2017 Can it possibly beat 2016 in terms of adventure and new experiences? Well we are going to give it a jolly good crack! More about our long list of up coming adventures soon, but in the meantime let us fill you in on the last couple of months in the arctic. Firstly it's finally cold and snowing again!
We survived the long dark northern winter which honestly wasn't as bad as first thought. We quickly got used to doing everything by headlight and the daily routine largely continued as normal. Even at the darkest point we still got 3 or 4 hours of twilight creating the longest sunsets with pink and blue skies. The lighting and clouds always change but its so hard to capture on camera or describe. Sledding at night is also an amazing experience, especially when the moon is out and the snow is illuminated making every thing glow in an eery light.
The days now have been getting longer by nearly 30 minutes although it took until the 3rd February (2 weeks later than normal due to bad weather) before we saw the sun for the first time. This brought outside all the staff and created much excitement even though the guests couldn't really understand why.
Ok so we'd been holding off about talking about the weather but our job and lifestyle is dependent on snow and this season has been terrible to say the least! In summary the snow was a month late arriving, then we had two and a half times more rain than normal in December. Things didn't improve in January which was the warmest in 50 years and now February has been a crazy mixed bag even forcing us to close down our usual base and commute nearly an hour each way to find some snow to sled on. The unsettled nature of the weather is most certainly linked to climate change and I guess we are just fortunate enough to get this experience as in the future the snow might just never arrive….
The beginning of Feb saw 10 days of settled, clear crisp weather with temperatures between -12 and -17*c, with it came epic sunrises and sunsets which last for nearly 3 hours each. Then in the evenings we were regularly graced with dancing northern lights though the full moon reduced the colours a little but allowed us to sled in the dark without headlights. Unfortunately the rain returned and washed the last remaining snow we had away. Thus called for a mammoth effort to move 20 large wooden sleds, reindeer skins, harnesses, food and blankets plus 160 dogs, an hour inland where there was more snow. Thankfully we only had to spend 4 days going to this place as we were clocking up 12 to 17 hour days which is great for the bank balance but takes its toll on the body.
Spare time and days off have been in short supply (for some of us) due to long hours at work but we have enjoyed getting out and exploring the winter landscapes. Lucy was lucky enough to score 10 days off for a fleeting visit to NZ for good friends Hannah and Tom’s wedding. As well as experiencing the special day it was a good opportunity to catch up briefly with friends and family that haven't been seen in nearly 2 years and see the warm kiwi summer sun (which apparently has been in short supply) and also fly on the longest international flight in the world, direct from Doha to Auckland. Back here in Norway we have discovered cross country skiing is a very fun way to explore and when the snow conditions allow a great way to commute to work. We even have a free to use, groomed and floodlit, 5km trail right beside our cabin. Although we tried a couple of times to get back out on the water with the whales were generally unsuccessful due to inclement weather. We did watch in awe as 3 huge humpbacks lazily swam to within 20m of the shore but they didn't hang around long enough to launch the kayaks. Speaking of large animals Lucy got a hell of a fright as we stumbled out of our cabin for work just after 6am the other morning as a mother and two young moose were sleeping 10m from our front porch. Luckily they ambled away as apparently they can be rather temperamental.
Another highlight was participating in the annual Villmarkssenter race. This year due to having so many keen staff (we have 60 odd from 22 different countries) keen to partake we had to pair up with a different nationality and take a small sled with 8 of our favourite dogs. Lucy teamed up with Ieva our flatmate and opted for a team consisting of mainly very small, fast girls while Nick paired up with Mia, one of the smallest staff members, and had a rag tag bunch of left over dogs who had potential to do well if they fired… Starting at one minute intervals, the course was about 7km long, two laps and included a big hill and plenty of soft snow which made running difficult. Teams were super competitive with lots of running, pushing and jumping in and out of sleds, there was even the odd crash. Plenty of beers were consumed afterwards and when the winning times were read out everyone bar a couple of outliers were within a couple of minutes of each other with Lucy narrowly missing out on the podium. A quiz night and pizzas followed and there were plenty of dusty looking people dozing on the back of sleds the next day.
So now if you weren't envious enough let's inform you of our plan for the months ahead. Firstly it's not every year that you mature (???) to an age which ends in a zero so to celebrate Nick thinks he is retiring. We will spend the next 3 weeks working here in Tromso before making our way to South Africa where will join a likeminded group on board a big 4x4 truck bound for Cairo. It will take us 3 months of zigzagging our way through African plains, rift valleys, deserts and deltas camping along the way to reach our goal. We are both very excited to see the big game animals and gorillas but equally to see the contrast and diversity between the ethnic groups as we make our way north. Upon completion we will continue to move closer to NZ with the intention on spending around a month in each of Sri Lanka, India and Nepal. Although we have nothing booked as of yet we are very keen to do a 10 day rafting trip in Nepal starting on Oct 20th so if anyone is keen to join give us a holla as we need to book soon.
So remember growing old is inevitable but growing up is a choice!
Until next time,
Peace out.
