Highlights and keywords from the Svalbard 2013 expedition
In April 2013, Petter Bjørstad, Geir Åke Dahlen, Helge Larsen and I went to Svalbard to ski and climb the two highest point on the island – Newtontoppen (1717m) and Perriertoppen (1712m). I have written a trip report in Norwegian, and the trip report begins here.
This trip – along with Mt. Blanc in 2003 and the Greenland expedition in 2004 – was the greatest adventure in my mountaineering career, and one day I might translate the report into English. Until then, I have gathered a few pictures from the trip and added a small comment to each picture. In sum, one should hopefully get a “feel” for what this 12-day trip was all about…
Our route
A useful signpost
Preparations
Transport
The adventure begins
Difficult skiing conditions
My first bear watch
Choosing the potential shooter
Amazing peaks
Point man in bad weather
Setting camps
Milestones (latitude)
Chaos and order
On Newtontoppen
Signs of a long bear watch
Amazing campsites
Mornings
Steep (Perriertoppen)
Atomfjella mountain range
Dramatic terrain
Out-of-this-world terrain
Bear watch (I)
Bear watch (II)
Transport legs
Heavy load
Overwhelming
Bad weather moving in
Arctic toilet and bear-watch shelter
Solitude
Bad days (I)
Bad days (II)
Binding break-down
Ever-changing weather
Breaks
On the Svalbard “highway”
Amazing campsites
Stuck
Weight loss
OMG…
How cute is that?
The most dangerous toilet in the world
Transport home
The worst ride ever
Local redneck (Longyearbyen)