All three teams reported great conditions and weather today, with temperatures around -25 C and a light wind. The ice offered a welcome change for the dogsledders who have been struggling through lots of open water and rubble. After a little research about birds near the North Pole we've determined that the Last Degree Ski Team most likely saw a Ross's Gull, named after the polar explorer James Clarke Ross who discovered the magnetic North Pole in 1831.
The Last Degree Ski Team reported in from N 89.45.742, E 178.36.678. They had a great day skiing 8 miles in approximately hours of travel. Everyone is doing well and having a good time. They are happy to have a supply of Portuguese sardines, compliments of Angelo. Tonight they are enjoying the "finest cut of the tuna". They saw a lot of east-west leads between 1-2 feet wide which are easy to ski over. They also crossed a 1/2 mile stretch of much younger ice, but most of the day was on big pans. They are drifting slowly to the N/ NE. When we spoke they had three flags flying off their kite and Guy and Carl were just making their way over to Angelo and Keith's tent for some after dinner hot drinks and conversation. They sent in a few photos from their day:
Helping one another over a pressure ridge
Angelo with camp in background
The Chinese Ski Team reported in from N 89.51.52, E 179.41. Rick called the day "one of the best days ever" with calm, sunny conditions and 90% travel across big pans of ice. Everyone enjoyed the day and are now enjoying a social hour (or two...) in the tents.
This is what a big pan of ice looks like. Easy skiing and fast travel.
Typical break. Everyone sits on his/her sled with their back to the wind.
Time to eat and drink! Photo from Mr. Li
The Last Degree Dogsled Team finally broke away from all the water and found big pans of ice to travel on. This increased their speed significantly and allowed them to make nearly 14 nautical miles. They are now at N 89.33.8, E 176. Unfortunately Sara Schroeder who has spent the last several days fighting a nasty illness left the team with Mike (her father) to recuperate. The pack ice is a miserable place to be sick and we hope she recovers quickly. The good news is that on the way back to the Borneo Basecamp they were able to land at the North Pole and spend some time at 90 degree North. Back at tonight's camp the team is feeling very positive about the change in ice conditions. The mileage they pulled off today was critical to put them in a position to reach the Pole. Spirits are high and they feel rejuvenated and ready for the next challenge.
On big pans of ice the dogs can run without interruption and travel is much more efficient.
It's amazing the difference a few miles can make. Two of our teams reported great conditions with big flat pans of ice, while another team encountered a lot of open water that hindered northward progress. This is common in the pack ice near the North Pole, where one hour you can have wonderful ice and the next be in a maze of pressure ridges and open water leads. It keeps things exciting and no two days, or hours, are ever alike. The weather today was around -20 C with a light wind. The Last Degree Ski Team saw three birds yesterday and they are curious what kind they might be. They appeared to have a wing span of around 2 feet with a white belly and grey and black wings with white tips. They couldn't get a close view because the birds were in the air. If any of you readers know what kind of bird this might be let us know!
The Last Degree Dogsled Team reported in from N89.20.9 after spending much of the day trying to find their way around a 1/4 mile by 2 mile open water lead. They traveled east and then south before arriving in an area where the ice was active with moving rubble and ridges. Then they headed back west and found an area where the lead petered out, much like a river's delta. They got across and traveled a little further before making camp. There was a lot of great team work building ice bridges and doing general construction to get over ridges and across leads. It's hard but satisfying work. They are hoping the large pans of ice the other teams are seeing come their way tomorrow. When they called in they were just getting ready for dinner. They have been happily snacking on Tim Tams, a special chocolate treat from Australia brought by team member Cheryl Bart. Thanks Cheryl!
Lots of open water can make northward progress very difficult
The Chinese Ski Team reported their position as N 89.41.680, W 179.38.785. They had great conditions today and made nearly 8 nautical miles. They saw only a couple of frozen leads and one seal poking its head through an area of open water. They also found polar bear tracks that look to be several days old. They are all doing great and they are enjoying the adventure.
Seal in lead (photo from Mr. Li, 2011 ski team)
The Last Degree Ski Team reported in from N 89. 35. 511, E 176.09. Like the Chinese team they experienced great ice conditions with big pans of ice and few obstacles. They skied for 6 hours and made approximately 9 nautical miles, averaging close to 1.75 nautical miles an hour. Everyone is doing well. For dinner several team members ate chicken quesadillas and everyone loved the special dessert that Sebastian brought from home. They'd like to give a special shout out to his mom for making them!
All teams reported good progress today as their systems become more refined. The learning curve can be steep in terms of camp set-up and breakdown, maximizing travel efficiency, maintaining good body temperature, etc. Typically, each day on the trail gets more efficient.
The Last Degree Ski Team reported in from 89° 23'920 N, 173° 20'938 E. They traveled for about 8 hours and made 10.5 nautical miles. It was fairly windy, 15 knots, and overcast in the morning. But the skies cleared in the afternoon and wind abated to some extent. Overnight they drifted North and the drift is continuing, even drifting 800 meters while they ate dinner! We've had experience where the drift was working against the teams ("nature's treadmill") and it is extremely frustrating. We hope their current luck continues.
The Chinese Ski Team called in from 89° 32'403 N, 177° 10'052 E. They traveled 5.74 nautical miles today. Again, reports of steady winds from the west, leaving everyone's left sides of their bodies quite chilly. The temperature was around -5° C. Their terrain was relatively flat with a few scattered pressure ridges and several leads to cross, presenting a bit of a challenge. Their travel day was longer than yesterday and they had longer stretches between breaks, allowing them to make more progress.
The Last Degree Dogsled/Ski Team reported their position as 89°16 N, 170°8 E. They're feeling very good about their progress especially after the slow going they had yesterday. They made 9 nautical miles and also had some northerly drift overnight. They again experienced a number of leads they had to cross. All are in good spirits.
We've heard from each of the teams today and their dispatches are posted below.
The Last Degree Ski Expedition team is at 89°11.431 N, 165°55.777 E. They traveled 10 miles north today- an excellent start for first tull day of travel. The reported winds around 15 mph and temperature around -30° C.
The Chinese Ski Expedition team is at 89°25.14 N, 167°54.25 E. Winds around 10-15 knots from the south west. Skis were mostly sunny. Chilly with the wind but all fared well. They did a fair amount of training today as the team had not had prior training together. All were in good spirits, enjoying Chinese food for dinner and special Chinese spirits.
The Last Degree Dogsled/Ski Expedition team is at 89°05.3 N, 168°5 E. They had a "huge" first day according to one team member. Very challenging conditions with large pressure ridges, a lot of open leads, many freshy frozen leads. Finding the best route was quite a feat. But all are in good spirits and feeling very positive about their accomplishments.
Sunday, April 14 started off with breakfast and an announced departure time of 8:30 AM. After an unplanned night in Longyearbyen as a result of a weather delay everyone was well rested and eager to get off. After a call from the charter air provider our departure time was moved to 9 AM, then 10 AM then 11 AM, then 12 PM but luckily between 11 & 12 we got the call to go, go, go to the airport, pronto!
Everyone was ready and we made the transfer quickly. There was the anticipated chaos at the airport of unloading 18 eager dogs from the dog trailer and putting them into 9 kennels as well as getting all the people and personal kit onboard, but with everyone's help it went quickly and efficiently.
The flight to Borneo takes approximately 2.5 hours, which means they should have landed around 3:30 PM. We don't yet know if they decided to spend the night in the vicinity of the Barneo basecamp or start skiing/dogsledding straight away. What we DO know is that everyone was excited to begin the adventure and the energy was very high. Now it's time to put that energy towards moving north, staying warm and having a good time.
We will keep you posted with audio dispatches as they become available. Check back soon for another update from the ice.
Today our ski and dogsled expeditions met at 8:30 AM and transferred to the airport only to have the flight called off due to low visibility at Barneo. Our experienced team of expeditions took the delay in stride, knowing that delays are often part of the expedition experience. Everyone enjoyed a relaxing day in Longyearbyen and they await the next chance to fly tomorrow at 10 am. We are keeping our fingers crossed that the weather allows for the flight!
The North Pole Flight team members also spent the day in town. Several of them went on a dogsled outing while others checked out the town and did some shopping. Most of them will be starting their journeys home tomorrow.
The weather in Longyearbyen has been spectacular. Tonight the mist on the Advent Fjord was beautiful with colors of the sunset dancing off the mountain tops and lighting up the valleys.
It was a busy day in Longyearbyen with our two ski teams and one dogsled team doing final preparations for their expeditions. They finalized their kits, organized their meals, packed the pulks and dogsleds and sent everything off to the airport for pre-loading of the plane.
The day was jam packed with activity until the early evening. Some team members opted to have a wine tasting in the world's northern most wine cellar which is surprisingly extensive. Everyone enjoyed a nice dinner and all are now relaxing in their beds. They won't sleep in a bed again until April 22!
Late in the day our North Pole Flight team returned from Borneo. They reported that the -17 C of Longyearbyen felt noticeably warmer than the North Pole or Barneo. Everyone had a great time and we look forward to hearing more of their stories in the coming days.
Our ski and dogsled expeditions are heading to the airport at 9 AM for a tentative 10 AM departure tomorrow morning. Everyone is excited and ready to go. Check back again soon for another update!
