Arctic Kites

Click here to watch a short video of ski-sailing in Finse!

The team is thrilled that Ronny Finsås who lives in Finse, Norway has agreed to join and lead the team. Ronny, known as ‘the Kiting God’, recently kite-skied from the South Pole to Hercules Inlet, a distance of ~1100km in 5 days and over 500km in 1 day!

The international team used the training week in Finse to full advantage, going through the expedition plans, routes and equipment in detail. It was fantastic to all get together and share each other’s excitement in the forthcoming adventure!

Exped Ted recently accompanied the team on their training trip to Finse in Norway. He found the snow unusually cold on his paws and frequently had to brush the snow off his coat. Whilst the rest of the team is trying to put on weight, Exped Ted is urgently trying to grow his fur in preparation for the arctic weather!

You know it’s going to be windy when the locals disagree as to whether the wind strength is going to be Storm Force 10 or Hurricane Force 12! Apparently the weather in Finse was ‘unusual’ for this time of year, but unperturbed Chris and Rachel decided this was the ideal time to test themselves and the expedition equipment in preparation for Greenland.

Luckily the weather restrained itself to a mere Force 10 ice storm, coating everything in sight with a thick layer of ice, including Chris as he reinforced the snow wall sheltering the tent.

The following morning after a night of howling winds and living inside what sounded like a drum, 1 metre high snow drifts surrounded the tent, which had survived well.

During the week there were a few days that were excellent for ski-sailing with steady winds and good visibility. This gave us the valuable opportunity to try out our new sails and train with Ronny Finsås who had recently returned from Antarctica.

Chris and Rachel have made arrangements to spend a week training in Finse, Norway. They will use the week to trial equipment that they plan to take to Greenland and practice all the skills needed to survive in the sub-zero conditions.

With support from Finse Skiseil 1222 the team trialled the Beringer Parawings on the frozen lake before taking to their skis and combining their skiing and kiting skills.

The team took the opportunity to test their camping equipment and pitched the tents on the side of the lake.  This was the first time the team sampled the ration packs developed by Rachel and it was a relief to discover that most of the dehydrated meals were more than edible!

Significant snow fell during the week and the temperature dropped to -18°C or below -40°C with the wind chill.  Although the conditions for pulling pulks were difficult and even caused a passenger train to derail close to Finse, they were excellent to practice our arctic survival skills, including building snow holes! 

The people of Finse were extremely helpful and we were very lucky to bump into Ronny Finsas who has been to the South Pole several times and was kind enough to offer advice to the team.

After 15 hours of travelling Chris and Rachel have arrived in Finse, Norway for a week of expedition training.  The lake is frozen, there is 3 metres of snow and the weather forecast is for more snow and the temperatures to plummit.  The plan is to practice ski-sailing as well as surviving and travelling in this arctic environment.

Much time has been spent researching, identifying and purchasing specialist equipment for survival in the arctic conditions and testing in Finse, Norway.