News from the "BASK - Great Sail Peak" expedition

Expedition News:

(23.05.2002)
Ivan Samoilenko reports from the Baffin Island

"May, 21. The preparatory stage of the ascent was succesfully finished yesterday. The team untied the lower ropes. The whole group disassembled ABC and carried all these loads - about 140 kg - to BC. The situatuion for today: the team climbed seven ropes to the ledge, where the portaledges are hanging now. Everyone is busy providing water. And six more ropes have been fixed on the main wall. There are still four more ropes left, which can be used for the work on the wall. The guys climb three ropes a day. The work starts at 1 p.m. and goes on till 11- 12 p.m. There is no night. Everyone is in good health. As it is always a habit with him, Odintsov was struck with a stone on his knee. But today he reported that he is Ok. In BC it is a rest day today. For breakfast we had fried eggs with red fish, coffee with rum and chocolate.
We are getting close to nature. Volodya went fishing and brought 40 ikalus - local kind of fish. We had a real holiday: our ration was enriched with salted, fried and boiled fish. Volodya managed to become friends with a couple of polar foxes by feeding them with fish. He videotaped them. Dima Lifanov, the cameraman, is disappointed with being unable to film the herds of polar bears. We are trying to comfort him. Though we are all a bit afraid that a bear will visit us some day - we saw his footprints not far from the BC. Everyone got used to cold. The only thing we are depressed by - is being unable to wash our dirty clothes. Ten more days - and we will return to civilization."


(17.05.2002)
News from the "BASK - Great Sail Peak" expedition. Sergei Porodnov - guest from the Baffin Island: impressions from the first hands

Just a couple of hours ago Sergei Porodnov - the eye-witness and member of the events on the Baffin Island - was received as a guest at BASK. He told many breath-taking details…
Sergei Porodnov from Ekaterinburg called himself a sherp and at the same time sponsor of the two expedition members from the Urals: Klyonov and Devi. Together with the team he covered a difficult way across ice and took part in carrying expedition loads from the place where snowmobiles could reach to BC.
May, 10, when snowstorm broke under the Wall, Sergei left the inhospitable Baffin, made a short but interesting trip round Canada, and on May, 16, landed in Moscow. In the airport he was met by BASK employees. He still had several hours before his flight to Ekaterinburg, so we could enjoy most entertaining details from the first hands (the full story of the witness will be published pretty soon).
Sergei passed us a letter from Valery Rozov. Though the events described in it are already known to everybody who follows the expedition news, still the lines written on the other end of the Earth are of great value.


(15.05.2002)
Valera Rozov called this morning. Four rope pitches are done. Valera performed the second BASE jump

"Klyonov and Devi are on the wall of the Great Sail Peak now. The guys work 14 hours a day. All in all four rope pitches are done. The guys plan to reach a ledge by tomorrow, and the rest of the team will shuttle loads to this point. Yesterday 14.05 Valera Rozov, Lev Dorfman and Dima Lifanov once again climbed the neighboring peak (the new name is "Peak Pobedy"/"Victory Peak") and Valera performed his second BASE jump from the top.
The weather is cold, true severe winter, polar day, and amazingly beautiful scenery around us - all this creates some strange feeling of unreality. Today we caught a tub of fish in a fjord and cooked delicious fish-soup. Right now we are sitting and eating it and recollect home, our relatives and friends. We still fail to run the computer and telephone - must be some problems with communications, so, unfortunately, it looks like we won't be able to send a picture. The guys are sending there hellos to everybody."


(13.05.2002)
May,13. Valery Rozov and Mikhail Devi report from Baffin Island. An unnamed peak has been climbed, and Valery Rozov performed a BASE jump from its top

"May,13. From the third attempt Valera Rozov, Lev Dorfman and Dima Lifanov managed to climb the unnamed peak situated next to Great Sail Peak, where the expedition had already started to work on the new route. They named it "Peak Pobedy"(Victory Peak) in connection with the recent holiday - Victory Day! The aim of this ascent was BASE jump.
The previous attempts failed because of the bad weather and poor visibility. It took the climbers 8 hours to get to the top, deep fresh snow hampered the way up. If it were not for the ski-tours, the ascent would have been next to impossible. We made it happen: the first BASE jump from the unclimbed peak! Indescribable feeling, true revelation! We are happy!
The height of the peak is 1480m, BC is at 50m above the sea level, the height difference of the wall is 800m of pure overhanging part, free falling time is 40 seconds in "Krylo" (Wing) suit. Though the weather was sunny, it was cold - about 10 degrees below zero. There are many faces like this good for BASE jumping in the vicinity of our camp. The only problem is very changeable rather cold weather and vast distances."
Today Odintsov and Ruchkin continued their work on the route on the Great Sail Peak. Fresh snow made it difficult to get to the wall from ABC. It took the climbers 3.5 hours instead of 1 (as it was during the first ascent of this part done by Devi and Klyonov) to cover the height difference of 500m. They managed to climb one more rope pitch before the evening. Tomorrow Odintsov and Ruchkin will continue their work on the wall, later Klyonov and Devi will replace them and, most probably, will organize portaledge bivy to save time and strength wasted on the way from ABC to the wall. The weather is changeable. It is warm only in BC big tent. Everybody is healthy and in high spirits, sending hello to all relatives and friends and to all those who is following the news from our expedition. "
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(13.05.2002)
May, 10. Ivan Samoilenko reports from Baffin Island. The first rope of the route has been fixed

"The North wind is blowing for the third day. It is cold. The pressure is dropping. Klyonov and Devi fixed the first rope of the route yesterday. Today they returned to BC. Valera Rozov with his friends made a reconnaissance trip to the plateau on the top. They discovered deep snow and vast polar fields there. It became clear that we would have to spend one night on the route on our roundabout way to the top. Though there is no night here - simply the temperature drops by 10 degrees. When will the spring come as Inuits promised us? We are sitting in the Inuit tent waiting. Preference, chess, books. Nobody has any health problems. The doctor gives us vitamins and alcohol".


(8.05.2002)
The latest news from Baffin Island. Alexander Odintsov made a call

May,7.Alexander Odintsov called from Baffin Island (Polar Canada):
The team organized BC on the SE bank of the inner lake where the Great Sail Peak is situated. The profile of our wall can be seen and it really impresses.
Yesterday 06.05 eight people carried some equipment for ABC to the foot of the wall. The distance from BC to the mountain turned out to be larger than we had hoped for - about 2.5 hours along the frozen lake.
Today we will make sort of sledges from skis and continue carrying loads to ABC. It snows every day, today it became warmer - 15 degrees below zero. We melt ice to get water.
Everyone sees incredibly vivid dreams, we are haunted by the feeling of unreality. We are missing our relatives and friends. Everybody is healthy and energetic. "
May,4. Alexander Odintsov reports from Baffin Island: "The team is in several hours walk from BC. Snowmobiles didn't reach BC. We are in for a several days' work of carrying loads to the wall. Our camp is in a picturesque place with bear's footprints. Everything is OK.
We are planning to start working on the route May, 6-7. The weather is good, 10 degrees below zero. A bit cloudy, sunny. Best wishes. We love you."

(7.05.2002)
Valera Rozov called on the 2nd of May and reported the following information:
Everything is Ok with the team. Yesterday they took a flight to Clyde River and stopped in some wooden hut for a night. The temperature was 10 - 15 degrees below zero with very strong wind. The team hired six snowmobiles with sledges and six local Eskimos, who will live for a couple of days together with the expedition members in the Base Camp, and then they will leave the guns with the team and return home. Tomorrow morning our guys are heading for the BC. They are sending their regards to everybody.

(6.05.2002)
May, 2. Misha Devi has just called from Canada. Email still won't work…
"Today the team is in Clyde River village. This is the last civilized place on the continent. The weather is sunny, but the wind is strong and the cold is bitter - we nearly got frostbitten when moving on snowmobiles! Tomorrow we are leaving for the Base Camp. It will take us one day to get there provided snowmobiles work properly.
In this area even in the most remote nook there are proper hotels, internet, telephone. You can get connected with any place on the globe for a small amount of money - 19 cents per minute.
Our expedition is escorted by two Eskimos, they are adamant on being called Inuits, but they resemble our Chukchi men a lot …"



(29.04.2002)
April, 28. Alexander Klyonov reports from Toronto:
Alexander Klyonov: "All days are filled with organizational moments, all day today we were busy buying different stuff in Toronto. We have the impression that Canada is full of Russians - conversations and signs in Russian are everywhere. It's rather cold here. We are horrified to think what awaits us on the Pole. We'll spend tomorrow here, and then leave for Ottava, and take a flight from there to Clyde river on April, 29, and further - on sledges. We all experience the time shift. And I am the only one who got used to new time."



(26.04.2002)
April, 26, the team "BASK - Great Sail Peak" left Moscow for Toronto (Canada)

24.05.2002