WALK-IN REPORT

Due to pack ice still in Billefjorden, we had to abandon our original plan of being taken by boat to the northern end of Billefjorden. Instead, our helicopter flights had shown us that Dicksonfjorden was reasonably clear of ice, and so we altered our plans to walk-in from Dicksonfjorden. Jan Soerensen very kindly took his ship right into the fast flowing ice in order to get us dropped on the correct side of the fjord. We were put ashore by inflatable at mid-afternoon on the 5th July.

We walked north along the shore of the fjord for an hour or so, before heading inland up Hugindalen. The first obstacle we came to was a wide fast, but shallow river in the valley. As we had only been going a couple of hours, we had not yet 'gelled'. The more experienced members simply took off boots, and waded the river. In hind sight it is all too easy to see that this was silly, as the inexperienced members were then left on one side of the river. We didn't get away with it. Kristina stumbled, and dropped one of her boots, which floated away. This was quite a problem. We were a day from our base camp, and we had no spare boots with us, or at base camp. All this 2 hours after stepping off the boat.

We decided to camp there, and while we were setting up the tents, a group of four went down stream to look for the boot. We were not very optimistic. The river was opaque brown, around 100m wide, braided, and full of boot sized stones. Amazingly the boot was washed up 500m down stream, and it was spotted. So ended a potentially disastrous start. From then on, we never forgot that the environment was new to some people.

Between Dicksonfjorden the Gonvillebreen we were plagued by mosquitoes. This made the night and morning we spent in Hugindalen and Triungsdalen very unpleasant. After four hours on the 6th, we arrived at a snow patch beside Gonvillebreen, where we had lunch. We took several thousand mosquitoes with us onto the snow, and over the hour, we squashed and froze them all! From that point on, we never had a problem with mosquitoes. Our route from here took us up the edge of the Gonvillebreen and across a col west of Kinanderfjellet down onto Manchesterbreen. This route was not the easiest. However, hard physical work was rewarded by spectacular views from 750m on the col, no mosquitoes, and bum-sliding on snow.

We descended Manchesterbreen, and then walked down the north of Alandsdalen to our base camp north of Alandsvatnet. The walk-in took 12 hours from Hugindalen, or 15 hours from Dicksonfjorden.

This was not the easiest route, but a combination of factors meant that it was the best for our needs. We were unable to be taken as far up Dicksonfjorden as we would have liked. The route would than have been along the flat valley of Nathorsdalen. This can be done in a single day.

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