Expedition summer 2006

[arctic hobo]

Phil, that's exactly how I'm thinking... I'm not a person who is over - optimistic (quite the contrary! ). Rich this isn't a fun trip in the conventional sense of the word... I do not mean to make anyone think that it will be easy - if I have done so then I apologise. There will be catching game and campfires, and there will also be tough slog up hills and adrenaline packed rapids and tightened belts. This is an expedition not a holiday. Doug thinks that it would be a good idea if I had a chat with Sir Ranulph Fiennes, as he advises expeditions like this. I think that that is a good idea.
Have a look at www.friluftsliv.no. It's in Norwegian, but you can get the idea of the kind of expeditions these people do that like ours - and to them it's not much of a big deal.
The canoes can be carried as Phil said with a buddy system - one canoe carried by one person, two people's kit by another. We're considering trolleys as you know which may make it easier, maybe not. The portage is not 52 miles, that whole leg is 52. The portage is about 38 miles, about half of which can be on a road. Then it is 18 more on the next leg.
I know we're not extreme survivalists or hardened hiking nuts, but I guarantee you (from my own experience), you will moan about the slog but by the end you'll think you wouldn't have missed it for the world. I live for pushing my frontiers on insane expeditions. I quite understand if anyone thinks it is not for them and has second thoughts.
Phil, shame you can't come but that sounds like a good plan :biggthump

 

[arctic hobo]

Just finished watching the video, and I thought to myself "this is going to be amazing". Something to tell your grandchildren, how you crossed Scandinavia in a canoe. :biggthump
If anyone wants a copy (it's in Danish but you can watch it muted to get an idea of the area) can they please send me two CD-R's or bring two to the meetup in Feb. :wave:

 

[Roving Rich]

Catching Fish and game will only supplement a good supply of rations. Humans cannot survive on just protien, but require fat or carbohydrate to digest it. We will starve to Death on a diet of meat and fish. :roll:
When is the meetup planned ? I am in India mid feb, so may not make it. We need to get together.
Cheers
Rich

 

[arctic hobo]

Having been to the area before I am quite sure of myself as regards food... every plant there is rich in carbohyrates, from reindeer moss to pine tree bark/needles (which also give us Vitamin C). We will be eating plants just as much as meat/fish... plants will after all be more plentiful (they're everywhere) and 100% of arctic species are edible - apart from some fungi. Not being a fungus man I'll steer clear of them unless we have an expert coming along. If reindeer moss can sustain whole herds of reindeer then it can certainly sustain us. From my experience carbohydrate rich plants will certainly not be hard to come by. And many contain relatively significant fats as well. Add to that fat from any game we can hunt.

 

[Roving Rich]

:biggthump Thats good news. Didn't fancy starving on the way.
I have been trying to get through to the UK distributor for the Bergen Canoes, but no Joy sofar - just rings and rings, then diverts to fax. :roll:
Cheers
Rich

 

[arctic hobo]

Thanks for your efforts :biggthump

 

[Moonraker]

You probably already know but the UK dealer for Bergan (Ally Canoes) is:

Scandinavian Partnerships Ltd
23/25 Peckover Street
Little Germany
Bradford, BD1 5BD
United Kingdom

E-mail:
info@outdoor-company.co.uk
Url.:*
www.outdoor-company.co.uk
Phone:
(+44) (0) 870 242 7152
Fax:*
(+44) (0) 1606 352 713

Details from bergan site. However that web site was down when I looked :?: Sounds like it may well be a defunct contact. I would suggest emailing Bergan direct to find out who carries their stock inc. Ally Canoes in the UK (email from their site)

marked@bergans.no

By pure chance I am actually travelling through Hokksund where Bergan are based mid February but unfortunately it is at 23:00 on the way to Oslo from Torp airport or else I would have gladly dropped in

I did mention before I had some friends there but now I am going myself perhaps i can find out some info for you during my stay? If there is anything I can be finding out for you there Chris just let me know. I am not going up as far as Trømso this trip, only up to Trondheim but it will be easier whilst I can pick the brains of my friends on the ground as such.

For info I will be briefly visiting Oslo then heading up to Alvdal up in Hedmark, then Trondheim, Bergen then finally returning from Haugesund.

 

[arctic hobo]

Moonraker, thanks a lot for both info and offers :You_Rock_
I'll get in touch with Bergans about that supplier, I had that info but just like yours it didn't work, and they didn't answer their phone :?:
I'll have another crack at it.
I'm not sure what route you're taking that goes through Hokksund :shock: but it's no problem, I'm in Norway soon (going to watch the 100 years of independance in May) so if there's anything I need I'll have a look myself - I have a few friends (including one in Alta, near where we'll be going) doing some favours for me already. Thanks very much for the offer though :biggthump it's very kind of you.
Have fun on your trip, have a look round mountains when you're in Alvdal :wave:

 

[bambodoggy]

Hey All..... I was wondering around the web just now and totally by accident came across this....

http://www.kayak.co.uk/boats/folding1.htm

They have the folding canoes and also inflatables (think the folders are better)....The Ally15DR at the top is the cheapest, lightest and best for portage. They also sell the backpac's and pack sacs to go with!

Bingo.... ):

They are based in Dollar in Scotland.....anyone close enough to go take a looksy?

 

[Moonraker]

Well found BamboD :biggthump

I also came across a Norwegian web site which hires the 611 ALLY 15´ DR canoe here:

KLATRING & KURSING - Padling

In Norwegian. It gives details of cost ( for example: upto 1 day 300NOK or around £25). Some cost for insurance i think (damage?) and says they are for hire as collapsible canoes. But I have not idea if you could use them outside the Larvik commune down on the south east coast where they are based. Just thought I would pass it on. They are a climbing shop mainly I think.

Best price I could find in Norway was NOK 9,898 inc tax which works out around £836 here:

Sport It - BE.00611 : Ally 15 DR

 

[arctic hobo]

You guys are the best :You_Rock_
I must try and see whether it is feasible to borrow one for our meetup in Feb.

 

[TheViking]

Hobo: do you have a list of how many and who is booked?
Not that i'm thinking of going. (and that wasn't ironic, just to be exact )

 

[arctic hobo]

It's a good question, and it also depends on how many associates people will bring.
BCUK members who have registered an active interest are:
Me
James Devine
Lithril
Wayne
Stuart
JakeR
Leon-1
Raz
Andy
Bambodoggy
BrutonW
Roving Rich

The list as I say is just of members, and is only of people who've registered an interest, not of those who've said they are 100% able to come.

 

[TheViking]

Thank you.

 

[arctic hobo]

Well the meetup was good - marred rather badly however by a very poor turnout. The decision has been made for a compulsory meetup in July or August. The idea is that with enough forewarning we can realistically expect people to make it. "Compulsory" means that if you want to go, then you have to come, simple as that.
I'm thinking of five days, possibly in Wales. I'm going to do my utmost to get hold of at least one of the canoes by then, as we all need to get used to them and the weight & handling. I'll hopefully be able to at least handle one by April.
One thing we also discussed is the need to get to know each other well. This is very important, if we're going to be in each other's faces 24/7 for three weeks. I'm thinking just meetups so we all know each other are worth doing, whether they be in pubs, cities or the woods.
Many more things still need to be discussed and sorted, I appreciate that it's not for 18 months but then there's a lot to be done between now and then. I myself want to meet everyone who's serious about going (a kind of person who I imagine will dwindle in number :roll: ), ASAP really. The more time we have together the better.

 

[sargey]

with that many people planning on going, wouldn't it make more sense to take a couple of support vehicles on the ferry? mini bus plus van?

the weight of those ally canoes is pretty good. if you can split the skin and the frame there hould be no reason people can't carry their on kit plus a section of boat. rafts, depending which, are almost certainly heavier, and you really don't want to be paddling them across/along fjords. i have an inflateable canoe and it's a dog to paddle on theflat.

it would almost seem foolhardy not to have a couple of guys in a support vehicle to meet up at pre arranged points. if any members of the team get unduly fatigued they could swap with a relief crewmember for a while. you'd also have definate cover if the whole thing went base over apex.

i'd almost consider signing up myself :shock: :super:

cheers, and.

 

[arctic hobo]

Support vehicles is something we discussed at the meetup, and something that will need further discussion and consideration. That's why I want more people to turn up - so we can discuss.
We do follow, very approximately, the course of the E8, which would make vehicle support very easy. Plus it means (assuming he's sticking to the current plan) it would be easy to get Phil on halfway - and also for medical emergencies. Personally I have always gone unsupported, and I would like to stay that way, but in the interests of safety and persuading people to actually come on the expedition I think it might be a good idea!
It does however mean recruiting someone (or several people) who is prepared to give up three weeks of his time for a pretty unglamarous job - I'd get pretty jealous if it were me.
Have you had experience with the canoes then Sargey?

 

[arctic hobo]

For those of you who have no idea what the tundra plateau will be like, this site http://www.athro.com/geo/trp/gub/tundra.html is not bad: it details alaskan rather than Nordic tundra, but you can get a rough idea of the terrain. The bits I've been to had more bushes than this however.

 

[sargey]

canoes? nothing significant, i'm another kayaker i'm afraid. you're welcome to borrow the tahiti canoe whenever you want to explore the properties of inflateables

a long long time ago i came up with the idea of trekking across the lake district via a load of the islands. i never got round to it. but it sounds like a prime training/feasability study trip.

i did woodsmokes nomad course last year. they've got exsquisite cedar strip canoes. after portaging them a couple of hundred metres up the beach, i can understand why an experienced canoe guide would suggest that a fifty mile portage was all but impossible.

consider a two man team with 17Kg canoes that can be broken down into parts. add another couple of kilos of paddles and bouancy aids and helmets each. then add all your standard bushcrafty kit, sharing stoves etc between two. it's all perfectly feasable.

cheers, and.

 

[arctic hobo]

canoes? nothing significant, i'm another kayaker i'm afraid. you're welcome to borrow the tahiti canoe whenever you want to explore the properties of inflateables

a long long time ago i came up with the idea of trekking across the lake district via a load of the islands. i never got round to it. but it sounds like a prime training/feasability study trip.

i did woodsmokes nomad course last year. they've got exsquisite cedar strip canoes. after portaging them a couple of hundred metres up the beach, i can understand why an experienced canoe guide would suggest that a fifty mile portage was all but impossible.

consider a two man team with 17Kg canoes that can be broken down into parts. add another couple of kilos of paddles and bouancy aids and helmets each. then add all your standard bushcrafty kit, sharing stoves etc between two. it's all perfectly feasable.

cheers, and.

I like the Lakes idea, would be a good place as I guess it's also easier to get to for most of us than the Highlands, although I'm still considering Wales.
As regards portaging, my gut reaction to people is "yes, you'll need to be fit"
There are concerns of course and full weight tests etc need to be done before we can think about going any further... just wish I had more team members
As regards fitness, if anyone feels they'd like to (need to?) get fit for it and don't know where to start, I can give them details of an excellent training plan (as used by Ironman competitors in fact) that can be scaled to your fitness level & available time. Just PM me

Also I'd like to bump this August meetup - and can I stress that anyone who wants to come must be able to make it, which is partly why I'm planning so far in advance.
Right now it is Wed 10 to Sat 13, venue undecided. If anyone can't make this please say so, but there's a limit on how much I can move it. Hope to see some new faces there