Departure / 05:40
Beyond the
last road.
Engines cut. Packs sealed. The orange stakes point north into weather.
Arctic survey Field notes 01—05
Season 06 / Longyearbyen
The northern
traverse.
Sixteen hours on the ice, logged in five entries. Keep scrolling — the log turns and runs sideways.
- Distance
- 184 km
- Elapsed
- 16:04
- Furthest north
- 70°01′ N
Scroll to traverse
Beyond the
Blue shelf / 11:16
Ice keeps
its own time.
A low fracture travels east. We wait for the shelf to finish speaking.
Whiteout / 14:32
Follow the
faint signal.
Visibility: twelve metres. The beacon returns in clean intervals.
Night pass / 19:08
Wind finds
the narrow way.
We move single-file beneath the ridge. No lamps above the snow line.
Marker found / 21:44
North,
recorded.
A lime flag in the blue hour. Coordinates logged. We turn south at first light.
Return leg 06:12
South, with the
light behind us.
- 21:44
Marker found. Coordinates logged at 70°01′ N.
+740 m - 02:30
Camp struck on the lee side of the ridge.
−21.6° - 06:12
First light on the shelf. Turning for the coast.
184 km
End of log — season 06