weak points. Work on the assumption that
anything which can go wrong will go wrong,
so gather as much repair and replacement
parts as possible.
I have a box of bottle-screws, toggles, bits
and pieces of incidental stuff that just might
come in handy. I also carry lengths of rigging
wire, bulldog clamps and a couple of lengths
of stainless steel threaded rod. Examine the
steering and have a jury rudder ready to
install if needs be. Include a few tubes of
construction adhesive – CT1 for instance
works under water.
ENGINE AND PROPELLER
Have several fuel filters on board as well as
a couple of oil filters. Although I have never
had any problems with contaminated fuel,
you just never know so best to be prepared.
Bring enough lube oil for at least two oil
changes. A spare propeller makes sense,
as there is always the danger of bending a
blade when weaving through leads in the
pack-ice. And don’t forget a spare impeller,
if the old one is going to fail you can be
sure it will happen when the water
temperature drops.PERMITS AND
BUREAUCRACY
Greenland is
relaxed about
formalities but it
would be wise to
check with the
customs or police at
any port of entry.
Stopping in Norway,
the Faroe Islands or
Iceland while on
passage requires
you to check in –
the formalities
are generallystraightforward and I have found the officials
doing the paper work to be helpful and
friendly but they get upset if you ignore
them. The rules change, however, if you
intend entering a national park. Svalbard is
governed by Norway and a permit from the
Syssleman’s office is needed. This requires
advance notice of three months, a
non-returnable bond, SAR cover and regular
radio check-ins. Much the same applies to
the east Greenland national park. There are
severe penalties for failing to comply with
the regulations.INSURANCE COVER AND MEDIVAC
This is a major issue and at the time of
writing there is no clear and simple way
around the refusal by Lloyd’s of London to
underwrite cover for what they deem to be
’risky’ areas. Let us assume that insurance
for the boat can be arranged, then you
should give serious consideration to a
personal medical health policy and it would
be prudent to find out what provision is
made to have you flown home if necessary.IT'S NOT FOR EVERYONE
I’ve been fortunate in my choice of ship-
mates. It’s not always easy to find crew,
both male and female, who combine a
taste for adventure with self-reliance and
compatibility. But, so far none have
jumped ship and most have come back
with stories to tell about wild and
wonderful places, the challenges and
the cold. Even so, there have been times
when we all sat and stared open-
mouthed at a glacier collapsing or tried
to block out the awful graunching of
pack-ice when the boat was beset,
waiting for a lead to open.
Lying to anchor with a soughing wind
that just keeps on rising until the rigging
begins to wail is unsettling enough in
familiar waters but it is different in the
loneliness of an Arctic fjord where high
and hostile mountains frame the horizon
emphasising your utter insignificance in
the vast emptiness of uncharted watersand massive wilderness. It is stunningly
beautiful but just as the cold, the fear
and the sense of remoteness are part of
the thrill, they can also test resolve. How
can you explain this to someone ‘signing
on’? Perhaps you can’t; in my
experience, it’s the daily run of 100
miles northward that helps to make the
adjustment from the familiar to the
frightening so by the time boat and crew
have reached the high latitudes most
people have become conditioned.
A pal who has shared many Arctic
adventures with me, Eric Degerland, is a
keen photographer. After a trip,
especially in the dead of winter, beside a
crackling log fire, he digs out some of
those images and just sits there
dreaming of the next time. One of my
own pictures hangs in the hall at home
and when people come to call and ask
about the Arctic I just point at it and say,
‘That’s what it’s all about!’A perfect anchorage
in Greenland’s Scoresbysund,
clear of the icebergs in deeper waterReplacing a melted
exhaust water trap after
an impeller failed due
to the cold waterEXPERT ON BOARD