Log Entry No 6 - 23rd July 08. (Discoverer)

FROM THE CAPTAINS CABIN

Through The fjords.

We are preparing to leave Greenland. On deck we are stowing the last of our inflatable boats and we are securing Discoverer for sea and the passage to Iceland. And whilst that will bring new challenges we will be sorry to leave because here in Greenland we have found a rugged landscape shaped by sea and ice. Its beauty is awe inspiring, nature at its harshest and most beautiful. We have seen the fragile balance between man and nature. The Greenlandic Inuit carve out a living far removed from the bustle and urban European life Although their culture is feeling the impact; bank ATMs, internet and even mobile phones nestle alongside more traditional aspects of life. We have visited remote towns and villages and we have met some incredible people We have glimpsed their way of life as we watch men in kayaks, hunters skin seals or, as we ourselves have done, fish with hand lines for supper.

We have faced some of the same challenges, the cold, the ice, the wind and weather. We have also marveled at how the earlier Viking settlers survived the hash environment, particularly as we seek protection in our gortex and thermal clothing. The Danish influence remains very strong and is much in evidence, language and currency are two obvious examples but there are others the ice and weather stations and reports being two pertinent ones for us.

Discoverer Dwafed.

Discoverer has been our mobile base camp and from the mother ship parties have explored by inflatable and by foot. Our inflatables, called MIBS (medium inflatable boats) have covered more than 120 miles visiting several fjords, inland passages and villages. Boat parties have edged through thick ice and camped ashore. We have been dwarfed by the grandeur and scale of the mountains around us. The mother ship can appear very fragile. We have had an unforgettable time. Below each of the watches or a representative of each describes a highlight in their own words.

Richard Pattison
Expedition Leader

FROM THE FORE DECK

Discoverer Discovering.

Red Watch – Qaqortoq - Narsaq – Narsarsuaq

Some of the amazing things we’ve seen in Greenland include going round the town, having a shower at the seaman’s home, killing the fish, preparing it and eating it Going in the MIBS to see the iceberg and then following a whale. Using the MIBS to see areas whilst travelling north, watching the icebergs collapse and roll over. Sleeping out, sitting around the camp fire, fishing…waking up to rain Putting kit away in Narsarsuaq, Heading off to the final place in Greenland.

Incredible is the only way to explain it, the feeling we got when we first stepped ashore in Greenland. Having just sailed through hundreds of ice bergs and now we were standing on shore in a small town only it was somehow strange but not in a bad way, just in the sense of being cut off from everything. The last few days have been good, highlights included; camping and not wanting to sleep because of the view and when we woke to find it raining we almost thought we were back home, we’ve caught our own dinner which Bonz and Leigh had to behead and fillet. We even paddled to 6 feet away from a whale which was awesome as well as pretty scary. It’s been a very busy few days.

Pte Daniel Bonham
Pte Michael West
Pte Leigh Higgins

White Watch The camping trip

Overnight Camp.

We left in the MIB's into the unknown. Worried by the idea that the glacier drops over two hundred thousand tons of ice a day and us in a little boat we started to push up the fjord hard. Being mid July it’s scary that there is ice and snow around still, and progress dropped to a slow drift. It was hard to put the amount of ice dropped from here into prospective till you get on the ground and see just how much ice there is in the small channel. Soon the little boats where deep in the ice and every meter was pain staking with guys on the bows pushing ice chunks away to form a path in. The ice ranged from small hand size clumps to huge house sized pieces. This continued for about an hour till the ice won and our progress was just being able to stay in one place against the current. Final distance achieved in the ice land, 2 miles. Determined to step foot on the frozen ice of a Greenland glacier the lead MIB found a flat iceberg, and set about landing its crew of white watch on to it. We took our first steps on the ice, as the pictures start to be taken. After 20mins on the ice the cold and threat of it breaking up on us took over and we re-boarded the MIB back to the camp.

The trip back to the camp was just as eventful and with the ice now thicker and bigger our watch leader decided to tell us the story about an explorer (Shackleton) who did the same thing and got trapped and spent the next 2 years living on the ice. From then on the trip started to move a little quicker as the thought of 2 years on the ice lost its fun. We got back to camp about 8pm and did the first thing a good soldier should do, make a brew. Afterwards we got straight on with getting some food in us. So 9 24 hour ration packs where opened and placed in a big pot of hot water to cook, them the random experimenting began as we tried to make the best meal from what we had. This then turned in to the 24 hour challenge, with the team having to use everything in a ration pack apart from the packaging. An hour later and fully rationed out we gave up and got our heads down. The morning proved to be interesting as in the night the tide had gone out and left the MIB’s half way up the beach. Loading and packing then happened and we started back to Discoverer for breakfast before heading off on the next leg of the journey.

JOURNEY FROM NARSARSAUQ TO PRINS CHRISTIANSAND

Pushing Through Brash Ice.

After spending the previous day attempting to motor through to the glaciers in an inflatable boat, which proved to be rather very difficult because of the amount of ice in the water, and camping on our very own secluded beach, we began our journey to Kap Farvel. It was our original destination when we left Newfoundland but had to be altered to the west coast of Greenland due to a really bad ice report. Once the MIBS (medium inflatable boats) had been deflated, filled the water tanks and eventually got the bow rope off the cleat we set off for the famous Prins Christiansand Fjord. I remember wondering how rough and cold I thought the sail was going to be, as I always do, as it was only going to be a 28 hour trip on the motor. ‘It won’t be too bad’ I thought in my wisdom!

Just like on my 19th birthday off I toddled to the front of the boat to be the first person on iceberg watch. And what do you know? Fog that’s so close in and big chunks of ice floating around everywhere just above the waters surface. The task requires constant attention and the guard’s eyes are the difference between a close shave and a big dent, or worse, in the boat. So of course it’s a pretty good, but very nervy, feeling once you spot one and see how big it is underwater and your passed it!

No messing about on Discoverer though. We were straight back into the 4 on 4 off shifts and we were already a couple of hours into ours. Which I was pretty glad about as it was very cold with the wind being back. So I took in the beautiful views of the mountain sides and the icebergs that are so old they turn blue then took to my bunk for some well earned rest.

My next watch was the 12 till 4. I have done quite a few of them over the passed 3 weeks and they are infamous for being very cold, very dark and very tedious. But none have been this cold. I was wrapped in near enough every layer of warm clothing I possessed on this trip and I didn’t dare take my gloves off for a second while on deck. I must say it was worth it when I saw some of the picture moments created by the moon light bouncing off the bigger sea icebergs, land and water. It was the biggest and clearest full moon I have ever seen and it was very fitting as I have seen so many amazing things over the passed three weeks. But my camera battery was empty so I wondered if anyone else had a camera and sooner rather than later, up popped the first mate sporting trademark bandana and camera to snap away!

My next shift was the 8 till 12, which would be my last before mother watch, was also very cool as it meant we would be arriving in Kap Farvel. Once we broke through the fog, we saw the towering mountainous lands sprinkled with snow and different entries to fjords with naturally shaped icebergs and the sun beating down beginning to heat up the air.

After the odd seal sighting and iceberg dodge, we attempted to dock in a village but the waters were way too shallow for Cap’n Bob’s liking which brought about our first anchorage. Some of the lads had a bit of a swim and the rest of the crew got out a MIB and went on a little adventure. They returned to a beautifully cooked meal prepared by yours truly!

It’s funny because you see pictures in books and read about things and I just thought it was amazing to witness these places first hand and it sunk in how lucky I am to have landed a place on LTTA leg 10.

Josh Souber
Craftsman REME