Børge Ousland

The “Northern Passage” was the first boat to make a successful Arctic circumnavigation in one season. We crossed our wake north of Bergen, Norway, on the morning of 14 October. It is now clear that the “Northern Passage” was also the first boat to sail through both the Northeast and Northwest Passages during one and the same season.

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The Russian boat “Peter 1st” has sailed the same route, recently crossing the North Atlantic and reaching Oslo today. It has previously been claimed, for instance in this article, that they were the first to sail through both passages. This is not correct.

We have concentrated on completing our expedition, according to plan, and have waited to double-check the facts. The International Hydrological Organization has a clear definition of the Northwest Passage. It reads as follows:

“On the Northeast: The Coast of Ellesmere Island between C. Columbia and C. Sheridan the Northern limit of Baffin Bay.

On the East: The East Coast of Ellesmere Island between C. Sheridan and Cape Norton Shaw (76°29′N 78°30′W / 76.483°N 78.5°W / 76.483; -78.5), thence across to Phillips Point (Coburg Island) through this Island to Marina Peninsula (75°55′N 79°10′W / 75.917°N 79.167°W / 75.917; -79.167) and across to Cape Fitz Roy (Devon Island) down the East Coast to Cape Sherard (Cape Osborn) (74°35′N 80°30′W / 74.583°N 80.5°W / 74.583; -80.5) and across to Cape Liverpool, Bylot Island (73°44′N 77°50′W / 73.733°N 77.833°W / 73.733; -77.833); down the East coast of this island to Cape Graham Moore, its southeastern point, and thence across to Cape Macculloch (72°29′N 75°08′W / 72.483°N 75.133°W / 72.483; -75.133) and down the East coast of Baffin Island to East Bluff, its Southeastern extremity, and thence the Eastern limit of Hudson Strait.

On the South: The mainland coast of Hudson Strait; the Northern limits of Hudson Bay; the mainland coast from Beach Point to Cape Bathurst.

On the West: The Eastern limit of Beaufort Sea [From Lands End through the Southwest coast of Prince Patrick Island to Griffiths Point, thence a line to Cape Prince Alfred, the Northwestern extreme of Banks Island, through its West coast to Cape Kellet, the Southwestern point, and thence a line to Cape Bathurst on the mainland (70°36′N 127°32′W / 70.6°N 127.533°W / 70.6; -127.533)].

On the Northwest: The Arctic Ocean between Lands End, Prince Patrick Island, and C. Columbia, Ellesmere Island.”

The map below shows a plot of these points. The Northwest Passage does not end in Pond Inlet. The dotted line shows our route, and the “Northern Passage” completed the Northwest Passage on 24 September.

It is now clear that the “Northern Passage” was the first to complete both passages. And we achieved that milestone in record time.
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Børge Ousland and Thorleif Thorleifson
The Northern Passage 2010 Expedition

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The eastern boundary of the Northwest Passage as defined by the International Hydrological Organization.

Sailors in the Arctic will encounter varying ice conditions and many types of ice. A discussion of ice types deserves an article in itself. In this second interview Nick Hughes, head of the Norwegian Ice Service, shares his knowledge on this topic.
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“There are two main types of ice: sea ice, that is ice that has formed by the freezing of sea water, and icebergs, which are ice that has formed on land as glaciers and then broken off to float out to sea.

“For sea ice there are three main categories: new ice, first-year ice and multi-year ice. Again there are several different stages of new ice, which depend on the environmental conditions in which it is forming. On calm water you first get a very thin sheet, called grease ice, which thickens into nilas, and then grey-white ice. In water with waves the ice cannot form a sheet, so you get lots of ice crystals suspended in the water, called frazil ice, which thickens the water to a soupy consistency. The frazil tends to clump together into balls, which eventually become glued together as “pancake” ice. This is a circular disk of glued-together frazil crystals, which, as it gets shunted about by the waves, causes the edges to be broken up and the ice crystals built-up to form a rim.

“Eventually enough ice forms to freeze together into a solid stable and flat sheet, onto which snow can fall and remain. This is first-year ice. The ice growth then continues from the underside and through the course of a winter and spring can grow up to two metres thick. The ice still has traces of sea water, brine, enclosed as little pockets within its structure. This makes first-year ice relatively soft, and so ice drift causing the floes to push together can break it up to form ridges and its is easier for icebreakers to break through it. The ridges are made up of angular ice block that are not strongly bonded together, and the structure of the ice is quite plainly visible on the edges of these,” explains Nick Hughes.

“Multi-year ice is ice that has survived at least one summer melt. However, this definition could also include ice that has formed in the spring and survived, in other words ice that is less than six months old. Therefore some people also use the term second-year ice to cover this. The summer causes melting on the surface of the ice, allowing water to collect into melt ponds. The water in these is fresh, but sometimes the ice melts to the extent that it extends through to the sea below. Ridge blocks are melted and fused together so that the ridge becomes a solid mass. Refreezing in the autumn then gives the ice a bumpy top surface, with many small hills and valleys, for which the term hummocky is used. The melt process flushes most of the brine pockets out of the ice and on refreezing the ice is much more solid than first-year ice. This makes it more resilient to breaking-up either by natural forcing or by icebreakers,” says the ice expert.

“First-year ice can grow up to about two metres thick.

“Normally the circulation of ice in the Arctic Ocean can allow multi-year ice to survive for as much as four to five years. In this time the ice can accumulate up to an average thickness of six–seven metres. Of course where you find compressed ridges the ice can be much thicker, particularly in the region north of Greenland and Ellesmere Island. The largest ridge I have seen had a keel – the portion below sea level – that extended down to a depth of 38 metres. This is not as much as an iceberg, which can actually extend hundreds of metres below the surface.

“Icebergs are generally found in waters off Greenland and around the various Russian Arctic islands. Because these generally have more ice below the water level, they tend to move with the ocean and tidal currents rather than the wind. This means that sometimes they can be clearing their own path through a field of sea ice. Icebergs are also a serious problem for ships navigating in the Arctic. Because glaciers can grow to great thicknesses, the ice at the bottom of these is strongly compressed and is much tougher than sea ice. When an iceberg is broken up at sea the fragments of ice, called growlers and bergy bits, only have a small portion visible above the sea level, making them very difficult to spot. Most incidents involving ice damage to ships occur because of hitting these,” says Nick Hughes and adds:

“If you would like to know more about sea ice, I recommend reading The Mariner’s Handbook, as well as the Canadian Ice Service’s Manual of Ice.”

In this interview, Nick Hughes explains his role as ice consultant for the Northern Passage 2010 Expedition. Nick is Head of the Norwegian Ice Service, leading a staff that prepares ice charts of the Arctic and Antarctic and provides in-depth ice information for clients. Let’s hear what he has to say…

by Olav Grinde

“For the Northern Passage 2010 Expedition, I have been interpreting ice conditions based on satellite images. This involves converting available raw satellite data into maps that can be understood by the crew of the “Northern Passage”. In places where the ice was challenging, I have suggested navigational waypoints for the crew to follow through the ice, avoiding its greatest concentration,” says Nick Hughes.

The craft of forecasting
“To forecast ice conditions, you need information on where the ice is now, a good weather forecast including the expected wind conditions, as well as knowledge of factors such as ocean and tidal currents, and sea-water temperatures, that may affect the ice in a particular area.

“Børge was fortunate to obtain sponsorship from the Canadian Space Agency, which provided the expedition with a large number of images from “Radarsat-2”, a satellite that observes the Earth’s surface. This was vital both for planning the initial route and for following ice conditions near the “Northern Passage” during the two most critical months of the expedition. We are able to see the ice through clouds and at night,” explains the ice expert.

“Most of the time we used images with a medium resolution of 50–100 metres, which is ideal for seeing where there is ice over a wide area. When we wanted to follow the ice in more detail over a smaller area, for example the narrow Bellot Strait in the Northwest Passage, we could increase the resolution to up to 4 metres. In addition the Ice Service was able to provide coverage from the European Space Agency’s Envisat satellite, through our involvement in the MyOcean project, as well as publicly available images from NASA satellites.”

Concentrating on the route
“On most days we were able to obtain images for the relevant area. Fortunately we did not need to draw full ice charts, but could limit ourselves to where we knew the “Northern Passage” would be sailing.”

The standard charts released by the Norwegian Ice Service cover the area between Greenland and the Kara Sea, and from the Baltic Sea and up to the North Pole. These are issued on weeikdays, except on Norwegian public holidays. Recently the team has started production of weekly ice charts for the Antarctic, covering the area of the Antarctic Peninsula and the Weddell Sea. It must also be mentioned that the Norwegian Ice Service participates in international research projects.

The challenge of stealth ice
“One issue the radar satellites have with summer sea ice conditions is that melt water may form on the ice surface and make the ice almost invisible! I am considering suggesting a new official term for this: stealth ice. Sometimes I had to use visual images, between the cloud cover, from NASA satellites to check the status and position of ice that I knew to be in the area based on earlier images,” explains Nick.

Teamwork
It can be very difficult to predict the interplay between ice, wind and ocean currents. That is why ice expert Nick Hughes has worked closely with expedition meteorologist Marc De Keyser.

“Most times, sea ice will behave as expected, which is that unless there is a particular ocean or tidal current present it will be blown about by the winds. What can happen is that a large area of concentrated ice can require prolonged winds in a particular direction to overcome its initial inertia and get it moving. On the other hand, once the ice is moving, it can continue in that direction for some time even if the winds should die down or change direction.”
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Read the full interview.

“Land ahoy! Methinks it’s Norway.” – Vince points to the mouth of the Oslofjord.

This occasion calls for a cigar. MInd you, these are genuine Havannas, a gift of my good friend and diving colleague Jan Erik Dahl!

The sight of Oskarsborg fortress, not far from home, brings out Børge’s smile.

Breakfast in bed. Every morning the youngster on board, Vince, would come up with a platter of delicacies. We really learned to appreciate them! But on this last day, I had the great pleasure of surprising Vince.

A great way to start the day – even at night!

Position update 02.49 CEST: 58.89251 N, 10.25805 E – Skagerrak, off the town of Larvik.

Position update 08.56 CEST: 59.38159 N, 10.58498 E – In the Oslofjord.
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Note: Please see yesterday’s blog entry.
The homecoming and celebration on 23 October will be at the Fram Museum, on Bygdøy just outside Oslo, where the “Northern Passage” started its voyage on Midsummer’s Eve, exactly four months ago (23 June).

Position update 08.36 CEST: 58.01056 N, 7.6605 E

Position update 21.06 CEST: 58.62057 N, 9.42035 E
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Expedition Report, 18.12:
Last night we sailed past the southernmost tip of Norway, Lindesnes. We’re heading towards Oslo at a good speed and can obviously arrive earlier than planned, should we want to. However, there are a lot of people that have set aside time on the 23rd to meet us, so we will keep to our original schedule, park the boat not to far away, and time our arrival in Oslo so that everything is according to plan.

We will arrive at the Fram Museum on Bygdøy at 14.00 on Saturday 23 October – the exact same place we left from on Midsummer’s Eve. There, everyone who wants to will be able to see the boat and meet the crew. We hope as many as possible will come to meet us.

Today we have enjoyed a beautiful day with calm sunny weather, sailing mostly close to land. There is so much to see! Trees, for instance. It may sound strange, but that is just one of the things we haven’t seen in months!

I’ve gone through our photo collection from the expedition, and enclose a few here.

One is from our small “communications department” on board, on the chart table, handmade by Erik and Kaare from Vindfangerbukta Baatforening. I also enclose a photo of our small stove with kettle, our only means of boiling water. We always fill the stove outside, using the same fuel as for the outboard motor, so we don’t have to bring two kinds of fuel.

Another photo of a bag tied to the mast is actually our storm jib. Plenty of bad weather taught us to always have it ready on deck.

The rest of the photos are from sailing into Bergen, and a couple ones from today, and from a picturesque place called Ny Hellesund.

Best regards from
The “Northern Passage”

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The “Communications Department” on board the “Northern Passage” may appear compact and humble, but it was highly efficient – and vital.

Our trusty kettle has provided a steady supply of boiling water.

Filling the stove with a new supply of gasoline. Fortunately our stove is not choose when it comes to fuel type.

Our stormsail is always kept ready on deck.

Sailing into Bergen.

Vince and Thorleif are overjoyed to be back in the “City of Seven Mountains” – or at least sailing past.

Coming out of the bathroom on the “Northern Passage”. You have no idea how much we’re looking forward to spacious bathrooms again!

Vince just waking up – or at least trying to wake up!

Arriving in Ny Hellesund.

At Ny Hellesund.

Position update 02.39 CEST: 59.76696 N, 5.52979 E – At the southern tip of Stord island.

Position update 10.41 CEST: 59.05991 N, 5.33631 E – West of Kvitsøy, an island municipality northeast of the town of Stavanger.

Position update 21.09 CEST: 58.19527 N, 6.17228 E – Off Sokndal, an old fishing village on the southwest coast.
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Note: I’ve added a video of the crew’s celebration to yesterday’s blog entry.

Position update 11.34 CEST: 60.25619 N, 5.2375 E – Now at Hjellestad, a harbour south of Bergen.

Position update 22.13 CEST: 60.13575 N, 5.27842 E – Continuing south, at the mouth of the Lysefjord.
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Happy faces! At 03.00 our team found good reason to open the Champagne. The headlights were a necessity!
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In the early hours of this morning, Thursday 14 October, the “Northern Passage” crossed its own wake
and reached the coast of Norway. They have successfully completed their mission: the first Arctic circumnavigation through the Northeast and Northwest Passages during one and the same season!

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After 11 days of battling the North Atlantic, Børge and Thorleif, in the good company of Trygve and Vince, can look forward to sailing along the Norwegian coast – home to Oslo, where the “Northern Passage” commenced its expedition on Midsummer’s Eve, 23 June.
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Here is a video of their celebration, after 108 days at sea.
The Champagne was a gift from a Russian sponsor, in Murmansk.

Position update 15.38 CEST: 61.16961 N, 2.02726 E – Midway between the Shetland Islands and Norway.

Position update 23.09 CEST: 60.94371 N, 3.49417 E
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Update, 15.12: Passed the Statfjord Oil Field half an hour ago…

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Signs of civilization, if we may call it that – Gullfaks A, one of the major platforms in the Norwegian sector of the North Sea.

It seems the “Northern Passage” has indeed achieved fame in the Faroe Islands. Here is an article written in an ancient and beautiful language, akin to that of our joint Viking ancestors:

Kring Norðpólin og á Klaksvík