April 1, 2013
Ski day
We woke up to sunny skies and a relatively warm tent. I'm using the word 'warm' in its most liberal interpretation as the inside of our tent was still covered in a layer of frost. Unlike Antarctica, where it is so dry that frost never forms, here our first task is to take a small brush and sweep the walls of the tent to clear off the frost.
Next, we drag our sleeping bags outside to hopefully 'freeze dry' some of the moisture that has collected from our bodies. On my last North Pole expedition, our sleeping bags had nearly eight pounds of ice frozen inside by the end of our journey. On our short trip in Svalbard, we aren't as concerned but the less ice in our sleeping bags, the warmer we'll be at night so... We bring them outside.
After that, we run the MSR XGK for a while to further heat the tent (and ourselves). Next, its melting snow with water starter still warm from a Stanley insulated flask.
Its a long process that usually takes two hours. Today, we had the luxury of not having to break camp so it was a bit more relaxing start. I set up my Goal Zero solar panel to charge some of my electronic gear while we were out for the day.
Technically, today was a ski mountaineering day, but neither Ryan and I are good alpine skiers so we skinned back toward a distant peak and eventually made our way up. At one point the slope became too steep for skies so we strapped them to our packs and kicked small toe holds in the slope. I found myself wishing for my MSR snowshoes which were back in my sled. We had assumed (incorrectly) that we'd be able to skin the whole way. Finally, we made it to a flatter spot where we had a short Clif Bar break. I was sweating but I couldn't tell if it was from nerves or the effort.
We eventually put our skis back on and made it to a high saddle before turning back. We pulled our skins off the zig zagged down the mountain being careful to avoid the steeper terrain. By the time we reached camp, we were tired but pleased.
Looking back, we could see our ski tracks snaking up until they disappeared in the distance. How many people have skied here before? Ten? Surely no more and quite realistically - no one.
Either way it didn't matter because for today these mountains were ours alone to explore.
Image: Ryan making tracks
Next, we drag our sleeping bags outside to hopefully 'freeze dry' some of the moisture that has collected from our bodies. On my last North Pole expedition, our sleeping bags had nearly eight pounds of ice frozen inside by the end of our journey. On our short trip in Svalbard, we aren't as concerned but the less ice in our sleeping bags, the warmer we'll be at night so... We bring them outside.
After that, we run the MSR XGK for a while to further heat the tent (and ourselves). Next, its melting snow with water starter still warm from a Stanley insulated flask.
Its a long process that usually takes two hours. Today, we had the luxury of not having to break camp so it was a bit more relaxing start. I set up my Goal Zero solar panel to charge some of my electronic gear while we were out for the day.
Technically, today was a ski mountaineering day, but neither Ryan and I are good alpine skiers so we skinned back toward a distant peak and eventually made our way up. At one point the slope became too steep for skies so we strapped them to our packs and kicked small toe holds in the slope. I found myself wishing for my MSR snowshoes which were back in my sled. We had assumed (incorrectly) that we'd be able to skin the whole way. Finally, we made it to a flatter spot where we had a short Clif Bar break. I was sweating but I couldn't tell if it was from nerves or the effort.
We eventually put our skis back on and made it to a high saddle before turning back. We pulled our skins off the zig zagged down the mountain being careful to avoid the steeper terrain. By the time we reached camp, we were tired but pleased.
Looking back, we could see our ski tracks snaking up until they disappeared in the distance. How many people have skied here before? Ten? Surely no more and quite realistically - no one.
Either way it didn't matter because for today these mountains were ours alone to explore.
Image: Ryan making tracks