Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
we have seen plenty of seals. The most awesome creature I have laid
eyes on since we began the trek was a little bird I saw today. It was a
surreal thing: it looked like a sparrow and flew very close to me. What
was it doing up here, so far from food and a tree to nest in? It was head-
ing north, so was obviously lost. The temperature was -30 degrees, and
the air was thick with fog. The little creature was probably doomed,
but it lifted my spirits just by flying by. It made me think that land must
not be too far off. Perhaps Noah felt the same awe that I did when the
dove returned to the ark with the olive branch in its beak.
Eric was picking his toes while cooking dinner tonight, and, along
with the ice- and wind-burn scabs on his nose, it completely grossed
me out. I am so ready to get on with the mainland part of this event,
where I will have more say over the daily running of things, including
the provision of meals. I am tired of rationing my food. How glad I'll
be when I'm on the road and I can eat more! And I'll need to. I read
at the zoo in New York that the male polar bear there consumes the
equivalent of 95 hamburgers daily. I reckon I could give him a run for
his money at the moment. There are around 20,000 calories in 95 ham-
burgers, and I'll be consuming around 8000 calories a day once I hit
my optimum daily distance.
It's frustrating being able to see the mountains on Ward Hunt
Island but not being able to ditch my sled and run over there. I snapped
the frame on one of my snowshoes today, and I hope it will hold for the
remaining three days on the ice. So far, I have broken six ski bindings,
one snowshoe and two ski poles. It's lucky that my body is stronger
than my equipment.
may 13
Navigation is now much easier, and as the early fog cleared our line
of sight was perfect. The mountains of Canada and Greenland grow
closer. But then the weather degenerated into another white-out.
We've had a couple of them, now: days when you can't distinguish
the sky from the ground because everything is white, with no grada-
tions of colour or shadow. You put your foot down on what you think is
ground and there's no ground there at all. On such days, the potential
for disaster is always present. The pressure ridges, as predicted, are
much bigger here. Earlier they were around 50 tonnes; now they're
