Day 5
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9.30. I wake up and see a group which start in the direction of Kangerlussuaq. I run to them and ask them tat they inform Belinda and Tuuma about the actual location of the hut near the lake. They are from Switzerland. I don't know whether my explanations were clear; they didn't note anything. I see another group preparing to leave. They are Danish scouts. I give them the same message, but with a map. |
| Finely, I meet the "millitary": Stefan. He just called the helicopter to look for his friends. Now he his waiting. He is Danish and works for some times in Greenland. After a discussion on the reason of my presence in Greenland (i.e. looking for caves), we discover that we have a common friend... in Great Britain ! I eat Chinese noodle again and leaves. 14.30. I cross the river without my shoes, which are almost dried. The helicopter arrives and lands in front of the hut. Then they take off together. |
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| P1: The helicopter comes to look for the friends of Stefan. |
The walk takes a Rambo style. Bogs, 2 m high willows, little rivers, swamps, flies, mosquitoes, warmness. Mosquitoes bite through clothes. Some flies find a way to enter into the head net. I'm not courageous enough to take a picture. There is no foot-path. My way cross the way of a group that is going in the other direction. I arrive 4 meters behind them. They are obviously tired out and are quarreling. I greet them, but they continue their way without paying attention to me. Never mind for them. I could give them useful information.
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| P2: Walking in the willows... | P3: Walking in the swamps. |
Willows heigh il slowly decreasing, allowing the place for bogs. Any track leads to a swamp. When one reach the other side of a swamp, the track cannot be found again, but after several tenths of meters, one find a new track that leads, after some meters, to a new bog. But... Let keep cool, the track is "blue" on the map !
Shoes are full of water and mud; everything is aggressive.
17.00. I have walked at 2 km/h without stop. Keeping this speed, I will be to the next hut at 0.30.
My legs are painful, but there is no place for complaints. My feet will stay in water for one day more. So, taking the right side of things, I use the least river to replace the water of my shoes with fresh water. Each time, this is a pleasure.
| I cross the route of a group of Greenlandics. We attempt a discussion. they tell me that there are canoe available to cross the next river. But which river ? I will find neither the canoes, nor the next river. The consequence of this information however led me to follow the river instead of following the indications of the map. Now, I know that it is better to follow the map suggestion and to follow the hillside. The Greenlandics do not wear the head-net. The next part of the path is a windy place. That's right, soon, I can remove the net-bag, there are almost not mosquitoes and flies. There are almost no bogs. There is only a 80 cm high tangle of willows slowing down the walk, and no trail... A kind of temporary paradise. |
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19.40. I see the next and last lake. There are some little deeply embanked rivers to cross. Approaching the lake, the wind cease. Flies and mosquitoes come back. With the head-net and the sun in my back, it becomes impossible to see the willows on the floor. Moreover, although dry, the ground is slack, and at each step, the feet are "sinking" of 10-20 cm in a kind dry moss.
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| P4: The lake is visible | P5: Last hut |
22.15. I fulfill my bottles of water and leaves the beach. I'm loosing my trousers. This means that I've lost several kilos.
I go up the last slope. After crossing the last swamp into which I'm going deep up to the calf, I arrive to the hut. It is 0.10. There is nobody in the hut. I remove my shoes. My feet are painful, but the cracks into them are not so deep than yesterday.
Chinese noodles and biscuits; qajaasoq. There is only one window to the hut. I use my frontal lamp. I go to bed at 1.00.
I'm anxious for tomorrow: The walk of today was blue on the map. Tomorrow, it will be red on the first half at the beginning, and black and at the end. I may not want to go out of bed.
Back to the "Trek main page", Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6