Pinned Down
24 June 1998
Camp 3, N 69º10.742', W 26º38.086'. We climbed our peak on the evening of Saturday 20th, our 9th new summit reached out of 11 attempted. As we descended the first flurries of snow started falling, since then we have been pinned down at camp 3 by a seemingly endless storm for 76 hours, now we have been stuck here. The wind roars constantly from the north always bring more snow and by now drifts of a metre almost burying the tent.
Mark -
I’ve been stuck in a tent before, once for 36 hours with my brother in Scotland but this is different The constant daylight makes it almost impossible to keep track of time and anyway time seems to have little meaning. We eat when we are hungry, sleep when we are tired, read and chat; also there is no way to tell how long it will continue, with each day it seems less likely it will be clear the next. Our only deadline is when the plane comes to pick us up in seven days time, but even that is a false one. The plane cannot land in weather like this, it really does feel as this could go on for ever.
We are keeping warm and eating plenty of food, the only real hardships are stiff backs and boredom. We have been swapping books but they will not last for ever and of course it is frustrating not being able to climb. We are still taking pictures but we cannot transmit them until we get some sun to recharge the battery.