Ice Pack, December 12, 2007
Ice Pack, December 12, 2007
By Blog.Admin
During the early hours, we encountered 10/10ths pack ice. For ice masters that means that the entire ocean surface is covered in ice. From the shuddering of the ship, it was clear that at least five engines were working. The ship rammed, reversed and rammed again, but the distance gain was small.
The captain deployed a helicopter for ice reconnaissance. He was hoping to find a lead - open water - through which to navigate to Cape Norvegia or Atka Bay. In 10/10ths ice, the ship moves too slowly to allow shore landings.
During the morning most of us were either out on the bow or on the Bridge. The sun had come out to illuminate spectacular scenery. White ice as far as the eye could see, with no open water at all. The vessel continued to bang and crash, but even for the amateur eye, it was fairly clear that we were not going to be doing this much longer. More ice reconnaissance flights were taken, but on one could find any open water anywhere near where we had hoped to go.
After lunch, we gathered in the Auditorium to listen to Jonas explain that we had to turn back. He showed us an ice chart. We had to return to the 7/10ths ice to make better speed.
There was a documentary shown, but most of us chose to stay out on the bow watching the icebreaker smash her way out of the heavy ice. At times, the ice pilot used the path he had created pushing into the ice. At other times he used small leads that he had found. All the leads were closing fast, driven by the wind and the pressure of the ice.