Day 3

Mountains are still accompanying us on our climb today, but not for long. As they’re fading away in the distant horizon, tomorrow morning might very well be our last sighting of land before actually getting to Qaanaaq, all the way north, some 1700km from here… Very soon, they’ll be but distant memories and the team will have entered for good the realm of snow and ice - and just that ! I was quite satisfied with our choice of itinerary as it’s been going rather well, although we each had two pulks and no less than 100kg of load each. While being heavier than during the Nanok Expedition in 2022, this afternoon we passed our old Camp 6 in less then 3 days time (while it obviously took us 6 days then). Great team, faster progress, less faff and a more detailed study of our entry route made a great difference - but mostly no cameramen ahah ! Snow this year is scarce, it hardly snowed this winter. Blue ice

And most surprisingly of all, it is VERY WARM ! As we’re hovering around 0*C and many hours into the positive temperatures, we’re struggling with wet snow, wet tents, wet everything ! Nothing better than a good dry -15*C. Last night and this evening it rained… Mind blowing. Cramponing up our way onto the icecap from Point 660m, tonight we’ve reached a decisive stage : I’ve packed my pair of crampons away because tomorrow we’re clipping our skis and raising those big beautiful sails of ours - let the wind carry us like leaves in the autumn breeze, be free as birds, no more heavy lifting! I expect the chafe to be quite radical. Can’t wait. The next two days the wind’s shifting from the S to SW which is an absolute benediction as we should then be able to sail due east - as intended - without much effort. Drifting too far north means getting ourselves dangerously close to crevasse fields. Wish us fair winds