After a fantastic day, we have reached N83?21’33”, E104?07’03”. I can’t remember seeing such good conditions – almost completely level, with only a few walls of block ice where the large ice floes have collided. The ice is thick and firm. All day we’ve been helped by a tail wind, northeasterly and 7–8 metres per second. Since this morning we’ve walked 24 km, and if we include the ice drift, our progression is 27 kilometres. That’s fantastic! But I must say it’s well deserved.
Let’s hope the good conditions continue.
Today we saw fresh polar bear and fox tracks, but no other signs of life. Early on, it became cloudy and started snowing, so it’s been quite dark – with the good ice that hasn’t been a problem. To keep our bearings in the darkness, we’ve fastened two-foot long ribbons to our ski poles. As we walk, we pay careful attention to the angle they make in the wind. First we use our GPS to mark due north, then measure the angle of the ribbon – and that’s the angle we try to keep when we’re skiing. Every couple of hours we double-check it with our GPS, to make sure the wind direction hasn’t changed. It’s been stable all day.
My right knee is hurting. It’s been sore for a few days now, but it hasn’t gotten any worse. I’m hoping the medication I’m taking will help. Fortunately, the burden on my knee lessens as the pulks grow lighter for each day. Days like this with good ice also help.
Now we’re going to eat dinner – been looking forward to that all day.
Haaper kneet holder hele veien. Veldig interessant blog, keep it up!
Mags