Ice - 72° 26’ 08” N 59° 48’ 36” W
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| Our route across Baffin Bay on the ice chart dated 31 July 2024 |
We are heading across Baffin Bay from Aasiaat to Pond Inlet in Canada, avoiding the sea ice that stretches up the centre of the bay. Whether we will make it through the NW Passage remains unknown. The crux of the passage, Peel Sound, Prince Regent Inlet, Bellot Strait and Queen Maud Gulf are still impassable. We are hopeful things will clear but time is marching on towards our drop dead date. We need to be able to traverse this area by mid-August if we have any hope of rounding Alaska to Nome before the autumn gales set in. We do not want to be in the Beaufort and Bering Seas in big storms.
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| This is the area that is currently blocked |
The Canadian and Danish governments produce ice charts for which show the extent and type of ice. They also issue a monthly forecast predicting what will happen by when. We have been watching these avidly for weeks! The ice charts use an Egg Code which is an international convention and is used when coding visual observations of ice.
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| The Egg Code - now why would they call it that?? |
We are most interested in the Ct or Total Concentration number. This tells us whether we can navigate through the area. Concentrations of up to 3 is possible for us to get through. This means that 30% of the area is covered by ice and the rest is open water. Even though it is navigable, it it will be quite slow, avoiding the ice or pushing it clear of the boat with ice poles. We certainly can not charge through, full steam ahead!
We do look with interest at the stage of development. First year ice, or ice formed this previous winter, is usually between 0.3 - 2m thick and is about as hard as hardwood. Hard but unlikely to be catastrophic if we give it a nudge. Multi-year ice, or ice that has survived a summer melt season, can be up to 4.0m thick and as hard as steel. Not something you want to run into!
The Egg Code measures concentration but we also have icebergs to contend with! Icebergs are formed when large chunks of ice break off glaciers or ice shelves. They are multi-year ice and very hard. The icebergs themselves are not a huge issue. They are large and we can see them easily. They also show up on radar.
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| Iceberg size categories. The ice is illustrated here as round, but often has sharp and jagged corners and edges that could seriously damage a boat our size. (photo credit: Megan Thompson-Munson) |
Bergy bits and growlers do not. They also have lower profiles so are more difficult to see, particularly if there are some white caps around. We have to keep a sharp lookout for these. They may seem small but even a growler can be a couple of tons. The tiny block of ice we pulled onboard for our drinks surprised us with its weight. Sean was be primary ice rustler but it took three of us on the line to pull it onto the boat's transom.
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| 'Russell', the drinks iceberg. He was very weighty being multi-year glacier ice! |
So as we continue our way east, we monitor the ice charts and hope things clear enough for us to get through. We still have time but the window is closing.
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| Our proposed route on the ice chart dated 31 July 2024 |
And check out Marisa and Adriano's video @our_tern on Instagram:
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