For a few moments this afternoon, I entertained the thought of packing up and hitting the trail. Then the wind hit (again) pummeling us... again.

Yesterday, the day started off innocently enough. Clear skies and just a slight breeze. Skiing was nearly effortless (not really but you know what I mean) as we strode steadily over the rolling terrain of the Greenland ice cap. Slowly, almost imperceptibly at first, the wind started increasing. A strong breeze, then a stiff wind. After lunch a ground blizzard, seemed to push us backward with every step. I wanted to keep skiing on, but there seemed to be a quickening intensity to the storm and I worried we wouldn't be able to put up the tents.

We stopped at around 3 pm to start build snow walls for camp. Finding a wind packed area of snow, we set about cutting large snow blocks and building a v-shaped snow wall. Hopefully, the wind and spindrift would deflect harmlessly around our camp. Once the wall was four feet high, we set up and guyed one tent. Then more snow blocks, another wall and the second tent. I added several extra guy lines and attached to snow stakes. I was worried that, even with the snow walls, the wind might break a tent pole.

By this time the wind had increased so much that it was difficult to stand outside the snow wall. There was so much blowing snow that it was almost impossible to see the surface. We threw our gear in the tents and tried to relax which was fairly difficult as the tent walls snapped whip-like constantly.

An hour later, we were back outside, reinforcing the snow walls and adding an extra 'wing' as the wind had shifted slightly. The windward end of the tents were still getting buried but not nearly as bad as the storm several days prior where we were camped in a small depression in the glacier.

After a quick dinner, we decided to split up the night into shifts, each person getting out to check on tents and shovel out drifts every two hours. The wind was constant. Dean came back in the tent at midnight after 45 minutes of digging. Still, the tents were fairing better than I had hoped. By 4 a.m. and my turn outside, conditions were just as bad (but luckily not worse). I floundered around in the blowing whiteout for an hour digging out both tents.

By 7 a.m. the wind had dropped enough for us to all go out and clear snow. The forecast was calling for even stronger winds at noon. By now, the snow walls were almost six feet tall.

We are behind schedule so any time in the tent not skiing is stressful. Still, we managed to doze off for a couple of hours. Just about the time I was wondering if the forecast might be wrong, another strong series of gusts came up and further pelted us for a couple hours.

Another lull sent us all outside marveling at how the wind had sculpted the snow around us. Miraculously, we were all intact - gear and people. Just as we were casually talking the wind switched forcing us to scamper to erect another flank to our snow walls - this time on the south side. Once completed, we ran back into our tents, snow packed into every nook and cranny of our clothes.

And now, it's now. The wind has dropped omg with the temperature. Tomorrow, we will dig out once again and start skiing east (again).