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Frobisher Bay Expedition (Baffin Island, Northern Canada) Feb 2010 11th February 2010 -Day 1 – Jim McNeill Got to Iqualuit at around 1400 and then Matty’s at around 1500. Went to work preparing to go out, packing pulks and sorting clothing and equipment. Eventually after a lovely cup of tea and quick demo of tents, which were new to the team, by Matty, we [...]
A Day in the Life of….A Polar Traveller A number of people have asked what a typical day was on expedition so I thought I would try and outline how it was for me. Read this sitting in front of a freezer (typically set at minus 19) with the door open to get a sense of the cold. Turn on the head torch. [...]
Perils of Polar Travel After a months training inside the Arctic Circle, including an expedition through the Sassendalen valley in Spitsbergen, we are now trained and ready to begin our polar adventure and world first attempt to the Arctic Pole (Pole of Inaccessibility). The only problem is, that the condition of the sea ice off the northern coast of [...]
Training in Svalbard, Norway – week one As I write this weeks update, I’m looking out at the silhouette of a landscape carved by glacier, framed in complete darkness with just a glimmer of light in the far distance. After a weeks training in the arctic circle, I’m getting used to an outside world where 3am looks much the same as 3pm [...]
Arctic training starts now…! Well, this is it then. I’m on my way to Svalbard tomorrow (via Oslo), which is halfway between the northernmost coast of Norway and the North Pole. The main objectives of this element of our training is to get the team fit, experienced and comfortable working, travelling and living in one of the most inhospitable [...]
Boots, sewing and insulation tape?! I returned from picking up the remainder of my expedition kit yesterday, ready for our training in Svarlbard next week. So this morning, I thought that I would ‘break in’ my new Arctic expedition boots that are much the same as snowboarders but have felt liners so you can remove them from the boot and [...]
Arctic Training Beckons… With Christmas behind us and the New Year just about to begin, my thoughts are increasingly turning towards the advanced Arctic training which I start on the 12th January. It won’t be long before the long type pulls on Dartmoor will be replaced with cross country skiing lessons, ice water immersion and arctic camping skills [...]
Cold? Did I tell you about the time… As the temperature drops here in the UK, it starts to bring home the reality of just what I’m about to face during both the training in Norway and the expedition on the Arctic itself. Like most people, I have no idea what -40 will feel like as I’ve not experienced anywhere near these temperatures [...]
The science bit… It won’t have escaped your notice that there is a summit of world leaders taking place in Copenhagen this week trying to see how we can reduce our carbon emissions and mitigate the impact of climate change. This has captured my attention perhaps more that it would otherwise have done, given the Ice Warrior Arctic [...]
Navigation for Dummies… My training schedule is now back on track and having pulled a calf muscle earlier this week, it was with some trepidation that I found myself heading out very early into a jet black Sunday morning, facing horizontal rain and high winds with a Bergen on my back weighing a touch under four stone. I [...]
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