Printemps ?

  • En traineau

During each field trip, in the area of Vagabond, we can see new polar bear tracks. There, a male has been enlarging the breathing hole of a seal to take it out of the water, after killing it with his paw through the ice. Here, a female and her cub explored the holes I did the day before to measure ice thickness. Further, a big male walked around the fjord, followed by a faithful polar fox... We hope to see our neighbours closer soon, from the boat for instance!

Blue sky set in about eight days ago. Sunglasses are necessary now, and the sun is giving up to 10°C in the middle of the day: -42°C this morning, -31°C at 3pm. Few days after equinox, real night is fading: at midnight, twilight is remaining, in the north. Polar night is not far behind, but midnight sun is already coming.

Icemeter is doing tens of kilometres, behind the snowmobile. Ice thickness in the area, quite variable, will soon be holding no secret for us!

Other trips and activities? getting iceberg ice for fresh water, clearing of snow after March 16th storm, short dog sled trips, slides and games in ice ridges along the shore, miniature gardening (seed tray inside the boat, green vegetables for everyone), solar flight for aerial pictures, hole in the ice to film under pack ice, time lapse trials to show tides (3.50m range!), last pictures in the night before permanent daylight...

During that time, fighting against the cold, Jean Gaumy is focusing on material (ice, snow, rock), and is looking for perfect composition, with twilight. Nice contemplative trips with him. In a few days, he will go and stay in town for a week, before flying back to France._