Well today was a bit of a disaster, but better now than in 3 weeks time on the Chilean fjords.
Only yesterday were we able to calculate our final pack weight with all the additional food etc. and so today we headed out to Wimbalball Lake on Exmoor with the help of Andy Ward to test the packraft fully loaded. With a fair wind and driving rain it was a good day to train for Patagonia, the capital of the world for wind and rain! Our first problem, was when we were both paddling the raft (without any kit) the wind caused the boat to spin. This is a common problem on flat based boats but we had hoped it wasn’t going to have as much of a dramatice effect on us as it did. The only way we could overcome this was for the person sitting at the back to use their paddle off the back of the raft as a rudder. With only one of us paddling the distance we were covering was obviously considerably reduced. This in its self is not a major problem it just makes for longer hours paddling. However, the real problem came when we added the kit. With very little room in the raft we had planned to float 90L ‘river’ dry bags off the back of the raft filled with all the kit. When we tried this out a few weeks ago the plan worked to perfection. The excess air in the dry bag allowed it to float along behind with minimal drag. Today, with the backpacks and the additional food and fuel for the first 76km kayak section totalling 100kg pulling along behind, the drag was horrendous! Not only had the weight increased but with the kit being bulky and leaving little air in the dry bags, they sat low in the water. With only one of us paddling the other on steering, we were going nowhere fast.
We have to remember our objective for the Rivers of Ice expedition – to complete a full crossing of the Southern Patagonia Ice Cap unsupported and without kites! So we have been weighing up whether its worth taking the risk and jeopardising the ice cap crossing with a paddling section that is merely for our enjoyment and to add an additional element to the film. After a lot of deliberation, we have decided it’s not worth the risk, and we are going to take a boat (as nearly all previous expeditions on the ice before us have done) to the base of the Jorge Montt.
I am currently feeling pretty low about the change of plans, paddling through the fjords alongside dolphins whilst taking in the stark beauty of the remote Patagonia waters in a mode of travel that is new to the both of us, had been something I was really looking forward to. An element of adventure before the stark reality of the Ice Cap and getting down to business – to achieve what is boarder line possible! But, I must keep telling myself that too much time, effort and money has gone into Rivers of Ice, for a local fisherman to retrieve us from the fjords having not made the Jorge Montt in the allotted time.
Images courtesy of Andy Ward
