Arctic Arc 2007 : the entire crossing of the Arctic Ocean (part 6/6)

24 pictures posted on the 01.07.2009

A huge zone of fractured ice has come up between the expedition and its arrival point along the coast of Greenland. As a result, the men must change their direction and walk around the zone in question. Serious worries amongst the expedition.

A huge zone of fractured ice has come up between the expedition and its arrival point along the coast of Greenland. As a result, the men must change their direction and walk around the zone in question. Serious worries amongst the expedition.

© IPF, Michel de Wouters & René Robert

  • A huge zone of fractured ice has come up between the expedition and its arrival point along the coast of Greenland. As a result, the men must change their direction and walk around the zone in question. Serious worries amongst the expedition.
  • Let's imagine them walking... As long as the ski pole is placed beyond the lead (this is possible if the lead is narrow), one can easily see a foot stepping upon the fragile surface and, suddenly, without realizing the danger, falling through the ice with incredible speed
  • Alain tells us that these small leads are getting more numerous (300 on Saturday) and that the temperatures are getting warmer... With the result of this equation right in front of them, it is best to keep our fingers crossed wishing the best over the next few days and hoping they do not have to start an impossible race.
  • Take the compressions and multiply them in number and in height, remove a couple of flat ice zones, reduce the surface of those that they encountered yesterday, cover the sky with clouds and hide the sun, reduce a little more the visibility and tell the whiteout to settle in over the sea ice.
  • June 6th : Today, more than yesterday but less than tomorrow, the difficulties are increasing during the end of this expedition. Alain and Dixie are having fun...
  • Sometimes, one of the two guys climbs a compression zone to see from far what kind of difficulties, what kind of ice, of terrain is awaiting them.
  • While the Greenland coast is approaching, the two men's progression is getting harder each day.
  • June 7th : yesterday was a big day for Alain and Dixie : at 11 45 am, they saw through the hazy distance a first outline of the Greenland mountains. It was an emotional moment.
  • June 8th : Yesterday evening, Alain Hubert explained by satellite telephone :
  • June 10th : It appears that the two men are gradually leaving the area where the ice is completely disjointed. By Saturday evening, they were just 72 km from Greenland.
  • In any event, Friday 8. June was one of the finest days of the expedition so far, weather-wise. With a light south-to-south-easterly wind blowing in their faces, a faultless blue sky that cleared completely by 4.00 pm and a temperature of minus 3°C only, the setting was nothing short of spectacular as the whole of the Greenland coast came into view and Alain Hubert and Dixie Dansercoer slipped quietly into the final stage of their great adventure.
  • The following day, Saturday 9th June, the fine weather was with them once again – a genuine little miracle in itself. And the terrain, although still not easy, was improving all the time.
  • A final rush for the two men. With a superb view of snowy mountains before them and only 47 km left to cover, they are now definitely approaching the coast. Happy and relieved from the stress that the bad ice conditions have prompted over the past few days, Alain Hubert is now finally optimistic.
  • The Global Positioning System (GPS) has revolutionised the modern polar adventurer's problem of knowing his precise position. GPS devices use a network of satellites that orbite the poles to provide virtually instant locations with an accuracy of about 50 metres.
  • For this expedition, Alain Hubert was given an Oyster Perpetual Explorer II by his main partner Rolex, which is specially designed to stand up to low temperatures and is fitted with a hand that does one revolution of the face in 24 hours, rather than 12 hours, like a conventional watch.
  • This type of watch makes the walker's task easier, because once it has been set to solar time, all you have to do is point the hour hand in the direction of the sun to have north indicated by the direction at 0 hours.
  • Alain Hubert and Dixie Dansercoer have finally reached the northern coast of Greenland this morning (June 14th). It was 11 45 AM (GMT+2) when the two Belgian explorers arrived at the northern coast of Greenland.
  • Organising a pick-up operation is never easy, especially in a sector not very well known by any pilot. When good weather is forecasted both for the take off zone and for the meeting point, the people from Ken Borek, the logistic company in Resolute Bay, are still afraid of a rapid change in meteorological conditions occurring on either side.
  • On the forefront of this adventure, there is of course the unprecedented athletic feat that the two men have achieved; 106 days on the sea ice, from coast to coast (or almost), encountering each day terrible conditions and having to modify the end of their trajectory's itinerary.
  • During the flight to Resolute Bay, producer Michel de Wouters informs the belgian press that the pick up operation was successfull.
  • While successfully completing a one-off crossing as far as Greenland, Alain Hubert and Dixie Dansercoer have also helped to deepen knowledge of climate change. Our explorers carried out meticulous snow-depth measurements for the ESA project.
  • The samples, taken at regular intervals, will facilitate accurate calibration of data from the Cryosat 2 satellite, designed to detect the thickness of ice sheets and to determine the impact of climate changes in the polar regions. The launch of this satellite is planned for March 2009.
  • “The Arctic Arc” educational project is also helping to make the younger generations aware of the fragility of our environment.