a fjord as far as possible. When the sea ice was no longer suitable, we cut over some ridges and down to a lake on the other side of the ridges. After navigating along the edge of the lake, we entered a large dark chasm at the end of the lake, then up and over some more ridges until finally we could see our target in the distance. After much pushing and pulling of the sleds across the ridges, finally we were just above Isortoq looking down at the tiny village with the light starting to fade. We stopped to admire the view and had a few well-deserved celebratory drinks in the knowledge that with one final short decent, we were at our finishing line. The local villagers came out to meet us with much fun and excitement. It was an impressive and spectacular way to finish the journey. Time now to rest and recuperate for the next few days, with our helicopter due out on Thursday. Well done to all of the team!
Start Point: Kangerlussuaq, West Greenland.
End Point: Isortoq, East Greenland.
Distance: 575km.
Duration: 25 days. Fast!
Team Size: 9 persons (Ronan Halpin, Peter Gregory, Peter Dereymaeker, Dror Vardimon, Jonathan Mills, Monika Amor-Wilkes, Jocelyn Turnbull) and guides (David Paabo, Maarten Arnolli).
Blog as kindly posted at the end of each day by Andrew Paabo following a brief satellite phone call with the team:
11 April 2022 - Our expedition is close to commencing. Our first day on the ice will be this Thursday. Team is currently on route to Kangerlussuaq.
14 April 2022 (Day 1) - The 2022 Greenland Crossing expedition has commenced and we are on our way! This morning (8am local time) our snow transport will take us up to the starting point (Point 660) of our expedition across the Greenland ice cap. This is the official edge of the ice sheet - although the need for skis is a few days away as we will be making our way through the ice mogul/crevasse fields with crampons over the next few days. The weather (thanks to Weather Online) looks favourable for the next few days - turning cold mid next week (max -23c, min -39c). Everyone is in good spirits and excited to start the adventure.
15 April 2022 (Day 2) - Great start over the last couple of days - we have made very good progress and should hopefully be on skis sometime on Saturday or early Sunday. We are happy where we are - at least mid way through the crevasse zone. Today we sled hauled (pulled, pushed, lifted, carried) - the sleds through tough icy conditions from 8.30am to 6pm. Also plenty of snow drift to negotiate at times.
16 April 2022 (Day 3) - Cold start to the day: -20c which made for a chilly pack down. But once on our way we made good ground and cleared the ice fall at about 11am this morning. A few hours later after lunch a few of us opted for skis and the rest of us on crampons as we headed further up onto the ice cap. As we progress further into the ice cap - the view of the shoreline back to Kangerlussuaq becomes smaller and smaller on the horizon, soon to be gone altogether. We gave some interesting weather coming up mid next week - v cold conditions together with some strong winds - which should keep us on our toes (or our skis.....)
17 April 2022 (Day 4) - Happy Easter and Happy Passover to all followers on the blog! We skied 20km today which was a great effort. The snow conditions and surface were good. After a very cold morning, the wind picked up in the morning from the south which caused the sleds to blow around towards the north - but the wind eased off into the afternoon and eventually calmed by the time we set up camp for the night. Happy to now be in the tents with a few chocolates to celebrate :)
We have some interesting weather coming mid this week ( looking particularly cold Wednesday (-25c : -39c) and strong winds forecast for Thursday (gusts up to 120kp/h) - so we'll make the most of the conditions for the next 2 days.
18 April 2022 (Day 5) - We skied from 8am to 5.30pm today. The ice crystals were heavy in the air this morning as it was a very cold start. After grabbing some breakfast and packing down our 3 tents, we set off in temperatures of -15c (which was the temperature for much of the day), and meant full face protection was required (to avoid frostbite). Our hot noodles straight from the thermoses was a welcome respite come lunchtime. The group shared the lead navigation role today which was a great effort from all in the party (the lead role is generally one of the hardest as it generally involves 'making the track' through the softer snow (so more energy is required) with the added duty of semi regularly checking the compass heading (which is attached to ones chest and neck) to ensure the group is on the correct heading (this is especially hard in the case in white out conditions where spatial disorientation can occur). So there is the additional energy strain plus the additional mental strain. The group did extremely well in these trying conditions and we covered 22.2km by the time we set up camp for the night.
19 April 2022 (Day 6) - This morning we unfortunately required a helicopter evacuation for one of our party. Peter Gregory sustained a back injury on day one during the ice fall. And thereafter he continued bravely on the ice sheet with the help of the rest of the team to distribute the weight of his sled, with the hope that his back would improve as we pushed on. Unfortunately his back has not improved- and we reached the point that it was agreed the safest option for him was for him to leave the ice sheet and not risk further injury. As a consequence of this, we called in the rescue authorities last night (18th April) and they flew out to our position- but due to deteriorating conditions could not land the helicopter. The helicopter returned at 1pm local time and landed successfully- returning to Kangerlussuaq with Peter. We all wish Peter all the best on his return to Kangerlussuaq and a speedy recovery.
The team will carry on this afternoon, sadly without Peter, and we will update our latest position tonight.
20 April 2022 (Day 7) - Very cold today, max of -25c so this meant lots of layers! Thermals, downvest, heavy fleece, full outer jacket, full face mask, heavy mitts. The winds have picked up a little in the afternoon, but expecting some heavy winds throughout the night ( 9 on the Beaufort wind scale - strong gales up to 140kph gusts). Therefore snow walls have been built into the direction of the wind to lessen the impact on the tents overnight. We covered 19km today, into a headwind most of the day stopping at 5pm to build the snow wall. Our googles were freezing up due to the low temperatures - which meant we couldn't see much as we skied, so just shy of 20km today was a decent result. We have 70km (3 -4 days skiing) to go to reach the abandoned Dye 2 radar station (link attached for those interested). All things going well, we'll have a half day rest here to explore this pretty amazing area.
21 April 2022 (Day 8) The winds forecast overnight weren't as strong as originally forecast (although they did somehow manage to blow away our snow wall), so we decided to pack up and head off in the morning. However, by lunchtime the forecast strong winds did hit - and ultimately we only managed 4km before we re-set up the tents (which was quite the task in strong 100km + winds) and built a snow wall. Complete whiteout conditions. So with our position now only 66km from the radar station, and improving conditions tomorrow and on the weekend we should hopefully be there by Monday. Temps are warming up also: -8c : -10c for the next few days.
22 April 2022 (Day 9) Speeds are up today as we glided across the ice cap today - 23.5km covered for the day. Snow conditions were a little less ideal due to sastrugi (wind swept bed platforms similar to sand dunes) in the morning. It also took some time this morning to dig the tents out of the snow from yesterdays storm, but not too cold with a little wind around lunchtime. The sastrugi eased off into the afternoon so we powered on - and we now have about 50km to the radar station.
23 April 2022 (Day 10) Super day today - 26.7km covered, we are now only 23.3km from the radar station. We had some company today - a small black bird was flying about following our convoy for a while - and given we are over 160km from the closest coast - it was nice surprise. Conditions were overcast, snow surface was hard packed and temperatures were good (-10c), which meant good skiing conditions. Everyone in good spirits now in the tent, nice & warm, happily enjoying our freeze dry dinners. Tomorrow in all likelihood we should be at the radar station. We are now 1/3rd of the way across!
24 April 2022 (Day 11) Today we arrived at the radar station! We arrived at approx. 4pm today after it steadily grew from a spec on the horizon to a massive Star Wars type structure in front of our eyes. Made navigation nice and easy today - just follow the little growing black dot. We'll do some exploring this afternoon/evening and kick off again tomorrow morning. In the end we covered 24km covered today, sunny conditions and very little wind - so ideal conditions for skiing. There is a huge crater that has formed next to the radar station about 30m deep that we'll somehow need to negotiate to be able to gain access. Might require some roping up to get into that crater - we'll see, should be fun! There are no other groups here - and no other observable ski tracks upon arriving - so its likely we are the first crossing to arrive.
25 April 2022 (Day 12) It was celebration night last night (24th April) in the radar station (yes, we managed to find a way in). We cracked open some delicious fruit cake (courtesy of Dror), some of Shackleton's finest scotch whisky (thanks to Jon) and some smooth polish vodka (courtesy of Monika). Dror also brought a superb banner with all our names on it together with our expedition logo - which we hung proudly whilst we savoured our assortment of indulgences and chilling out with our drinks and music at the top of the radar station (very nice view from up there). Great day had by all and we eventually made our way back to the tents for the night (Maarten took a interesting scenic route through some ice caves below the station).
Today (25th April) after heading off this morning at 8am - we covered 25.5km, it was the warmest day we've had so far, only thermal tops were required - Jon even opted for just a T'shirt (which was a great effort given it was probably still in the region of minus 5 to minus 10c). With the temp's getting warmer in the next few days - we all might be in t-shirts tomorrow - we'll see.
26 April 2022 (Day 13) A pretty hard day today - although we did manage to cover 28.3km by the end of the close of the day. Visibility was poor in the afternoon so heavy reliance on the compass was required. The surface wasn't ideal either with little sastrugi combined with soft snow under an icy surface (which made gliding difficult if not impossible at times). Even with these less-than-ideal conditions, it didn't slow us down too much as we approach the halfway mark across the ice sheet (likely in the next day or so). We are at an elevation of 2330m - and with the highest point just under 2500m - so we should be at the highest point in the next few days. Although not substantially steep - going downhill is certainly preferable to going uphill - and it does make a difference when gliding on the skis. We are hoping to see the sun appear sometime soon as our electronic devices could do with a recharge. Everyone's equipment, body and mind are holding up well against this truly unforgiving and relentless environment.
27 April 2022 (Day 14) Low visibility all day today - maximum visible distance was about 300-400m, at times felt like even less. So, a fairly demanding day although the snow was a little more hard packed than yesterday which helped. We skied into a headwind for most of the day, which built up considerably around lunchtime, but thankfully eased off into the afternoon. We covered 25.5km today which is pleasing given the conditions. And even more pleasing news is we are now halfway across the ice sheet! (275km completed, about 275km to go). We are at 2415m elevation so very close to reaching the highest point of ice cap which we'll cross over tomorrow, and then we are skiing downhill heading for Isortoq.
28 April 2022 (Day 15) A good day today - we covered 29.3km which is our record day yet - with each team member impressively leading and trail making throughout the day. Good team effort. The sun poked through so the solar panels came out to enable some recharging of devices. Still quite cold, full-face gear complete required with the obligatory build-up of icicles by the end of the day. We are now over the highest point of the cap (currently at elevation of 2417m). The team dynamics are really good - with the team tent allocations mixing up each night. Nice to be finished for the day, set up in the tent watching the sun set over the frozen vastness with a cup of hot chocolate......
29 April 2022 (Day 16) A demanding day today (27.5km covered), poor visibility, cold and cross winds from the south hampered our progress. We unfortunately have broken a ski binding which we are endeavouring to repair tonight (or replace with the spare bindings we have with us). Alternatively, we have a spare ski which we can use - so it's likely not too much of an issue going forward. The small metal bar that connects the boot to the ski has bent - likely due to the difficultly of crossing sastrugi combined with low visibility. We have 215km left on the ice sheet, so it looks likely we'll finish next weekend (although this is Greenland and anything does and can happen!). But with the forecast looking reasonable over the next week or so, and no major storms forecast, we probably have another 7-9 days left on the ice.
30 April 2022 (Day 17) We managed to replace the broken binding late last night on Dror's ski, and the new binding has bound well to the ski and caused no problems today. We covered a solid 27km - after a quick breakfast and pack down, it was a frosty start with a tail wind from the west on our backs. Having the wind on our backs meant our goggles were constantly icing up which made things tough for visibility for those in the lead. The snow surface was crunchy soft, which again was not ideal, but the team did a really good job to rotate the lead as those at the front had much harder time of it today than those at the back (similar to how cyclists would tackle a team time trial). A really great job from the team. Approx. 185km to go!
1 May 2022 (Day 18) An endless sea of soft crunchy sastrugi today. We managed 26km today - a good result given what we had to deal with. With a team of eight and now lighter sleds - this certainly helped get through the constant waves of 30cm-50cm high ridges of snow. Those in the lead needed not much in the way of layers - a thermal top was enough otherwise they were sweating profusely due to the level of exertion required. The offloading and trading of unwanted snacks such as lollies and salami's (in order to reduce sled weight through these tough conditions) has commenced and needless to say there's a few tents tonight having a mini feast tonight :).
2 May 2022 (Day 19) Rifle testing and practice tonight. A few of the party tonight honed their shooting skills just in case they are required (we're certainly hoping they are not required!). Polar bears tend to stick to the edges of the ice cap (more food supply) - so it's generally very unusual to see bears venture into the centre of the ice sheet. But as we move closer to the eastern edge of the ice cap (within say 150km of the edge) - they have been known to roam up onto the ice sheet. Generally, a warning shot into the air will suffice and they will scamper off with haste. Aiming and shooting is a last resort. With the rifle tested and the team members familiar with the rifle - we head back to the tents. With no wind to speak of on a sunny day, we battled the soft snow and sastrugi again today with a gain of 24.5km. We have about 140km to go with a current elevation of 2116m.
3 May 2022 (Day 20) A mixed day today. We skied 24km through the sea of sastrugi. Thankfully colder conditions meant it was a little harder packed than yesterday. The light was low, so the sun didn’t have a chance to soften up the ice. The team opted for skiing in thermals around lunchtime, but we were skiing in down jackets by the end of the day when things got bitterly cold. We have approx. 100km left on the ice cap. On our current progress, we plan to ski into Isortoq on Sunday – but subject to conditions over the next few days (and subject to conditions around Isortoq). As we make our way to the coast wildlife is appearing – a formation of birds overhead surveying our slow passage through the frustrating sastrugi (I’m sure they were feeling sorry for us😊). But with the end in sight (literally, as we should be able to see the mountain formations to the southeast in the next few days) - spirits are high.
4 May 2022 (Day 21) We covered 26km today accompanied by a cold northerly wind on a sunny day. Sastrugi is continuing to keep things interesting for us, and we have spotted our first evidence of the east coast - a faint sign of a mountain on the far horizon. Winds are due to pick up overnight and throughout tomorrow so will make for an interesting day as we close in on our finishing line now only 90km away.
5 May 2022 (Day 22) The winds duly picked up overnight and skiing today was a challenge in very windy conditions. We had the usual frosty goggles and stalactite build up on the face protection throughout the day - but hopefully the stronger winds blow some of the sastrugi away to give a smoother surface tomorrow. Perhaps wishful thinking - we'll see come morning. Nice to be now set up in the tents with chicken korma's (and other types of freeze-dried food) with the wind blowing a gale outside....
We managed 25km today, and likely have a couple more days on the ice sheet itself, and then a 3rd day decent into Isortoq.
6 May 2022 (Day 23) Strong winds continued overnight - eventually breaking a tent pole. Thankfully no other damage to the tent (and the tent pole can be repaired). We woke up to see our sleds and gear completely covered in snow with a little bit red poking out revealing its location. The never ending sastrugi continued – which resulted in a broken ski binding mid-morning. Rather than switch out bindings (which required resetting up tents and taking additional time) – we continued with the spare ski. So, by days end we are 27km closer to our finish – and the wind has dropped down. We have about 50km to go - one more day on the ice sheet (Saturday) and on Sunday we’ll head down the ice cap into Isortoq to our finish line! (subject to everything going well).
7 May 2022 (Day 24) Late finish last night, we skied 37km and set up camp for the night near the icefall on the edge of the ice sheet. Nice sunny day with no wind - perfect for our 2nd last day. Tomorrow we descend into Isortoq. Hopefully we can ski all the way. Isortoq is actually an island surrounded by water - which can be skied to when the surrounding water is frozen, but if not, a boat is required for the last few hundred metres. Everyone is in good spirits and excited given we are so close now - final day coming tomorrow -roughly 17km to go!
8 May 2022 (Day 25) We've made it to Isortoq! Late last night (Sunday) we completed our Greenland ice cap crossing and skied into Isortoq. The last day was one of the most challenging as the route into Isortoq wasn't easy. The day started very warm and sunny so Jon opted to ski in only underpants - seriously! Meanwhile, Ronan managed to lose a ski after it detached and skied off alone into the distance. The spare ski came in very handy at this time. With much of the fjord and surrounding areas of Isortoq being unskiable (given melted snow and ice) - we managed via a mixture of fjords, lakes and overland. Upon descending the ice cap, we skied along a fjord as far as possible. When the sea ice was no longer suitable, we cut over some ridges and down to a lake on the other side of the ridges. After navigating along the edge of the lake, we entered a large dark chasm at the end of the lake, then up and over some more ridges until finally we could see our target in the distance. After much pushing and pulling of the sleds across the ridges, finally we were just above Isortoq looking down at the tiny village with the light starting to fade. We stopped to admire the view and had a few well-deserved celebratory drinks in the knowledge that with one final short decent, we were at our finishing line. The local villagers came out to meet us with much fun and excitement. It was an impressive and spectacular way to finish the journey. Time now to rest and recuperate for the next few days, with our helicopter due out on Thursday. Well done to all of the team!