December 13, 2014
Last Ditch Effort to Find Ice
At some point last night I woke up surprised to not hear rain falling on the tent. Despite that being one of my favorite sounds, I was glad not to hear any more rain.
We had talked in general terms about potential plans last night but we deferred any concrete planning until morning.
I've learned a long time ago to not make any big decisions in the evening. Instead, I often defer until morning when I'm better rested and rational.
Whiile the chances were slim that we might find any glacier access, I wanted to be 100% certain so we packed up and once again headed off through the thick brush and thorns. Having been over this route several times, were no longer had to refer to my inReach track and compass bearings. We aimed toward a distant high slab of rock that I knicknamed '3 Africa's' because it looked the shape of three african continents side by side. To get there, we would have to climb several large ridges, but I hoped that one the other side of the most distant one could provide access to the glacier.
In the end, we were closer than we had gotten in our previous attempt but a sheer clif (and vertical drop to the water below) blocked our route. We were still slightly over a half-mile away from the glacier's end.
Our maps clearly show the glacier flowing nearly a mile past our current location. However, our map is older and the Balmaceda has been retreated substantially in the past 20 years. As it stands now, we don't think we'll be able to exit the ice cap at this point as we had hoped.
A bitter pill to swallow, but again valuable information for us in the future. Like on our North Pole trip, it is inevitable that we will encounter problems - the key is to keep at it until you can find a solution.
In unrelated news, I've been working with a new solar company, Enerplex, and have been totally impressed. Their panels use thin film which I feel offer more reliable power in a variety of conditions. Check them out if you get a chance, you won't regret it!
Image: the retreating Balmaceda.
We had talked in general terms about potential plans last night but we deferred any concrete planning until morning.
I've learned a long time ago to not make any big decisions in the evening. Instead, I often defer until morning when I'm better rested and rational.
Whiile the chances were slim that we might find any glacier access, I wanted to be 100% certain so we packed up and once again headed off through the thick brush and thorns. Having been over this route several times, were no longer had to refer to my inReach track and compass bearings. We aimed toward a distant high slab of rock that I knicknamed '3 Africa's' because it looked the shape of three african continents side by side. To get there, we would have to climb several large ridges, but I hoped that one the other side of the most distant one could provide access to the glacier.
In the end, we were closer than we had gotten in our previous attempt but a sheer clif (and vertical drop to the water below) blocked our route. We were still slightly over a half-mile away from the glacier's end.
Our maps clearly show the glacier flowing nearly a mile past our current location. However, our map is older and the Balmaceda has been retreated substantially in the past 20 years. As it stands now, we don't think we'll be able to exit the ice cap at this point as we had hoped.
A bitter pill to swallow, but again valuable information for us in the future. Like on our North Pole trip, it is inevitable that we will encounter problems - the key is to keep at it until you can find a solution.
In unrelated news, I've been working with a new solar company, Enerplex, and have been totally impressed. Their panels use thin film which I feel offer more reliable power in a variety of conditions. Check them out if you get a chance, you won't regret it!
Image: the retreating Balmaceda.