Seven hours on the ice – against a headwind
We’re sheltered in the tents again. Our position is S88˚10’14”, W95˚24’48”.
It was good that we had a “test leg” yesterday and tried our form. That allowed us to make numerous adjustments – starting straight off with a day such as this one, would definitely not have been a good idea. It’s been windy all day, picking up to 8–9 metres per second toward the end of it, and it has been coming straight at us. And believe me, when it’s –20˚C, you really feel that!
The breaks seem almost the worst, because we quickly chill down. Anyways, we’ve walked for seven hours and put 13 km behind us. That’s not bad, considering the conditions and that this is our first real day.
I’m sharing my tent with the oldest and youngest expedition member. Our youngest is 22 years old, while our senior member has reached 70. But these two are actually among those who are doing best. On an expedition like this, it’s not uncommon for a few people to become cold and fatigued, and the altitude is a strong factor in that.
We’ll see what the weather gods have in store for us tomorrow, but we can probably expect a day or two of strong winds, before the weather settles down and gives us calmer conditions. Spirits are still high. Now we’re looking forward to a good night’s sleep, before we attack the next leg in the morning. It’ll be exciting to see what the day brings.
