Yacht Destiny Eagle Ski Tour 30 April to 7 May 2019 - Day 2
01 May 2019 | Sisimiut, West Greenland
Guest Author Andy Perkins
Just a year ago after returning from Greenland , I wrote a blog post entitled An Expotition Mindset. Based around the philosophy of Winnie the Pooh, it emphasised the importance of going with the flow, accepting uncertainty and that the journey is more important than the destination. The last two days have reinforced that concept. We set off on snowmobiles yesterday in a relaxed frame of mind and, within half an hour, the sleds were bogged down in saturated snow. A change of plan was called for.
Our logistics team Sirius performed superbly. A boat journey took us past icebergs and then into a fjord where we expected a wait of an hour for the snowmobiles and empty sleds to transit overland. The boat handling to get us safely onto the ice was - um - unorthodox. A five hour wait ensued, with us having no idea if the snowmobile team would make it or not. No satellite phone comms with the snowmobile team - only one thing to do: go fishing. Lots of cod were caught. The snowmobile team did an amazing job, arriving with soaked boots and, in one case, wet pants and a whiplash on his back from a snapped tow rope.
We made it to our hut, our home for the week, 12 hours after leaving the settlement. Local Greenlandic snowmobilers helped us in, and the team hauled the food and all important alcohol up to the hut. Making it there was something we had discounted at several stages during the day. Adventure is defined by uncertainty of outcome! We celebrated with a whisky tasting session. Why wouldn't we?
Today we've been skiing. Despite massive changes in the snowpack in the last 48 hours, the snow is skiing very well, if rather differently from last week. The team's appetite for adventurous skiing has been satiated, helped by Destiny's solid backup and top notch catering. Fresh cod anyone? PICTURE : Sirius' Targa 33 breaking the ice in Number 2 fjord