The Expedition Started!

At last the departure day has come. At first the expedition was scheduled to start on February 28th. But due to short hours of sunshine and bad weather we postponed the departure three times.

When we arrived in the airport, the crews of a small aircraft called Twin Otter were working around the aircraft to prepare for the flight. The three sleds and two drum cans of fuel were being loaded into the 5-meter aircraft. There was a barely enough space for four of us. At 5:00 in the dim light of dawn Twin Otter took off from the airport in Resolute Bay. The whirring sound of the propeller aircraft reminded me of the time when I went to America for a sky diving training. I was remembering skydiving off Twin Otter at an altitude of 4000m.

Now I would like to answer a question I often was asked in Japan, which is whether or now a weewee gets frozen in the arctic. The answer is �c no.

Flying the aircraft is not the only one task of pilot. They did also refueling in -49°C. After refueling, they are back to operate the aircraft.

During the refueling, I collected some snow in order to measure hydrogen-ion concentration. This sampling is collaboration work with Professor Tsunehiko Otoshi of Tohoku University of Community Service and Science. The snow at 80 degrees North is valuable. I think Professor Otoshi is looking forward to the sample.

While I was sampling, my face became frozen due to the coldness, actually "it was pain beyond coldness". My feet and fingers were the same. It was the same feeling when I almost got frostbite four days ago (for detail see the journal dated 2nd of March). Fear for frostbite flashed through my mind. I returned inside the airplane and started to think what to do with the situation. First I covered my feet with plastic bags and put spare gloves on the toes. And I borrowed emergency blanket and sleeping bag stored inside the plane to cover my lower body. Håvard offered to massage my feet, but I decided to see if the situation would improve.

The windsock, located upper left corner of the picture, which is supposed to show the wind direction was frozen. I wonder how long it remains frozen?

After the refueling the Twin Otter restarted the propeller and took off toward North. The white land was colored orange by the flush of dawn. I could see hills or mountains on the surface, but of course there were no roads or houses.

The Twin Otter was flying at an altitude of 1000 feet (approx. 300m) when it started to descend with a big circling movement after recognizing the surface conditions. A few days back we were told that there was a possibility of the aircraft turning over if the wheel gets stuck with the uneven surface of the sea ice. However today there was enough light to check the surface, we were able to land safely at 11:45.

As soon as we landed, the expedition members started to unload the equipment and set up the sleds, and the pilots were engaged in the refueling process. When I realized we were surrounded by a fog. If we had been a few minutes late, we would have had to search for another landing spot.

About 30 minutes later the pilots gave a go sign to fly back to Eureka. So we hurriedly held national flags and took a team photo.

From right to left, Stepan (Russian flag), Ohba (Japanese flag), Håvard (Norwegian flag), and myself (Nunavut flag)

We patted on the shoulders and said good lucked to one another. I reboarded the Twin Otter. There were only two pilots and I on the returning flight. I had a hot drink while placing my legs in a sleeping bag and warming my finger with bad blood circulation. Thankfully my toes became warmer again. Even I had some sweat. At the same time the cold sweats due to the fear of frostbite receded.

I prayed for the safety of the three expedition members now embarking on the 4000km trek. I hope they will enjoy the journey as much as possible. When I gazed below from the aircraft, which just took off at 12:15, I witnessed a sunset glow whose color was very similar to that of the sunrise that I just saw a few hours ago. This was a moment I felt I really came to the northern end of the earth.