Saturday

Day Eighteen - on the Move again

The plan for today is to ski towards Snofjell with the aim of returning back to the base via the ice-dammed lake and Geomorph-Life Science Valley. I remember going there with Greg and I don’t see how it can be done but que sera sera.

Reminder: skiing down from the icecap,
across the glacier and up here..

Skiing was pretty good today. I sewed my rucksack up and it was actually not too uncomfortable. We were going along at a fair pace. We had lunch under flys, I with the four boys, during which we decided that it might be an idea to rearrange accommodation. The original plan was for me to swap with Rob. I just mentioned the plan to Val before we continued and she said that she would mention it to the others. 

Anyway, rain/bad light/gales and 10m visibility stopped play whilst we were all happily beadling along into a crevasse field, and after a bit of hoo’ing and ha’ing I moved in swapping with Matt – and we pitched with great difficulty when the slightest attention loss caused Karrimats to go very far for a Burton. 

Life had begun to look up a little. The cards were brought out, then dinner was had, then those, literary (or il-literary, resorting to the likes of Judith Krantz) – minded read. Sleeping was crowded but warm, and also gave cooking opportunities a limited scope.



Luckily John and Rob made passable porridge!

Friday

Day Sixteen - The Nadir

Although the wind seemed to lull in the night, a blizzard white-out proper has now blown-up. 6am this morning came and went, and when I finally decided that my bowels could take the strain no longer, I discovered that it was 10:20, my boots and laces frozen, my Cagjac soaking and the surface of the inner tent drenched. Actually venturing our produced a curios difficulty in maintaining standing up (or squatting) positions, a lot of frozen snow in eyes, nose, clothes etc. and a gradual pile up of snow on the fly.

Four days have been spent in this fashion, with today’s added bonus of a wet interior but books need reading and diaries need writing. Thank God our tent is still up (Touch wood. What wood?).

Sam came back in a little after I came back to inform me that we were leaving at 11am “apparently you can ski more in a blizzard with the wind behind you”- and did I know the word ‘gullible’ had been taking out of the dictionary?

The only external evidence of civilisation (?) is the clatter of Rob doing their tent’s ‘snow scrubbing-up’ – maybe he’ll do ours as well since he’s using our pan scrubber. That would be nice. (He just did).

Now, tent retirement. Sleep comes with difficulty since the tent is constantly roaring from the wind/, and now we have the additional heavy patter of iced snow. What fun?

15:30 – 1.5 hours to take-off – the conditions have improved and we are finally leaving the dump. Rations to be sorted and carried and the tent to be packed and carried and…

We’re off!

John and Roger were navigating up ahead and Sam, Philippa and I counting paces. The snow alternates frequently between powdery and slushy, and it is cold. The views are quite something though. Eternal expanses of white which are mildly undulating.


Then I began falling down and my weakness results in 10 minutes just trying to get my damn rucksack straight. The waistband is faulty and it is agony to carry. Various people seem to think that I am doing this on purpose (or so it appears to me). Life is very, very, very miserable. I shouldn’t be here because I’m not fit enough and frankly prefer the cushier life. My right shoulder and hip are in constant pain and I keep overbalancing. I don’t know how on earth I am going to survive these next few days but I do know that I have paid a great deal of money to be unhappy. I am accused of whingeing when I say anything (which is probably true) and when I’m not being laughed at I’m being hurried along and reprimanded. I can’t blame anyone except myself and although I know the only solution is to grin and bear it, I just can’t handle it. I’m always clothes, my clothes wet and unable to cope. How I wish I was like Sam. I HATE this.

Thursday

Day Fifteen - another day of White Out

Another day spent indoors. Sam valiantly arranged our rations in a wind that made everything very difficult and very cold.

Boys build walls when bored... 
Rob and John came in for brews and card games and I wrote my diary. There doesn’t seem to be much sign of a let-up. 

Roger (LS) has built a snow wall around his tent to buffer against the wind and the boys were making a lot of noise though I’m not sure what about since I (sensibly) stayed inside my tent. .






We re-pitched our inner tent which somehow seemed to be straying downhill (though we’re now on the flat) but so far so good.


I’d better wake Sam now since we’re having an early dinner. A very early start (like 6am) if the weather gets better. Who can tell?

Wednesday

Day Fourteen - Looking for the Store Dump

Most of today was spent reclining, with recce parties trying to locate the elusive store dump. We stayed tent bound, filled only by a ration of porridge and tea, until news came through that the objective had been located and the recce group would be returning with sustaining supplies, until which time we were to get everything packed in our tents..

Visibility improved along with Mars Bars, Healthy Life and tuna and by 5:30pm we were off. Skiing was generally downhill or flat and the dump came into sight within one hour. We sped on with the thought of our destination.

Terrain was flat and snow deep with a gale brewing so we rapidly pitched, badly in the wind having to trample the site down with our skis, and resigned ourselves to the night ahead with a feast of dehy beef and onion mash, the remainder of our Healthy Life rations. Hot chocolate and apricots.

That night the wind blew.

Tuesday

Day Thirteen - Up onto the Ice

Rose early as intended and were in the bus and loaded by 10.30am. The first bus load was taking the two ski groups as far up the glacier as possible (via a dry road) to start our walk up to the snow cap.

About 5km from there, the driver decided that the road was no longer negotiable so we loaded our rucksacks onto the land rover and followed behind with our skis/ Half way up we met the land rover on the way down, and 10 of us (and driver) were taken to the point where the glacier started.

We offloaded the land rover and on loaded ourselves with our skis in the most interesting and most lethal positions....



... and started up the, only fairly dry, ice - sans crampons or ropes, with only crampons to help us along. 

After about 1.5 hours (and a very sore back) crossing crevasses and supra-glacial streams., we saw the snow cap, and the ski-2 group having had lunch and donning skis. So having reached that point, sustained ourselves on meagre cheese rations and a hunk of bread, we waxed up and……

I may have been one of the only young explorers to have X-country skied before, but I was about the worst. A total lack of grip and a constant tendency to slide sideways, reduced morale and confidence to an all-time low. However time was short, as well as rations, and there was a dump to reach, so we set off uphill, Myself bringing up a very sorry rear.

Sam dropped back when my ankle (heel) became unbearable and took my mind off it by playing Fizz-Buzz and associations (which tended to begin and end with “snow”!). We started running along the Grimsvatn group who were progressively sinking deeper into the snow. 

After about 3 hours (6pm), the snow cat course we were following changed course sharply to the left, but we followed the tracks made by the ski-2 group since we assumed it was merely in order to avoid a crevasse (which Richard actually fell into but stuck due to his rucksack and skis). 

About 1.5 hours later, we began to climb a step hill having still not run into the snow cat tracks. Visibility was about 50m and Rob and I were having serious difficulty getting up the sloped. Finally we picked up our skis and walked in the tracks of the walkers. Soon a gathering of the clans emerged from the mist, and morale gradually rose as the order to pitch was given. 

Flattening the tent pitch
A small terrace had to be formed and flattened with feet, shovels and karrimat-bivvy bag rolling pins and snow piled up on the fly-sheet apron.

Rations were severely limited and in our case, ran to a Mars bar (or fudge) each, tea, and one cup of hot chocolate. Sanitary functions were cold with a long Cagjac as the only means of maintaining one’s posterity.





In the fading light, our day ended on a foggy hillside, short of rations, with tents itched amongst standing skis and poles and no definite location of the dump. However reassurance was given by the fact that three parties were present, including numerous leaders and our commandant, Ray Ward.

Monday

Day Twelve - Preparing for the Adventure Phase!

No ice climbing today – only for Mairi and Claire who have not yet been on the ice. Today is general removal day with 07.30am rise for Liz who is leaving for Oraefejokull, taking a primus and our tent. The whole morning is spent striking tents, fitting skis and generally returning the campsite to its natural, but none-the-less very beautiful state. 

Roger came around early this morning and took our geomorph group photo during breakfast.
Back row (L-R): Nick, Greg, Woody, Mairi
Liz, Claire, Mark, Andrew
Cicely, Ian, John
Fetching Breakfast

Making Breakfast seriously


Making Breakfast less seriously

Waiting for Breakfast
We had a great hunk of cheese for lunch, and then moved into our new fires for the adventure phase, and re-camped at base camp. My group consists of:
Dr Val
Martin (from Hertford)
Sam, Rob, John (all from Felstead school)
Philippa
Roger (from Magdalen)
Matt and myself.

Tent arrangements are:
3 leaders
3 girls
4 boys

Luckily our tent was already pitched, being Snorri’s our Icelandic (Roger Risdall-Smith lookalike) counterpart, but smelling dreadfully of dried fish! Rucksack checked left us with one towel, soap, toothpaste, foot powder, 1st Aid Kit etc. between the whole tent and very little else. Onto the snow-cap tomorrow, leaving by 10:00am.

What lies ahead?

Sunday

Day Eleven - Camp Chores

Awoken to the sound of howling gales all through the night, we braved the still windy outdoors to discover camp bathed in brilliant sunshine!

Claire, Liz and Mairi went off for their walk and the others got down to dhobeying. About 10.00am Roger returned, having been arrested from his walking intentions to move supplies 500m from a dry site to a snow cap site from whence they could be transferred to a snow cat. Preparations for the adventure phase are getting underway. Ski fitting tomorrow, Woody, much to his dismay, has been transferred from Oraefjokull ice climbing to Myvatn due to podiatric problems and Claire is going to Grimsvatn with Roger. Ice climbing tomorrow. I hope not!