2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

Last chance for Davis Strait

This may be my last chance to post the ice map for Davis, so here it is early.

Thank you Environmental Canada and Canadian Ice Service

Pat

http://ice-glaces.ec.gc.ca/prods/WIS33SD/20080820180000_WIS33SD_0003925785.gif

2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

72 47 19.8 – 076 31 12.4 Pond Life

Here I sit, in full party gear, glasses all fogged up, red headlight putting pink glow on keyboard. hove to spong in the middle of the entrance to Pond Inlet, 4 huge icebergs bearing down on us – and do they ever bear down! Each has massive bow wave and wash. Long story but we decided to try to get into Pond to find shelter and anchor for a bit but having headbanged big seas, nasty winds, freezing (almost) rain we found we couldn't get in against the tide and wind without redlining the engine – not my game, especially as we now have significant stern gland leak and new vibration that I don't like. So we're parked in this huge entrance.

Utterly gobsmacking scenery – too knackered to do it justice but imagine massive rounded mountains and valleys in deep black twilight silhouette just visible below the grey rolling cloudbase – but clear the other side with stark white backlight reflecting off the high glaciers so intensely that it seemed to be solid like the whitest icing – and each rounded top has a dusting of snow just like on a chocco sacher torte. Great slab sided glacial moraines instead of beaches. A hell of a night – desperately need sleep but worth every minute for this. Other 2 sleeping, my turn next.

Must go check the icebergs – may have to do a bit of bare poling to get out of the way of the biggest one. Need a grib so will try to send this.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

McQ: Ailsa Craig

This blog is dedicated to my friend Mark Dence- if someone could let him know that would be great.
A long time ago we were sailing to Largs, I think, and there is a big rock in the way called Ailsa Craig However hard we tried we just could not get past it, we would almost get past and then it would be Mark's watch's go and for watch after watch would come on deck and Mark would be driving still with Ailsa Craig to one side or the other of us!!! I imagine he was as frustrated as the rest of us!!! But it was very funny at the time to blame him for our incapability of sailing past Ailsa Craig. I guess you had to be there but it kept us entertained for a bit!!
Yesterday in Baffin Bay was a bit like this: tacking past Ailsa Craig sized and shaped icebergs and despite our chart telling us we were making progress it felt that we were going back and forth past the same iceberg in the gloom!!!

After our evening interlude into barely the entrance of Pond's Inlet against the tide (kinda painful!!) we are now stonking south poled out with 25 ish knots of wind behind us!!!
Lots of bergs about though and vis rubbish, Kevvo coping well with driving which makes it easier to focus on finding bergs emerging out the gloom!!!
This considered, I am reluctant to ETA but I am going for 1400UTC 24th September (tied up, alongside, Falmouth), so no need to worry mum- you should definitely still go on your hols!!!

Lots of love from a very tired
McQ
xxx

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

7234 07512

Slarty was obviously proud of Pond Inlet – I could see his signature clearly on both sides. Couldn't quite read the date – looked like about 400 million years ago – about when Marvin started parking space vehicles at the other end of the universe.

I pulled in the grib this morning, had a look at it and unrolled the headsail and squeezed out past the nearest big berg, which promptly dropped half of itself into the ogg with a snap like a gunshot and a big splash. Missed it be a nanosecond with the Nik, but not enough light anyway unfortunately, even with ISO on auto. We're now 40 miles into Baffin Bay, I hope on the way to the AC and Cape Farvel and Falmouth. A bit over 2000 miles to Falmouth – time for prediction guesses if anyone's interested – mine is midnight UTC on September 17th just to set a baseline.

Still cold, misty rain, but N wind forecast for next three days. Cross 'em again please. Speedy has been on holiday – gone sailing – so no messages except some congratulations and good wishes. Thanks y'all. Of the other boats going east that I know of, Amodino is doing the tourist gig behind us, Gary Ramos Arctic Wanderer went through Bellot Strait last night ans is now in Prince Regent. I really have my assorted appendages crossed for him – he's been stuck in Cambridge Bay for the last 3 winters. www.arcticwanderer.com I think. Westbound, Tyhina and Geraldine in CB, I think, and a couple of French boats approaching CB.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

K: Sea Monsters

Was on deck pondering a couple of triangular shaped bergs in the not-too-distant, when suddenly…they turned black and smooth, grew to twice their original size and sprouted a third mate! Ye gads! Sea monsters – giant Baffin Sea sharks heading straight towards us. Eeek!. No, no, no – they're Orcas!

Three beautiful, glossy black and white orcas cruising straight up to Berri. A nonchalant breath and duck of head and under the boat they go. Cruising straight on towards the murky sunset as if we were just another piece of flotsam on the ocean surface. Makes you feel kinda small and out of place really.

Glad to hear that it's as cold in Tassie as it is up here. Looking forward to a lazy morning with a latte at Cottesloe Beach in the sun when I get back!

K.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

McQ: Amendments to the Bollinger ETA Crystal Ball/Calculator

Hmmm… so I’ve done some slightly more accurate distance measuring to Falmouth and looked into the crystal ball and going on the assumption that we aren’t planning to stop in Greenland at the moment, would like to amend my ETA to 1400 UTC 20th September… hopefully, mum, you will be back from your hols by then cause it would be very sad if you weren’t!!
No more amendements from me, thats my final guess!!!
Its a beautiful morning here in Baffin Bay- can see Baffin Island to Starboard, all the bergs are almost glowing blue in the bright morning sunshine-just yesterday I was wondering if I’d ever get to wear sunnies again and here we are today with the sun out!!
Fantastic and all rather spectacular!!
Lots of love
Cor
xxx

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

Berri on Baffin

Alex called by sat phone yesterday. I had to chair a local emergence response committee meeting so Megan took the call. All is well. (that means the boat is fine, the crew is healthy)

Alex is receiving current weather reports so our daily calls are no longer critical. We will cut back. (Satellite phone time is very expensive)

The ice bergs on the ice maps are just the really big ones. These monsters leave a flotsam trail of smaller ice bergs that are still impressive. For every triangle on the map, I can only guess to the number of smaller ones. Its a lot.

Few will realize what the Berri just did. The NW passage has been crossed by only a small hand full of small boats. 25 according to Gary Ramos of the Arctic Wonderer. It includes Amundson's Gjoa  and the RCMP schooner St. Roch. Bockstoce, my brother and I went through in an umiak (32' open skin boat) in the late 70s and later my mother went through in style in Bockstoce's Belvedere. (She was the first woman to go W to E)
(During the umiak passage 3 of our crew were killed in unrelated off trip accidents and one went insane). Most boats survive whither they make the passage or not, though they do get beat up really badly, or left behind? The coast guard does patrol for supple ships and frequently make rescues. Berri got through without a scratch…not out of the woods yet- knock on wood, cross fingers.

 I have gotten many calls from different adventures wanting to make the NW crossing or the Bering Strait crossing. For most I strongly advise them to stay away. We have to risk our lives to save theirs and we don't like it. One has to have the correct mind set. This is not an adventure, it's a dangerous trip to the unprepared glorie seeker, oh- trust me… some are so unprepared. A perfect crossing will have no story to tell at the end. No problems. No issues. No disasters. All ice openings are taken advantage of. The weather is not an issue. It makes a really boring book. The exciting stories are about what they see and who they meet. Arctic explorer, Vilhjalmur Stefansson used to say "adventure is a sign of incompetence".

Alex is one of the most unassuming and competent I have ever seen. It was a privilege to be a part of his effort.

I am off the Germany for a week, with no email. I can't wait to see the blog on my return.
 Good luck and Gods speed.

Pat

PS. This is my second attempt to post. I hope it does not post twice.

2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

7055 06752

Sad about the bear. We were probably the only humans it will ever see and its last chance of a meal and a point in the right direction. We are 25 miles offshore and the bear was probably out on the pack ice when it melted.

We passed the latitude of Point Barrow – Alaska – this afternoon at about 1300 central time. Sadly, the GPS seems to have gone on strike and dumped all its trip data so can't give you distance. That's the problem with low budget extravaganzas. Don't know why.

We have decided to head for Nuuq – no jokes please, Dr Price! – to break the journey, fix a few things and find some Carlsberg.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

McQ: Polar Bear Ahoy!

So Hilary thank you for putting Lucy in the sky with diamonds in my head as my after dinner song of choice on watch and no we haven’t found any more cabbage and no I am not testing the hallucinogenic properties of any of our other foodstuffs but yes we HAVE just seen a polar bear swimming along behind us… Kimbra saw him and called to let us know and I went on deck and saw him too… so it was definitely real!!
At 25 miles offshore Big A thinks he’s probably lost and dying but I have faith in that bear- he’ll just be hungry- lets just hope he finds a nice generous welcoming family to offer him some nice hot irish stew to warm him up when he gets ashore somewhere… we’d have offered him a lift but we are stonking along and well past before we had a chance to ask him if he needed a ride.
Unbelievable though- totally unbelievable!!!
I don’t think I’ll ever be able to contemplate this world in the same way ever again after this adventure!!!
Lots of love
MCQ
xxx

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

7034 06614 and past Cape Horn way down there

Thanks to everyone who sent us congratulations and for Wollaston details. He sounds like an interesting guy and thoroughly deserves all his islands. Unusual for an inventor to get a guernsey though – usually rich sponsors and politicians and ships officers.

Kees – get yourself to Nome with bottle of Chivas and share it with Pat Hahn – he won it for you! His advice was the critical factor in the two or three really good calls we were lucky enough to make.

I hope that we will be in Nuuk by about Wednesday – aiming to stay two nights and fix a few things and get moving again. MJC, might be a good opportunity for your PR person to get in touch?

Hooning downwind at the mo – huge icebergs all around, but the water temp is gradually rising – was up to 5 deg yesterday, now back to 3. Berri damp and a bit dank inside – getting into Pond was a wet experience – but getting lighter and a bit more lively as the days pass. And do they ever pass slowly – for those that know the course, this is the bit that goes from Sandringham into St Kilda in the Melbourne marathon – getting close but goes for EVER and you desperately want to stop running…Should be about 2 days to the Arctic Circle – the longest definition of the NWP is AC to AC. Mine would be more like Beaufort Sea to Lancaster Sound, or perhaps Point Barrow to Bylot Island.

Falmouth predictions will be a bit awry if we do stoop in Nuuk – take mine out by 4 days to midnight on the 21st – happys to K!

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

7019 06520 and some messages

Still downwind but very light. Rolling and slatting a bit. Thanks to all for good wishes.

H – tks for msg and will call mjc from Nuuk via pingo

Matt – how do they know which way to swim?

Izz – tks also – will call u from Nuuk

Carol – u might be able to get to the Izzery by train and cadge a lift from there if you really are silly enough to want to come down. And you'd love Djilis (my phoneticisation!)

Pat in Nome – tks for 1400 phone calls – will desist for the mo but wd be interested in N Atlantic trends – will call from Nuuk.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

6947 06257 About lunch!

Note all the sixes in our position! We are really going south – about 180 to the AC and for the first time since Peel sound, no ice in sight anywhere.

And as for lunch – I think we are rather lucky that we saw our bears in 2008 from good solid Berri and not 1808 from a skin boat. Humans have always been part of the food chain for hungry bears and we might just have become lunch and sustained them for the next 100 miles. There's a grim description of a bear killing an Inuit man in Brower's book.

Nowt to report and an anti scorbutic is due.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

McQ: Goldilocks (thats me!!! ha!!) and the three (Polar) bears

I was on watch earlier today, standing in the cockpit of Wee Berri, scanning the horizon for bergs ahead of us, Kevvo driving, storming along at about 8 (ok, maybe 7) knots, poled out, 20 knots wind, full main and big headsail, flattish sea, no ice but then we did a wee roll across a wave and the bit of sea under the pole came into view on the starboard side and there, probably about 7 or 8 metres from where I was standing were three bears swimming along to our right- amazing!! they would swim a bit and then stop, tread water and look at me inquisitively, as if to say, ‘what on earth are you, bonkers shaped thing zooming across my ocean??’ the mummy bear would check on her two baby bears and then they would continue… I was a bit transfixed and glued to the spot, told Big A and K down below and then sort of went, ‘camera!!’ to myself- by the time I’d got that organised they were a bit away on our starboard quarter, but I got a photo that if you zoom right in you can tell they are bears- just!!!
It would have been just like Goldilocks and the Three Bears if I hadn’t replaced the Hair Management Programme with a hat last week and if K had given me porridge not pocket warmers for breakfast!!!And of course the bears would have had to have come on board and eaten the porridge, actually, I think it was the other way round??? Did I eat their porridge?? Or was there a wolf that ate the porridge? or was that a different story altogether???

Lots of love
Goldi-matted-messy-locks McQueen
xxx
NB: I haven’t been driving in squiggly lines on watch towards bergs in order to try and lower the water temp- honest!!
ps: these three bears looked pretty strong and healthy and quite content in the ocean swell, so am now fully convinced at their resilience in the water and that they will navigate their way safely to the coast- and, hopefully, some lunch.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

K: The Bet

I have to concede, I think I'm about to lose a bet with Corrie. A few days ago, when we turned out of Lancaster Sound into the Baffin, we had a bet on how long it would take for the water temperature to be consistently higher than 5 deg C. Just one of those things you do at 5 am to break an imponderably long journey up into comprehensible chunks. At the time the water was an icy 2 deg C.

For a while it looked like I was in with a chance. As we headed down the coast of Baffin Island, the water reached a balmy 5.6 deg C on occasions. But now we've left the coast and headed out into the depths the temp has plummeted again. It's hovering around 4 deg C and my time limit's up at midnight tonight, so it's not looking good for me.

If I had done my homework before making the bet (or checked the homework that I did before leaving home), I would have seen that the mean sea temp for August doesn't reach 5 deg C until about lat 63 N, or even further south still around the coast of Greenland. As we're just crossing 70N now, there's a while to go yet! On the positive side, there are no icebergs visible up ahead at the mo, so maybe the water will get warm again really fast.

There's a word for people who are obsessed by the wind. I can't remember what it it, but it has a lot more syllables than "sailor". I wonder if there's a similar word for people who are obsessed by sea surface temperature, apart from maybe "nerd" or "those with very cold toes"???

K.

PS: C saw another 3 polar bears swimming a couple of hours ago. These ones were about 50 miles offshore – looked like a mother and two 2nd year cubs perhaps. Good luck bears – hope you make it home safely.

PPS: Amadino also made it through the NWP safely. They're now nearing the coast of Greenland, a lot further north than us.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

6929 05913 Don’t paaniiic!

There may be no more blogs between here and Nuuk – comms v flaky and too dificult. Am in touch with Greenpos search and rescue people. Extraordinarily efficient.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

6750 05805 Lizzie hasn't whizzed

I've been having unusual problems with all the electronic stuff – loong story but it all seems to have been due to very low battery power. Been running the engine all day and now fully charged @ 14 volts. Not sure what happened, but might be something to do with the whizzer.

Have finally found a phone number that works for officialdom in Greenland. It is for their equivalent of the coastguard. Called in to report possible arrival in Nuuk wednesday and was told to report 4 times per day from now on – 'for my own protection' – and that I had 30 minutes to make the call each time or they would initiate SAR. I told them where we have come from and that this seemed a bit excessive especially given the difficulty in communicating. We compromised on once a day which I can live with. Today's little bit of irony!

Will keep trying to send these…

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

L@@k Nuuk!


This what Nuuk looks like. Copyright Kaare Sorenson.
Speedy.

2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

K: Hitch-hiker

We've just had a visitor! A juvenile Arctic Tern has been parked on Berri's boom for the last 20 minutes (we're motoring and the mainsail's flaked on the boom to stop it flogging in the light winds).

Before settling on the boom, our birdling first had a good go at trying to land on the anemometer, the remains of the windex, whizzie Lizzie (thankfully not spinning), the forestay (ambitious!) and each of the spreaders in turn. I thought it was going to try and land on me in the cockpit for a while! Anyway, after landing mini-tern settled in for a good squawk, a bit of a preen and then tucked it's head under a wing for a nap. All of which is quite some feat while balancing on a slippery dacron sail.

All this time, mum (or dad) was circling in some agitation overhead trying to get young birdling back in the air and on the way. Birdling was having none of it – and told mum so repeatedly and quite loudly. Mum then tried some fishing – unsuccessfully – maybe to bribe birdling back into action. Then she just plain gave up and flew off. At this point birdling worked out that he wasn't going to win this one and took off after mum. Hope they caught up with each other!

It's absolutely amazing to watch all of this going on, and the interaction between the two birds, from less than an arm's length. Birdling was completely unfazed by my presence, something you just don't see that much back in civilisation. Mum looked to be a bit more people-savvy and kept her distance.

Wonder how long before they start their winter migration south like us?

Scrambled pancakes for breakfast this morning – you know the sort, all going fabulously until it comes time to turn them over. Grr.

Corrie has been gloating non-stop about winning our water temperature bet. It's just not fair – the temp has now rocketed up to 8 deg C! Way above average according to NOAA, and we're still 60 miles north of the Arctic Circle. Oh well, warmer water makes washing up the scrambled-pancake pan that much easier.

K.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

6645 05610 AC just over the horizon

We should be back on the Arctic Circle going south in about 4 hours, 31 days after crossing it going north in the Bering Sea. At the other end, I did not dare even think about this moment. I can’t give you exact distances because of the idiosyncrasies of the GPS but my guess would be about 3400 miles. For me they have been 3400 miles of extraordinary intensity – I wrote in the previous Berri round the world blog that I lived in a plastic tube with its own language, grammar and syntax and that the boat talks to me. That blog became part of a BBC programme. This time, the language has been there – Berri and I have subliminal conversations – but the intensity of the experience has been about symbiosis and heartbeat. Every creak, every wave slap against the hull, every crash of a pole against the forestay, every change in the engine note and my heart has thumped with Berri’s. I stand in the cockpit on watch feeling her as a living thing through my feet and every sense – I can absorb the vibrations in the shaft bearing, the flexing of the mast, the slight change in the feel as the boat goes through a wave, the burr of a shroud harmonic. I think that since we were rolled off Gabo, I have been far more conscious of the possibilities and am living a bit more scared.

Then there was the intensity of the experience – the history, Franklin’s ghosts, the scenery, the sheer splendour and indifference of ice and the Central Arctic – Pat Hahn said it much better than I can.

And the tension has got to me occasionally. I’ve been moody and snappy and once, inexcusably, I was far too liberal with the gin and was clearly incapable. I was acutely horrified next morning and decided immediately never again. Consultations since have been juniper flavoured tonic only. I guess I’m no Pope – fallibility is definitely my gig but I think the trick is to understand it and manage within its limitations. That, after all, is how we got this far.

And we’re getting closer to Falmouth – the last sailmail I sent went via the Belgium sailmail station. Yeeehaaa!

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

K: Land-Ho!

It's 0100 and I've just come off watch. Out to the east a long, purple, raggedy chain of mountain tops is coming into view through the sunrise (ok – so our boat-time's a bit out of synch with the rest of the world). Greenland! 40-odd miles away off the beam. We've got 150 miles to go before we turn up the fjord into Nuuk – so lunchtime tomorrow's my guess.

Currently rollicking along con gusto. Running downwind in 25-30 kts, poled out heady and just dropped the mainsail. Sea state: frisky.

Night all, K.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

6519 05420 The optimist's gamble

Sounds like Ludlum.

We ought to be in Nuuk tomorrow morning local time – say around 1500UTC. If we can get a reasonable berth at the Boat Club we will sort all the fixes, do the shopping and get ready for the Atlantic over the next day or so. I've done the great circle numbers and – here's the optimist – it should be possible to get to Falmouth from Nuuk in 15 days sailing 3 to Kap Farvel and 12 for the Atlantic)if we crack a good weather pattern. So – more optimism (something you almost never get from me!) if we leave Nuuk at sparrow fart on Aug 30 we could be in Falmouth by Sept 15, so any time from then is a reasonable bet.

Hilary, if you're out there, it's just possible.

However, the normal me now jumps in to remind myself and everyone else that we haven't heard from the Examiner for a long time and I'm sure there's a question or two yet to be asked.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

McQ: The Bet #2

I wasn't gloating over winning the last bet!!! I just like to win, that's all!!
And I've challenged K to a new bet… What is the highest temperature that the sea will reach between here and our Nuuk fjord entrance, where we hang a left to go up to the harbour, tomorrow… 60ish miles and I've gone for an extravagant 12.4 degrees, and she has gone for a much more conservative 8.5 degrees… watch this space!!! (we are at 7.8 at the moment!!!)
All good, storming along still with a wee touch of headsail poled out and 26 to 28 knots wind behind us, still gusting 30 at times, and chomping away at the miles, Kevvo mostly got it under control!!!
The bear, the walrus, the giant mosquito, the arctic lemmings et al, waved us a fond farewell and best wishes for a safe onward passage, from their slightly rollicking Fox's Glacier Mint (a definite precarious perch in these humungous seas) last night at 0250 UTC as we crossed the Arctic Circle- and certainly, I still can't quite believe it!!!

Lots of love
McQ
xxx

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

6410 05225 Approaching Nuuk

Sitting plonking at this thing as the others get some sleep and we motor slowly into yet more current about 8 miles from the channel entrance, then 15 miles to the harbour.

Some acknowledgements:
Pat Hahn – whose advice was critical to our getting through the M'Clintock choker and beyond, and to Sue and Megan and Anna for their friendship and hospitality while we were in Nome.

Peter Semotiuk – huge and grateful thanks for his voluntary and absolutely essential weather and ice service skeds for boats transiting the NWP. Peter works in Cambridge Bay and completed his own NWP in (I think) 1988 with John Bockstoce and Bonnie Hahn (Pat's mum – what a family!)in Belvedere, so he knows of what he speaks. I'll be in touch soon, Peter.

Corey Dimitruk in CB for his hospitality and a very noice sleeping bag that's kept me toasty for the hard bits.

Gary Ramos – wow! – for his unstinting and generous help and advice, while at the same time getting Arctic Wanderer back out into the NWP after 3 years in CB. Whenever I think we're doing it hard, I think of Gary, not, I hope, asleep in Navy Board Inlet with the worst behind him. Onya Gary – and as you say, never, ever give up. Arctic Circle for you too soon, I am confident – but still need to touch wood. Stupid superstitious sailor that I am.

The Amodinos – for their friendship, advice, waterfalls of coffee and mountains of all day breakfast and for diving on Berri's prop in Tuk.

Peter in Tyhina, for his advice and radio relay.

And to all of you at home – friends, relations and just interested punters – for your support, good wishes and company on a long slog.

Thanks all y'all.

Horrible uncomfortable day yesterday – but capped by my first stars (it actually gets really dark here – groan!) since before Amchitka and – and – my very first aurora – glorious swirls of cascading diaphanous iridescence way up above the dark dank cylinder of cloud and murk that was my home at the time. Only a pale version, seen through misty cloud, but wonderful.

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2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

Random pics from CB to Nuuk

Just a few random photos. I don’t know how they will load and may be in batches but you should get Amundsen’s Maud wreck at CB, an inukshuk, Gary Ramos leaving CB and stuck in Requisite Channel, a set of Icy dawn in the M’Clintock choker, Limestone Island and blue ice, Dawn over Devon, a berg in silhouette and Bylot Island & Navy Board inlet at dawn.

 

Nuuk fascinating – but very expensive – 3 schooners yesterday cost me AUD$40…doesn’t pay to be thirsty.

<

2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

more pics

More scenery from the CB to Nuuk leg.

Carol – thanks – sitting in the hotel bar with a glass of  truly liquid gold at hand. Intend to take some Carlserg Elephant for daily small Con for the Atlantic. Will drink your health.

2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

A bit of perspective.

Carla, Leroy and all y’all in the south, I hope you are all ok and that Gustav fizzles. My appendages are firmly crossed for you guys this time.

I’ve just caught up with the website and especially Pat’s blogs.  Thanks mate for putting them up and adding some perspective to what we did and thanks especially for those kind words. I have to say that the respect is mutual – lovely to be given a rosette by someone with your knowledge and experience. Steffannson’s bite on adventure too! Yay! The photo is Pat, Megan and the biologist who we met who was counting salmon.

And to add a bit more perspective – I have already said that we were astoundingly lucky but it’s important to add that we also had a lot of help – Pat, Peter Semotiuk and Gary in particular. And we are in the leading division of boats that have had real-time information about the ice – exactly where it is and its consistency and coverage. Amazing stuff and we were able to take full advantage of it. All the people who have gone before in years past have had it much harder and have not known where to go or how to get out. Gary was in CB for 3 years – Amundsen spent 2 years in Gjoa Havn and almost no one has done it in a single season before satellite information became available. And then there is global warming – clear, obvious from the meteorology and the visible indications as the glaciers recede. We have indeed been lucky and, as Pat says, it would be a boring book without the people and the scenery..

But still an achievement and to be savoured. Now for the hard bit – the last 6 k of the marathon. If we ever  get to Falmouth, there may be a series of firsts we can claim – still need to do the research

Just had the most expensive beer in my life – AUD$17.50 for about ¾ of a pint – really nice beer but then it would have to be wouldn’t it?

2-8. Baffin Bay-Nuuk (Greenland)

T shirts and Avoca Beach

Noigel – good to know we’re not boring you silly. Do you still have the jpeg of Pascal’s map? If so, perhaps we might talk about a limited run of T’s for the masses. Or perhaps you could download it from th website…  If we ever get to Falmouth, I’ll give you a call.