Team Mambo No.5 (aka Team Ski Strap):
Hello from the East Coast and our journey's end! It's hard to accurately put our last day into words but I will try...
After two days of storms, we woke at 5am, dug our buried tents and equipment out of the snow, and began what would be an epic 30+ hour push from 4700 ft up on the ice cap all the way down to the coast near a tiny and remote settlement called Isortoq. Over those 30+ hours, our team covered roughly 29 miles over ice, snow, rivers, rocks, frozen lakes, and eventually solid ground surrounded by the truly epic views of the East Coast of Greenland.
None of the team had experienced a day like it and despite the lack of sleep, unforeseen setbacks, and some complex conditions to navigate, we kept pushing and reached our goal with memories to last a lifetime. Highlights for us all included seeing land for the first time in over 24 days, downhill skiing with all our equipment in tow, a final evening meal on the edge of the ice cap as the sun set, clambering over rocks and rivers with heavy equipment as the sun rose, nervous skiing across a huge semi-frozen lake, our helicopter landing at our last camp to bring us home, and so much more.
The sense of achievement is huge and I'm personally very proud of what my teammates and I achieved over those 30+ hours. With Taylor expertly leading us, we pushed ourselves mentally and physically to the max and had fun in the process. This is James and Team Mambo No.5 signing off after a successful expedition and traverse of Greenland!
Team Cocoa-Motive:
"Yesterday, we skied about 18.7 miles, coming down from the ice cap to near land. We saw beautiful mountain tops that appeared when we crested a hill and a cloud lifted. It was amazing. We have not seen anything but snow or sky for 29 days! In the morning, the wind was strong, around 25 knots, and we waited until around 2:30 to break camp when the wind was a little calmer. We skied into the night and started dropping down our final descent. By 1am, we were getting closer to our stopping point. We set up camp around 2am and then while the rest of us crashed, CP took the first polar bear watch shift.
Morning came before we knew it and we finished the rest of our descent. It was hard work and so dynamic. We had snow for part of the way, but rocks and stream crossings, lifts, and carries for other parts. We are exhausted but really happy to have successfully completed the crossing. We will think about it a little more after we sleep a little!" -Update from Annie
Well done team!!!