Since camping yesterday evening we gained 1.4km northerly due to the drift of the pack ice, most often dictated by the wind but also by currents. As forecast cloud developed overnight and blanketed us in a thin layer of snow. Enough visibility remained to help with navigation though the sun strained to make itself seen through the fog. With it came a balmy -16c.

Soon up we hit an open lead narrow enough to make a quick raft, more of a bridge, to clamber across. I laughed on the other side when Lorenz asked, ‘so tell me, was I elegant or very elegant?’ Well, neither!

After lunch we heard the grinding of ice to our right and soon enough hit a north-trending lead just thick enough to hold the weight of 4 people, including 6’4” 120kg Bobby, the gentlest giant I ever met. We followed the lead for an hour or so until it terminated in a clutch of rubble. An attempt to cross the lead turned into a hasty retreat as the ice began buckling and flooding under the weight of Bobby and I.

After seven hours with the temperature steadily dropping to the mid twenties again we found a perfectly flat campsite with a solid snowy surface and quickly pitched our Hilleberg tents under a clearing sky. We covered a total of 19.2km and will pass halfway tomorrow morning.

Pics
1. Cordula crossing the lead while Lorenz steadies the raft
2. Skiing on the lead
3. Bobby picking a route through heavy rubble
4. Cordula clambering over a pressure ridge
5. Camp on the Arctic Ocean