Howard Fairbank Canada to the North Pole: More delays....Bad weather prevents flying today

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

More delays....Bad weather prevents flying today

Due to bad weather up in the area, the pilot called off the flight for the two expeditions that were scheduled to leave for Ward Hunt today. This is bad news for us, as it means we are delayed at least another day. Today's two expeditions are hoping to fly out tomorrow, but this will only be confirmed at 5h30 in the morning.

I can feel tension building and I had to go for a long walk on the ice on my own. It's still around -30 deg C outside, so I came back feeling quite fresh! It was good for the mind and spirit. I had a lovely what I thought was a 'second to last' bath last night.... Gee, I will miss just relaxing in a full warm bath. Last one coming up tomorrow night... Hopefully!

I highlight of my day today was meeting Pen Hadow in person, as he is in Resolute as part of a UK Scientific Ice Research program. Pen was the first and one of only two people to have done Ward Hunt Island to the North Pole, solo and unassisted. I refer to his book often in my Blog, and it was just great sharing with him, one-on-one, his experiences and also telling him how his expedition and book played a huge role in getting me here to Resolute. Our discussion focused a lot on open water (lead) swimming, and it became apparent that their are two different philosophies: The one says, "Swim any leads that look 'swim-able'", and the other one says, "Walk the leads and you will eventually find a place iced over where you can walk across". Richard's experience follows the later philosophy and he is adamant that this is much faster than swimming. We still remain flexible and prepared to swim, so the difference between the two is just a matter of degrees.

More on our departure soon....

PS: Sorry about the poor quality of some of the photos in the last Post, I am trying to rectify that. The photos are amazing, but at the moment it takes imagination to see that!

4 comments:

AnonymousMarch 2, 2010 at 8:24 AM
Great photos of the wind scuplted ice H. The stuffed polar bear standing like a guard over the preparations room in Resolute was almost symbolic. One has to wonder about those two fellows going off on their own . It certainly reduces the odds ! I wish you a safe journey mate .
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Nathan, Kent, UKMarch 2, 2010 at 9:04 AM
Hi Howard,

Nail biting stuff. The adrenalin must be surging, let's hope the endorphins can join in soon!

All best, Nathan
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Gareth JonesMarch 2, 2010 at 8:07 PM
I can just imagine the frustration showing on the Fairbank 'forehead typewriter'.

I suppose it is a waste of time to say relax and enjoy it...

Gareth
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Bookie BloggerMarch 2, 2010 at 9:41 PM
Wow, are you ever far north! We even had trouble finding Ward Hunt Island on a map...but we did.
It is hard for us to believe that as far north as you are, it is only the beginning of your incredible journey!
Safe travels to you from the BJHS ESL class.
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The Expedition Goals

1. The Team of Four is to traverse the Arctic Ocean from the traditional, last land point in Canada, Ward Hunt Island, to the Geographic North Pole (90 degrees North) some 762 kilometeres away, as the 'tern' flies!

2. The Team will be self sufficient, save for one flown in, food re-supply, at around 22 days into the roughly 50 day expedition.

3. The team will each haul their own sleds, expecting to take between 48 and 55 days, to cover the tortuous course, dodging natural obstacles, on the ocean ice, to the Pole.

4. The Expedition is planned to start 1 March 2010, from Ward Hunt Island, Nunavut, Canada. Notoriously unpredictable weather conditions may affect this start date.

5. The Expedition finishes at the North Pole, which MUST be reached before 28 April 2010. This is the day when the temporary, ice based, Russian logistics base, 'Barneo', closes and the expedition will be relying on them for airlift back to civilisation. This base closure is due to the fact that, with the onslaught of summer, the ocean ice conditions deteriorate to the point where sustaining a base is no longer possible.

The Expedition Route

The expedition will follow a very traditional North Pole conquest route: From Ward Hunt Island, Nunavut Canada to The Pole, 90 Degrees North.

(The other traditional route was from Russia / Siberia, which was considered slightly longer, but with easier terrain. With the onset of global warming, this route is no longer considered on option, as there is too much water at the start.)

Ward Hunt Island is a small island, off the NW corner of Ellesmere Island, which are both part of the Canadian Arctic Islands (More specifically the Queen Elizabeth Islands part of the broader group.) It's Northern cape is one of the northernmost elements of land in Canada, hence its starting point for the expedition. It is located at: 83°05′55″N and 074°10′00″

In total the expedition will cover just under 7 degrees of latitude, and a 'straight line' distance of some 760 kilometres.

Due to the dynamic nature of the arctic, open ocean leads, wind, and ocean currents will have an impact on the actual route travelled. It is not unknown, for southern drift to carry an ice floe, with an expedition tent and its sleeping inhabitants, back to the latitude they started at the previous day! The wind and the currents are variable, and tidal flows add to the largely unpredictable drift, however we are expecting to have a net southerly and easterly drift over the total trip. Historically, an expedition on this route, could traverse up to 20% more than the straight line distance.

The path will attempt to roughly follow the 74 degree longitude line, while including a westerly offset to counter the expected net easterly drift.

The Expedition Team

Team Leader: Richard Weber

(50, Ottawa, Canada. One of the world's top Polar Explorers. 6 traverses, including the 'probably never t0 be repeated' 1995, 108 day expedition from Canada to NP and back, unsupported.)

Team Member 2: Tessum Weber

(20, Ottawa, Canada, Richard's son, and an experienced cold environment adventurer.)

Team Member 3: David Jones

(45 Geneva, Switzerland, Experienced mountain climber, including Everest summiter.)

Team Member 4: Howard Fairbank

(52, South African, A Wanderer: Solo Sailor, Trans- continental Cycling and Sea Kayaking adventurer.)

The Next Pre-Expedition Training

Our team, Pre-expedition training, will continue through most of February, with the team meeting 11 February in Yellowknife.

11 February to 24th February 2010, we will be based in Yellowknife, with training being once again focused on excurions around Great Slave Lake. These will vary from multi day, sleeping out sessions, to day only trips. Much of the focus will be on testing new equipment, and checking whether adjustments made to some of the equipment we used in December have had the desired result. (One of these pieces of equipment will be the dry suits, which will involve open water training again.)

Much time will also be spent sorting out the food and designing sled packing solutions and daily routines. (There will be a separate blog post on the food, calorie philosophy, and daily rations.) Around all of this, the critical human side will be at work with significant team building, role establishment, and final re-inforcement of the expedition goals and values.

On the 24th of February we plan to fly further north to Resolute, (Resolute Bay), on Cornwallis Island 75N, 95W. This is another traditional stopover point for expeditions attempting to do this same Canada to Noth Pole route. It is also one of the coldest inhabited places in the world, with an average yearly temperature of −16.4 °C (2.5 °F) Resolute's average HIGH for the year is −13.3 °C (8.1 °F) while the average LOW for the year is −19.5 °C (−3.1 °F). At Resolute, we will use the more northerly location and it's colder conditions to further aclimatise, and do final testing of team / personal systems and equipment. No doubt much of this time wil be used subconciously for individual mind focusing and other mental preparation.

On the 1st March, we are then scheduled to fly the last stage to Ward Hunt Island, for the start of the expedition. This is a small plane charter flight and is notorious for being affected by adverse weather conditions.

Canada to the North Pole

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

More delays....Bad weather prevents flying today

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The Expedition Goals

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