Departure Day, finally !
March 24th – Ghislain Bardout

Finally, after a last day of work and negotiation, the departure day is confirmed. All equipment is meticulously tidied in the pulkas, which are already waiting for us in the plane. Everything is there: food, diving equipment, air compressor, generators, tents, sleeping bags, stove, satellite phones ... The list is long, over 400 different items total. After a good night of rest, we started the day with the final details to clean and the latest tinkering: there is always something to do, again and again. By early afternoon, the good news comes from the pilots and the Kenn Borek Base Manager: the departure is confirmed for tomorrow, Thursday, March 25th, take-off will be at 6:00am from Resolute. At 5pm, the 8 pulkas are loaded into the aircraft and we return to the hotel. The weather window is tight because two low-pressure systems are around the pole. We will track their developments and obviously adapt. After a 2 hours and a half flight, our DC3 plane will land in Eureka, scientific weather station with its military fort, for a final refuelling. If the weather is good, we keep going to the pole, otherwise, we will spend the night there and leave on Friday. A twin Otter will be a few hours in front of us in order to check the locations and to set a runway on the sea ice, at the geographic North Pole if weather conditions allow it, the closest to it otherwise. It is 11:30pm, we get up in 5 hours, our bags are ready, everyone is about to go to bed.
It has been 3 years since the idea of the project came out. A lot of work, training, travels, meetings, thousands of phone calls and emails, a lot of stress during the project concretization, but ultimately a dream comes true. And it is good to live it and share it with so many people: teammates, technical staff, scientists, friends, family, all partners and anonymous readers... Thanks to everybody who helped us to prepare this adventure and in particular our main partner Rolex. Thank you for your time, your patience, your trust. Thank you for your work, your help and encouragement. This expedition is a poem; it is up to us now to write it.

The day after the beginning of Spring in Resolute Bay

Sunny. Leaving this morning to get a few shots in the village, Vincent and I said: "It's summer!. Funny how everything is different now. - 23 ° C after the very windy last days and suddenly, it is such a feeling of warmth that we believe it's summer! An hour later, we really need our gloves, hats, caps, hoods and the ice that dangled from our mustaches (the result of our frozen breath) do not lie... We are in Resolute Bay, in the High Canadian Arctic, and the slightest breeze is efficient enough to remind us where we stand.

Today’s schedule. Ghislain, Manue and I are going to make our daily visit to Steve, the smiling Kenn Borek Air Base manager in order to properly handle the final details of our scheduled flight on Thursday. We then meet with the others at the hangar where they end their careful pulkas packing; flexibility is our key, everything can change in a few minutes here, one single rule: be prepared. After a hearty breakfast (it's the least we can say! thank you Sandy!), Vincent, Valentine and I are going to shot images of Valentine in a car, preparing the movie for later. We take this opportunity to test our high definition “paluche” cameras and we got some shots that we would never have done without this specific equipment. These paluche (mini HD wide angle cameras) are taken with us on and under the ice, they are waterproof up to - 60 meters, and also very useful for some dives.

While a group of 4 (+ Kayak) head out trying to eliminate a few calories skiing in a canyon discovered near the village, we head back later in the day to meet Wayne in his meteorological lab. And as usual, the big show starts: after a great and beautiful sunset, it is a pleasure to listen to this exciting and passionate scientist who runs from one computer to another! According to him, all lights are green, especially for an expedition like this, more focused on discovering and exploring! Wayne is eager to have the team feedbacks.

But to return, we must go, and for this, we are very ready!

31 years old in Resolute Bay !

This morning, I was welcomed by many nice attentions from the team members : "because it's your birthday, you will have the right to do this, or we will go walking around...". Kayak pulls me toward the exit and seems to be saying: "what about we head back for another ride on the ice like yesterday?!”. But since we have some spare time, we decided to prepare the first supply flight at the Kenn Borek hangar. As everybody is joining, we end this job by late morning. Returning to the hotel, I receive many messages and one call from my family that I really appreciate in those moments.

Around 3pm, we go skiing on the Northwest Passage. We take this opportunity to solve minor technical problems, particularly mist on our sunglasses and the mask that turns into ice, in the cold weather. We partially solve it by cutting additional holes around the mouth on our hoods. The ice show is amazing, the Arctic lights makes it even more magical. What a gift! I was wondering if I will still find it so beautiful in a few weeks from now. Kayak is full of energy, it pulls me like crazy. If it knew what to expect, it would slow down and save its energy a bit!

Back to the hotel, a hearty meal is waiting for us and a surprise: a gift from Sam: two goat cheeses from Sainte Marguerite farm (managed by his parents: a big thank you!) that we share with Jeff (the hotel manager) and Sandy (the cooker) with a huge cake! We stay around the table a bit longer discussing about Nunavut with Jeff who has lived here for 5 years, and 6 months in Resolute.

A beautiful day therefore I want to conclude with an Inuit sentence:
"When I was young and that we were living on the coast, I was having a particular dream. I dreamed that there would be lots of caribou, and there was no rainbow in my dream. I dreamed that the tide is high and the land is low. Several angakkuit were also doing the same dream. That's how I knew that there would be lots of caribou. When I was dreaming this, I knew that no matter where we lived, there would be plenty of animals to hunt everywhere. There are people who do not pay enough attention to their dreams. It seems that those who follow their dreams are more successful than the others. Nowadays there are so many things that make our life easier that we tend to less follow our dreams". Felix Pisuk

Sunday In Resolute Bay

Today, we tried to respect a “normal Sunday morning” by sleeping late, breakfast is at 8.30am ... The majority of the team then heads to the Kenn Borek warehouse for endless last details on pulkas preparation because everytime we pass by, we can not help removing an ultimate gram.

It also ends to balance the weight carried per person "I'll trade my sleeping bag against your tools kit"; we organise and clean the security and resupply equipment that we leave with Valentine. Thierry and I continue our shooting in and around the village, the sun is kind and the wind calm. Around noon, we are witnessing the end of a church ceremony, sadly it has been too furtive to even imagine shooting scene. Within seconds, the pious people are already out of the small wooden church and have sneaked in snowy streets or in large pick-ups.The area is quickly deserted and find back its atmosphere of one of the world's end ...

Four gigantic pizzas represent a welcome break in our day, we taste them being aware that it is our last before a thousand kilometres by foot ... Since our arrival in Resolute, we eat unlimited quantities (and of fat!) ... Some of us start feeling that they put a bit on weight, and after five days spent in the hangar, a fresh air time becomes needed for everyone! We grab our skis and progress on the frozen and motionless Northwest Passage, with splendid lights. The sight is lost in a white and blue chaos, we look back and think of Roald Amundsen and other polar explorers who sailed in these channels full of ice, amazing labyrinth that attracted thousands of adventurers before us.

Once we are back to the hotel, it is an opportunity to improve once more our equipment: our breathing holes in the hoods we have are getting bigger to avoid frost on our sunglasses, adjustment of sticks straps, etc.. These changes are essential: the goal for everyone is to feel ready to reach the pole in full confidence.

Drop-off to the North Pole : 5 days delay

When we woke up this morning, a slight haze is around Resolute. The chill temperature was about -40 ° C (like almost every day). At 8pm, Thierry and I had an appointment with Kenn Borek Air for a Twin Otter flight to Grise Fjord, the northest Inuit village in Canada, located in the south of Ellesmere Island. The launch was done with a cross wind that shakes the plane in all directions, but pilots are amazing and the aircraft is in the air in seconds. During 1 hour and 50 minutes, we flew over Cornwallis and Devon islands as well as Bear Bay, which is covered by a beautiful sea ice. Finally, we arrive at the final destination: Grise Fjord, Inuit community located on the mountainside with its fishing boats, its houses on stilts, its plane runway also used as a bus stop, its dogs and its police car. The tour is quick, only 25 minutes and we leave again with the mail and some passengers, as friendly and welcoming as usual around here.

Our day planned for the pole drop-off has been rescheduled due to bad weather conditions. We have an appointment in the afternoon with the pilots and the flight director to plan a new departure date. We must balance the company constraints and the weather forecast in order to organise such a flight and this is not easy. This requires 2 aircrafts and 4 pilots for 2 days, and the landing area must be clearly identified and marked in advance. We start by agreeing for a date: Thursday, March 25; it seems impossible before that and it is better to put all the chances on our side. It leaves us 4 stand-by days in Resolute, during which we will switch from preparation equipment to acclimatization hikes, rest, etc. We worked so hard these last days to be ready on time that finally we will be able to enjoy some afternoons to explore the area and go skiing on the sea-ice. The road is still long to the North Pole, it requires patience.

Fight against the weight and last minute preparations.

As expected, our "fight against the weight" starts early in the morning. We are determined to remove the “spare” equipment, while not reducing what is needed for security.

We begin with the classic items: for example, we had one snow shovel per person ... now, a shovel for two will be sufficient. Same for the books: our days during the first month will be already busy enough, we decide to order them for the first supply flight. We also realize that it is much more functional to have few small bags (which can go anywhere in the pulka) than one large bag (less convenient). Thus, space in each pulka is maximised!

Then, in a second time, we continue our search to "small gains" weight (but totally necessary!): we cut the straps of the bags, each team member check his personal items, count his q-tips account and... leave some in Resolute!

Obviously, we do not mix food and gasoline in a pulka. Thus, we have 2 pulkas exclusively reserved for the fuel carried during the first month. In fact, if these polkas tip on the side and if a drop of gas leak, we would not be very happy to taste our food if it was just below! Now, no risk, our food is safe!

Finally, everything becomes clear and we start weighing! Success: All pulkas are between 122kg (cameraman / photographer) and 165kg for the….strongest team members! We achieve our objective by not altering security at all....

Downtown, Emmanuelle and Valentine starts understanding how the village works: possible money withdrawal at the local supermarket, hoses impossible to find in Resolute, name of a local mechanic (always useful!), etc. ... We also try to find information among Inuit women able to saw beautiful hats and very nice "amautik” (Inuit traditional jacket, allowing them to carry their child on their backs). Part of the team like it a lot!

Tonight, we receive many emails talking about the broadcast in “Thalassa” on our expedition. Ironically! Our Internet connection did not allow us to watch ... but we hope to solve this problem soon! Thank you for all your messages anyway!

Pulkas preparation

We started the day with a briefing meeting from Ghislain on each person’s personal clothes : number of pairs of socks, gloves, mittens ... and on the strategy for the days to come. What emerges is simple: we must be ready from tomorrow on to take off in the next hour for Eureka. We all leave to go to Kenn Borek warehouse, except Valentine, who is getting familiar with the "village " and tries to identify who is a mechanic, where to find spare parts, how to rent a skidoo if needed…

All day, we fill out our polkas, then unmake them, to try to find the right equipment combination between us eight. Some take more fuel, others more video or photos equipment, tents, etc ... We would like to find a logic solution so that everything is stored in a safe place and that we go as fast as possible for set-up and disassembly the camp. Sam continues to work on generators and compressors, Pascal cleans the nozzles of stoves trying to maximize their power and even the consumption of naphtha. Thierry is shooting images and being so absorbed in his work that he got frostbite on his right cheeks. It is Vincent who stopped him, saying he has a "white patch" on the cheek ... The cold does not forgive us and requires vigilance of all times.

The verdict comes out before dinner when, after investigation, an engineer showed me an electronic scale that can rise up to 300 KG. We are too heavy ... Some sleds exceed the maximum weight that we are allowed. Tonight at the dinner table and later in the meeting room, everyone tries to suggest something: what is extremely needed or at the opposite what is only "comfortable"? We have found several solutions and tomorrow morning, we will reduce the polkas weight. Meanwhile, our bags are ready and we keep track of weather conditions and daylight at the North Pole in real time by Wayne, the "weather man".

Tests with -52°C temperature outside and lucky meeting.

This morning (again after our hearty breakfast!), everybody get things ready : preparation of cameras both photo and video, waterproof cases, emergency pharmacy ... we can say that the meeting room of our hotel is very useful!
Then, 3 team members along with Thierry (the director) and myself (logistics Resolute) go for a walk for the first time on the sea ice in front of the hotel: great discovery and meeting moment with this new world and great training to the cold because it is -35 °C (without wind chill) and we have -52 °C in chill temperature... We realized very fast the least square centimeter of skin that has been left outside... So, we use our polar gear and test it in such extreme cold conditions. We notice that our Kayak looks very comfortable, even though it seems to find the ice a bit slippery…Obviously, the landscape is very beautiful and the wind adds to this by creating amazing movements of snow. Thierry and Vincent runs some camera tests... But how does the equipment works with -50°C: we discover that throughout the day, also starting the stove, compressors and generators.

In the afternoon, Ghislain, Manu, Thierry and I went to meet some important local persons: the Kenn Borek pilots and Wayne, meteorologist in Resolute. We spend more than an hour with the first ones to understand what’s going on those days icewise and weatherwise, to assess the likely leaving date and to understand what they need in terms of "runway" for supply flights, etc ... As expected, we will be now waiting for a good weather window for the 2 flights: Resolute / Eureka and Eureka / North pole. We rely obviously on their experience to set up the precise date and time of departure for the North Pole. We will be ready to leave tomorrow night, and waiting for their call.

After that, we meet another character of Resolute, people who passed by here must know him: Wayne, meteorologist, scientist, works for Environment Canada here for over 25 years. He knows the Arctic region extremely well because he sees it evolving on its screens and through his windows for so many years. He has seen probably all expeditions passing by for the last years. We learn so much from him in few hours and he is very straight-forward in a great manner. He has an extensive knowledge of the ice, its movements, local weather phenomenon, winds, ocean and air currents, the influence of the moon, etc ... We will find here probably the answers to many questions and his presence is crucial: he becomes the router for the expedition, we are truly grateful for that.

In the evening, discussions are active: about the date of departure or the results for some equipment tests: "How many polar gloves are you bringing?", “Where can I store my personal stuff for the first supply flight?”, “Has everyone taken its homeopathic treatment?”…And in the middle of all this, Kayak tries to tell us he is here by barking (very new!) on ... almost everything that moves!

D-day - 4 !
March 16, 2010 - Manue Périé

Wake up at 7AM this morning for the whole team. We can now count the time before the drop-off to the pole in Days. Luckily, a hearty breakfast of bacon and eggs is welcoming us in the dining room in the morning. Outside, the chill temperature is cold : -46°, we are at the right place. We leave for the First Air warehouse in order to find and transfer all our freight to the "Kenn Borek Airlines” warehouse, which is in charge of our polar flights. We are discussing with them the flights schedule : Flying to Eureka on the 19th, reconnaissance flight and drop-off on the ice on the 20th. We have to think about it and talk again tomorrow. Our schedule for today is quite busy: conditioning part of the food for the first month, doing the oil change for the machines, refueling them and turn them on, preparing the video, photo and diving equipments... All this without moving much in a cold warehouse which resulted for some of us in cold feet and hands... However, everyone has been very effective and the job has been done. Right now (9.30pm), the team is still quite busy preparing everything in the hotel.

Tomorrow, we will try to finish the equipment preparation in order to start filling in our pulkas. We will also meet Wayne, the Resolute meteorologist, and discuss with the pilots of the DC3 and the Twin Otters.The atmosphere is relaxed but everyone realizes slowly that the drop-off to the North Pole is coming soon. Even if we know that we are not there yet, the lonely moment for us on the sea ice, after the drop-off, is getting closer and closer. The milky light, cold, wind and ice around us are now here to remind us this. There are many questions in our minds and most of them will find answers only once we are gone. The ice reminds us that we must be very humble in one of the most hostile places on earth. Tonight I hope that our determination and preparation will help us find our place in it and bring back the most beautiful of it.

We are in Resolute !
March 15, 2010 - Ghislain Bardout

We arrived in Resolute Bay tonight at 18:30 after a long day in four airports (Ottawa, Iqaluit, Nanisivic and finally Resolute). This morning, two taxis came to get us to our hostel and drove us to the airport for our first flight of the day. The security check almost caused us concern, because a zealous employee searched in Vincent’s audiovisual equipment from top to bottom. And when he finally got released due to the repetitive call of the hostesses, Vincent had lost his boarding pass. Luckily, and let’s say it because it is rare enough, the airline staff has provided a new one soon enough to avoid compromising our departure. Whew! In short, the team ended up being in the plane to Iqaluit. The miles pass by, the flat and blank landscape whitens gradually, the temperature lowers.. This is what we can notice once we get out of the plane. We then profit from a short stop over to go for a ride to town (Iqaluit) and take the first steps of this expedition in Arctic. The Inuits welcome us with simplicity and question us about the reasons for our trip: “You go two weeks”, “no, four months...”.

The next flight takes place in a rather old ATR aircraft (we can see daylight through the seal of the door and we block the air flow by putting a thumb), but the drivers are excellent and the atmosphere on board very relaxed. Residents of Arctic Bay are part of the trip: many young people returning with medals from the Winter Arctic Games, a mother with her four-days-old baby returning home and our hotel cooker. We chat during the entire flight with those Nunavut inhabitants that are so warmly welcoming us. By late afternoon, the aircraft landed at Nanisivic in the extreme north of Baffin Island for a brief stopover during which we stepped on the frozen ground around the airport runway and houses of this small airfield.

Finally, we leave for our last flight, one that takes us to our final destination : Resolute, where our three tons of fret is waiting for us. The overview of the sea ice sets the tone of the adventure: the first water openings, ridges compression, but also beautiful landscapes, small hills, valleys and not a sign of life around us! In Resolute, it is about -25 ° C upon arrival, perfect ! We find Kayak and all our packages, and go to the hotel located a few miles away. Moving in the hotel is done very fast, the rooms are spacious and comfortable, perfect for our three preparation days before our flight to the Pole. After a good lasagna and salad, we start exploring the city by foot under a black sky, the temperature dropped, it is time to get our winter equipment and leave our ‘classic’ wardrobe. Kayak is overjoyed and full of energy. Dogs are around their houses defending their territory and two Inuit girls approach us to flatter Kayak and in order to walk with it on leash. Although there are dogs everywhere, they do not seem to have the same relationship with dogs: kids do not seem used to walk around with a dog like this. Tonight we are all happy to be together here , on time and with all the freight, to face the final challenge which must lead us to the Pole in four days.