Land ahoy!
Published on 15.07.2008 - Notice Expedition
The two Finns are also on the final part of their expedition. And just like Hibbert and Bullard, they have found the descent down to the coast particularly dangerous.
On 10th July, after trudging their way through heavy falls of snow and fierce winds, the team was finally able to record in its log: "Land ahoy!".
That's because they have seen nothing but ice since 26th April when they saw the last nunataks protruding out of the ice. "It felt very strange to think that only a few kilometres separated us from a village and its people," wrote Petri Mäkelä. "Oddly enough, our feelings were rather neutral, but of course Pete and I will plaster big smiles on our faces today. Vuorenmaa in fact told me that it was quite nice only to see land once every three months...!"
A few days later, the Finns left the ice behind them and continued their trek on the more solid terrain of rock. Trouble is, it's quite hard to find somewhere flat to pitch their tent in the evening!
In any event, when they finally reached the coast, they had to retrace their steps to go and collect the stuff they had left behind because the terrain had been so difficult and dangerous.
They reached the sea at McCormick Bay and still have a few kilometres to do along the coast to reach the town of Quaanaaq. But as there are a number of mountain streams in their way, they are not quite sure yet how they will be going about it...
