Cost: £2,100 for 3 weeks, or £2,900 for 5 weeks (inclusive of deposit) + transport (approx £500) + personal kit.
Duration: 3 or 5 weeks, late July – August 2012 (exact dates TBC when flights are booked in early 2012).
Briefing: 13-15 April 2012.
Debriefing: October 2012.
Visa: not required for British passport holders.
Vaccinations: none required.
Overview
The Expedition will take place in mainland Northern Norway, within the Arctic Circle, in July/August 2012. Weather conditions are likely to be mixed with daily temperatures around 10 degrees, and, as the area experiences 24hr daylight in the summer, you will experience the bright blue midnight sky from your first day of arrival. During the expedition, you will have the opportunity to meet some of the local people as you pass through the settlement called Nuvsvag. In this ecologically sensitive area, you may see many reindeer on their migratory routes over the mountains. In other wildlife, you may see Lemmings, Foxes, White Tailed Sea Eagles, Porpoises, Whales, Sea-Otters, and various bird species. Fieldwork projects will include studying the area’s wildlife, climate and glaciers (more on fieldwork below).
The expedition will fly from London Heathrow to Alta via Oslo. From there you will travel to the ferry terminal by coach and take a ferry over to the Nuvsvag peninsula, before heading to the fjord. Here you will set up base camp in a valley called Sorfjorddalen, where food and equipment will be distributed to your respective “Fires” (a Fire is a traditional term for a small group of around 10-12 people, originating from a group sat around a camp fire). Some 5 miles away from base camp, in a parallel valley called Fjorddalen, a mountain training camp will be established, where you will learn ice axe skills and crevasse rescue techniques on a glacier. Fire groups will also be trained in radio-communication and first aid & safety procedures during this time. The training phase will last up to one week. Fire groups will then start to disperse into different areas, with their respective fieldwork projects. After some time, they will return back to base camp to reconvene and re-supply, before dispersing once more, and finishing their projects. The whole expedition will meet again at base camp, before heading back home.
Meals will be expedition ration packs, with a few treats!
Expedition Fieldwork
The bedrock of Arctic Norway was formed 450 million years ago, at the same time and under the same conditions as Scotland. The current landscape was formed in the last ice age, and the remnants of this ice age are still seen in the region’s ice caps and glaciers. The landscape remains largely unaffected by human influences and shows the dynamic nature of the earth and the interdependence of the environment’s various systems.
The expedition will provide you with an opportunity to study the lithosphere (rocks), pedosphere (soil), biosphere (flora and fauna), hydrosphere (glaciers, rivers and coast) and the atmosphere (climate). Through your studies, you will look at the delicate and fascinating relationships between these systems.
Every fire will have a scientific objective and your projects will be explained fully at the spring Briefing Weekend. Expedition fieldwork will provide Explorers with first hand experience of field data collection techniques.
Adventure
Mountaineering possibilities are vast and several days on the glacial ice-caps are planned throughout the expedition. Mountaineering in the Arctic is a unique challenge. Summit vistas are stunning, with views of a truly awe inspiring landscape. Some time will be spent travelling in rope teams on ice, and teams will learn to navigate through crevassed areas and glacial rivers.
Personal Development
Learning to live and operate in an Arctic wilderness will take you far away from the comforts of home, but you will develop a keen sense of self reliance. BSES’s primary objective is personal development, and you will be encouraged to consider your learning throughout the expedition, especially in your communication, team skills and leadership skills, and the development of your confidence and personal values.
Health and Fitness
The terrain can be challenging with rough scree off the glaciers and limited tundra, and glaciers may be water-logged by snow-melt, so Explorers will be walking with crampons. Explorers do need to be healthy and reasonably fit, and sufficiently robust to be able to play their full part in long trek days and load carrying (within their capabilities).
Post Expedition
Your expedition team will be reunited again once you return!
In the following October after your expedition, BSES organise a ‘Next Steps’ weekend to try and help you digest exactly what you achieved on expedition. You will then meet again in January 2013 for the BSES Annual Gathering and presentations of the 2012 Expeditions which is followed by the Explorers Ball. After that it is hoped that you will stay involved as members of the Society and we are sure you will plan many reunions yourselves in the months and years ahead!