Krystle

A week in and the possibilities are endless here. Already over 80 BASE jumps have been accomplished and with 3 weeks to go… there’s a shitload more to do! Thankfully the weather has been great conditions most of the time with the exception of strong winds from time to time. Each day, the little night time we have shortens 10 minutes a day which means 24 hour daylight is approaching very soon.

One morning polar bear tracks were found on the other side of the fjord so their presence is certainly here. Otherwise very little wildlife has been seen apart from the odd seal sunbaking.

Chinese Wall 4700ft was accomplished in fine conditions after a 5-hour hike up along with Ottawa Peak, 4200ft, yesterday.  It’s an incredible feeling to stand on top of these great peaks in the afternoon sun looking out over the fjord with not a single sound to be heard.

It’s no easy feat tackling these hikes as each present their own unique situations. Yesterday’s hike saw deep crevices dropping off to your side and the final slog was a real leg burner as you kicked the crampons in as best as possible in icy 38-degree slope. Its all worth it for the view, I can’t express that enough in this incredible area.

This morning presented tricky conditions for a few jumpers who tackled the Great Cross Pillar. After a monstrous 5-6hour hike up, the small group had to wait for the small window of opportunity during strong winds. Waiting below on the plateau as catchers, within 100m of travel on the snowmobile, the wind had swung 180 degrees whilst blowing 15 knots each way. Incredibly eerie I must say.

There’s a few realities that comes with camping in the Arctic that people have wondered about… Yes the only form of a shower comes in a packet of travel wipes, which if your not careful, freezes together if you forget to put them in your pocket. 

Merino wool becomes your best friend as it keeps you incredibly warm but thankfully dries out in these cool conditions. The best trick to drying clothes has been to stuff it down your sleeping bag and suddenly you end up with half your wardrobe stuffed down there.

We’ve had the odd hiccup where on one occasion, we almost burned down the main tent after a stove mishap. In fact we’ve had numerous stove mishaps so one may begin to think that Base jumpers and fire don’t mix.

Peaks over 5000ft has been eyed off with great curiousity and temptation and over the remaining time here, no doubt we’ll see Broad Peak and Great Sail tackled with enthusiasm.

Krystle Wright
Sports and Adventure Photographer based in Sydney, Australia will be documenting every angle of the month long expedition. 
Further work can be seen here at: www.wrightfoto.com.au