Børge Ousland

Position update 07.45 CEST: 72.69698 N, 77.98294 W
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Vincent, Thorleif and Børge. (Photos: Eric Brossier)

Thorleif and Vincent.

Sailing through the ice in Victoria Strait.

The “Northern Passage”.

A curious (or hungry?) polar bear in Bellot.

At the entrance of the Bellot Strait.

Looking for a route through Bellot.

Ice in Bellot.

Børge and Thorleif.

Two marooned Frenchmen. (Photo: not Eric Brossier)

Chopping ice for drinking water in Bellot.

The captains – Thorleif of the “Northern Passage” and Dan of “Peter 1st”.

An information sign commemorates Roald Amundsen and his historic voyage with “Maud”.

Position update 20.35 CEST (22 Sept): 74.49006 N, 84.47766 W

Position update 07.08 CEST (23 Sept): 73.93836 N, 82.1478 W

Position update 14.14 CEST (23 Sept): 73.38908 N, 80.95178 W

Position update 19.37 CEST (23 Sept): 72.88349 N, 80.08508 W
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Expedition Report, 06.07 CEST:
Today, on the 21st of September, we enter Lancaster Sound and reach the 74th parallel, considered by most sailors to mark the eastern end of one of the most critical and difficult parts of the Northwest Passage. We shall soon be proud of being the first sailing vessel, together with “Peter 1st”, that ever has sailed through both the Northeast and Northwest Passage in one short Arctic summer. We congratulate “Peter 1st” on their own success with the challenges through the ice.

We have met “Peter 1st” in several ports along the route – Pevek, Barrow and Cambridge Bay. On each occasion there has been a very good atmosphere between us. We certainly agree that we have become friends on this voyage, and we have tried to help each other whenever we can. They gave us a wire to repair the forestay in Barrow, and in Cambridge Bay and Pevek we shared with them our ice information and chart details.

In Cambridge Bay we proposed to Captain Dan and his crew that we should enter Pond Inlet together. We don’t know if that will happen, since they apparently have turned on their powerful engine and are steaming east some hours ahead of us. Hopefully we will meet after all.

Now we will get our new forestay in Pond Inlet and some small supplies, water for instance, and do the planned crew change. Eric, who has previously done both passages on the Vagabond, has been a tremendous capacity to have on board. He will change places with Trygve Rushfeldt, who is a long time multi-hull sailor from Norway.

Our expedition is one of the most environmentally friendly of its kind ever undertaken. We have used sail more than 90 percent of the time; only in between thick drift ice and in and out of harbours have we had some modest help from our small outboard motor.

For the captain and crew of the “Northern Passage” this is not merely a question of a sports achievement – to complete both passages – Thorleif and Børge both have a strong environmental commitment, and are particularly concerned with the ongoing climate changes.

It is, unfortunately, the dramatic changes in Arctic sea ice conditions in recent years that have made this trip possible. On the time of Roald Amundsen it took five to six years to complete the same distance, due to the extremely difficult and demanding ice conditions. Now we have proven that it is possible to make the voyage in a 31-foot fibreglass sailing boat, equipped with a 10 horsepower outboard motor for emergencies. This shows how dramatic and how fast these changes are happening. The changes that we are witnessing will influence climate on a global scale, in addition to the whole range of animal life in the Arctic – especially seals and polar bears, whose lives are dependent on the sea ice.

It is our hope that our voyage will be seen as a strong, visible symbol of the scale and the speed of these changes.

It is a huge milestone for us to have completed both passages, and the second phase of the expedition. However, our journey is not over yet; now we will start on the final leg back home to Oslo, to complete our circumnavigation of the Arctic.

Thorleif and Børge
“Northern Passage”

Position update 06.45 CEST (21 Sept): 72.61696 N, 91.53183 W

Position update 14.15 CEST (21 Sept): 73.10202 N, 89.92892 W
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Expedition Report, 19.06 CEST:
After tacking against the winds all night we reached the mouth of the feared Bellot Strait early in the morning. The timing was just right for the current, and after passing a tight ice band that clogged the narrower parts of the strait we had mostly open water.

In the middle of the strait a large male polar bear was lying, waiting for the ice to freeze, I suppose. We took the boat closer to the shore and the bear came down to the beach, just a few metres from us. A truly magic experience to meet the King of the Arctic at such close quarters!

The tidal current picked up as we approached the exit of the strait, and by the end we were doing 10 knots. Whirlpools of water and ice were all around us, but fortunately the drifting ice was loose and there was enough space for us to move in between the floes. This was the of the major pack ice hindrances we expect with respect to the Northwest Passage.

As we continue from here we are, however, facing another danger: Icebergs. The glaciers of Baffin Island are continually calving into the fjords and inlets, and thus there is always a potential risk in these areas. We must still keep a good lookout and during the night we use the radar.

Currently we are sailing across Prince Regent Inlet towards Baffin Island.

Expedition Report, 22.33 CEST:
Sailing in this waters, we feel being very close to history. As we read the many place names on the sea charts we are reminded of all the European mariners that for four centuries searched for an open water passage across the seas above mainland Canada. Grave Bay, Cape Felix, and Cape Franklin – to mention a few of the place names. Amundsen’s successful voyage is, of course, reflected in many of the place names along the Northwest Passage.

At the moment we are tacking (again) against the wind, northwards in the Peel Sound.

To our new crewmember Erik Brossier, who sailed through this passage in 2003, it is strange to see the reduction of sea ice since then. Right here where we are now, in the Franklin Strait, we can tack in open water; while Eric had to spend eight days in a bay inside the Tasmanian Islands, waiting for a lead south, when he sailed here in 2003.

We find another interesting name on the sea chart to the west of our present position, The Larsen Sound. Henri Larsen, from Norway, emigrated to Canada as a young man, and became only the second to sail the Northwest Passage after Amundsen – representing Canada and the Royal Mounted Police in his little schooner St. Roch. And this was in 1942!

It is thrilling to be so close to a completion of the Northwest Passage. First, however, we must pass through the challenging Bellot Strait, where we can expect up to 8 knots tidal current. In the east part of this strait we will also have to pass between a shoal and a rock – a little bit like Scylla and Carybdis on Odysseus journey. We expect to enter this strait tomorrow. I think we have a bottle of Champagne stowed somewhere down below.

Being a Franco-Norwegian crew, we are happy to report there are no cultural clashes – at least so far. It is, to be hones, quite cultivated.

Vive la France! Leve Norge! (No live Norway!)

Thorleif Thorleifsson, captain
“Northern Passage“, 19 September

Børge facing a snow shower on watch.
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Expedition Report, 01.18 CEST:
“We are just now sailing past the northern tip of King William Island. Once again we were able to escape the ice, this time through what is considered to be one of the most difficult straits in the Northwest Passage. We had some exiting sailing in between ice floes, but our timing was very good – and thus we managed to get through while it was still daylight.

Our next challenge will be the Bellot Strait, which apparently is more or less open. Tidal currents of up to 5–6 knots flush through this strait, so also here timing will be critical.

It has been cold most of the day, snowing with some sunshine in between. We have changed the batteries on our Spot sender, so hopefully that will begin to transmit again.”

Best regards,
Børge

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There is no room for error as the “Northern Passage” navigates through the ice-filled waters of the Victoria Strait.

Expedition Report, 16.48:
Our position at 1400 UTC is 69˚19’N, 99˚01’W, and all is well.

We had another exiting night. Charts are, as I mentioned earlier, really unreliable here, we were down to three metres depth where the charts said 11, and many places it was like that. We also met the first scattered ice floes in the middle of the night, but Vince with his young and good eyes saw them and we managed to get through. It was difficult to see these floes on radar since they were quite flat. We been sailing along the coast of King William Island, and are currently following the ice edge northwards. The northwesterly wind has spread the ice around, so we navigate with care in between ice floes.

King William Island is where Franklin and his crew met their destiny. 155 men perished after his two ships, the “Erebus” and “Terror”, were crushed by ice. They were hardly prepared for the harsh Arctic winter, and every last man died on their way southward.

Vince was originally supposed to disembark in Pond Inlet, but has agreed to continue further; so with the fourth crewmember (to be presented later) joining us in Pond Inlet we are now a full team. It was extremely difficult to choose between all the great people who wanted to join this epic adventure. We want to thank all of you for your efforts and willingness to help us out on the last bit to Norway.

Position update 12.13 CEST (17 Sept): 68.47144 N, 103.32681 W

The “Northern Passage” beside the wreck of “Maude”, the ship that Roald Amundsen sailed through the Northwest passage.

Expedition Report, 00.01 CEST, 17 Sept:
We arrived in Cambridge Bay at 1400 UTC on the 16th of September. It took a bit longer than expected due to strong northerly winds last night, which required us to tack against them. When we reached port in Cambridge Bay in the morning, local time, Eric Brossier and Brent Boddy were waiting for us. Eric is coming onboard as crew, while Brent is an old friend from Iqaluit. We were in Iqualuit preparing for the North Pole trip in 1990, and Brent helped us out with advice, training facilities and storage.

I had forwarded a good supply of dinner rations to Brent, and the idea was also that our new forestay was going to be sent to him. Incredibly enough, the forestay had not arrived! We will have to do with the one we made in Barrow, but it is critical that we get the new one in Pond Inlet. Brent dried our sleeping bags, which had gotten quite moist in the course of the last week, and we also changed gear oil and fuel filter on our outboard motor. Our friends from “Peter 1st”, had arrived during the night and were also taking on board supplies in Cambridge Bay.

We had to say goodbye to our friend Ibrahim, who on this trip has become an expert helmsman. Eric Brossier from France came onboard to replace him. Eric is an Arctic sailor and has experience sailing the Northwest Passage on board his “Vagabond”. We should therefore be well prepared for the challenges that lie ahead. We should have sufficient time before the passage freezes – but just barely.

At 21.00 UTC we left Cambridge Bay and sailed over to Maud, the ship that Roald Amundsen used for the Northeast Passage. Now, unfortunately, it is lying as a wreck here in Cambridge Bay.

Best regards,
Børge

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The team in Cambridge Bay.

Our friend in Cambridge Bay, Brent Boddy.