As we were scheduled to have one more Skier plane landing here at GRIP Saturday, we made the decision to postpone our normal Saturday dinner-party to Sunday. In the end weather-conditions in Kangerlussuaq prevented our planned flight operations, but we ended up getting a lot done by working all Saturday! Indeed, many new crew members, were largely disregarding all advice to take it easy on their first day at elevation, seeming having acclimatized over night!
Hence, Weatherports for quartering more people later in the season, were being erected, with Sepp teaching the new crew this line of work. Meanwhile the skiway, apron and taxiways were groomed by Thomas working long hours. The drillers also deployed the bore hole camera in the uppermost part of the casing to inspect it. Furthermore, a new toilet-hole was dug and a new outhouse erected by Jonathan and Carlos with assistance from Kevin and Rahul. In the evening Anders made us all wonderful pizzas, what a treat!
The plane originally planned for Saturday had been rescheduled for Sunday, so Thomas, Sepp, Jonathan, Grant and Carlos (our ground crew) made ready for receiving Skier 71, while Bo was giving half-hourly weather observations from early morning. Due to technical issues a change of airframe was needed, and the plane ended up being delayed for 5 hours. Hence, it was with great anticipation that we got radio-contact with Skier 71 (tail-number 01) around 15.40 local time, and we were all set for a landing around 16.10. But misfortune struck again as Skier 71 had to abort the landing and make another low-level flyby due to a maintenance issue! While waiting for the unfortunate skier, we did, however still managed to erect a third Weatherport, and start on the foundation for the fourth, so camp is really starting to take shape. Also, the berm for the drill tent is starting to take shape, as well as another new feature – a preliminary flag line, put up by Julien. Right before dinner, Thomas even managed to change the battery on the Caterpillar, so now we hope it will be easier to start. As we had decided to push ahead with our Saturday on a Sunday plan regardless of the flight schedule, some Saturday cooks were also needed. Generously, Charlotte and Rahul kindly offered to cook both lunch and dinner for us, so Anders could finally get some well-deserved time out of the kitchen. For our Saturday on a Sunday dinner, we got a delicious Tikka-Masala with rice and nan-bread, followed by tasty muffins for dessert. After dinner Charlotte had prepared a hilarious game for us, where we all had to explain various camp-related items or even mime them! And to finish off a fun evening in an appropriated manner, Anders had prepared a music quiz as well – not bad for a Saturday on a Sunday!
What we did this weekend:
- Groomed entire skiway, taxiway and apron.
- Made ready for receiving skier 71.
- Watched skier 71 do a low-level overpass of the GRIP skiway.
- Made foundations for 4 weatherports and erected 3 of them.
- Made a new outhouse.
- Started building berm for drill tent.
- Changed battery on the Caterpillar.
- Changed and recharged battery for radios.
- Erected a flag line.
- Had a fantastic Saturday dinner-party on a Sunday.
Weather Saturday: Starting with overcast and low contrast, but turning Sunny during the day. Temp from to -21C to -17C. Wind decreasing from 14kts in the early morning to almost calm, mainly from SW. Sunday: Cloudy morning, quickly turning sunny with just a few high clouds. Temp from -23C to -17C, with wind turning form SW to SE, 0-6 kts, increasing to 9 kts towards midnight.
FL, Bo Vinther
