The Seven Settlements

TSS 2010: The new Expedition Blog location

2009-03-28T12:52:00.001-03:00

The Seven Settlements expedition blog has moved ... again.

After many html snags I have decided to start over, again. So this is it, the final location for the blog that will document the solo kayak expedition to visit all seven settlements of the Uummannaq fjord area of north west Greenland, summer 2010.

LINK: http://tss2010.blogspot.com/

Sorry about all the changes.

Charleston, SC - Where Kodiaks are born!

2009-03-25T18:05:00.005-03:00

David from Folbot has sent me some photos of the Kodiak being sewn/built for the TSS 2010 expedition. You can see more pictures by following the link to David's Twitpic.

It's interesting to see the hull and deck of the Kodiak being sewn together, just like the skin of the traditional Greenland Kayak is sewn together - albeit by needle and thread. There are of course many similarities between the design of the two kayak types and you can clearly see the legacy of the Inuit in the kayaks of today, especially the folding kayaks combining the skin and frame construction of the original kayaks.

A while ago I took some photos of the Folbot Cooper on a rack together with the Greenland Kayaks paddled by local people from the town of Uummannaq. Modern materials met traditional designs that day.

It's easy to see how the original kayaks are better suited to rolling than their chunky descendants. Of course, I'll still give rolling a go later this year when the water isn't quite so hard. When looking at the differences between the old and new you might think that the Folbots are like barges compared. Definitely. But then I haven't found a Greenlandic kayak I can fit into yet and they are certainly not built to carry provisions. I really enjoy the modern skin on frame kayak in production, and what it enables me to do in terms of multi-day kayaking trips, but you can't beat the original Greenland kayak for its beautiful lines and efficiency in the water!

The last picture is of the Folbot Greenland II configured for a single paddler. Behind my brother-in-law is one of the feature attractions of Uummannaq fjord - ice!

Sledging and Scheduling!

2009-03-16T19:10:00.006-03:00

I received a great email from David AvRutick at Folbot the other day, the Kodiak for the expedition is on the building schedule! Fantastic!

What I love about Folbot - I already own two boats - is it feels like you are buying a boat, a yacht, a ship, whatever ... you get an email that tells you your kayak is to be "built". In a very small "boys own adventure" kind of way, it could feel like Fridtjof Nansen getting a telegram from Colin Archer saying that Fram is now under construction. Okay, a very small way!

As we have sea ice covering the fjord at the moment there is zero paddling to be done. That, however, is okay as it means my Greenland Dogs are camped out on the ice and running. I guess that is why I am torn between thinking about paddling and getting out there with the dogs. There will be time for everything, and while winter is for the dogs and sledging the summer is all about getting on the water. I am fortunate to live in an area with just two seasons: sledging and paddling!

When not working or sledging I have found time to play with the Kodiak - in Photoshop. Just how many decklines do I think I need? : )

Posted by Chris
16. martsi 2009

Illorsuit - where kayaks are born!

2009-03-12T15:09:00.005-03:00

In connection with planning the expedition I have been surfing the net a lot and I have discovered that the settlement of Illorsuit figures heavily in kayak lore. Rather than repeat the kayak history of Illorsuit I would like to write a little about my experience there and encourage you to follow the links below to read what others have written so well.

You can find plans and photos of replicas of the Illorsuit kayak at Bryan Hansel's website here and further information about the history behind the kayak and the Greenlander who built it in Duncan Winning's article on Seakayaker here.

My own visit to Illorsuit was far less interesting and far quicker than any that have been described in the links above. My wife and I were on our way from Uummannaq to Nugatsiaq and Illorsuit is the settlement where we were to have a mini-layover of 15 minutes or so as post and passengers were loaded and unloaded. We met a some of my students from 10th and 11th grade while we waited at the grass and gravel helipad and admired the view.

When I return in 2010 I plan to explore the settlement properly and hopefully get to know more of the people and learn more of the history of Illorsuit. As I intend to write much more about the settlements at a later date, this will just have to be a "teaser" until then.

Posted by Chris
12. martsi 2009

TSS2010 Twitter!

2009-03-05T15:16:00.002-03:00

I am experimenting with "Twitter" with a view to facilitating expedition updates. I have no clue how it works yet! : )

You can find the TSS twitter page here.

Posted by Chris
5. martsi 2009

Beyond HTML

2009-02-20T19:34:00.003-03:00

There is life beyond the building/modifying of webpages! HTML is not my strong point and while I will have to wait several months before paddling at least the sea ice is thick with that all important fine covering of snow.

Over the next few months I intend to enjoy travelling by dogsledge, Greenland style, as I explore the frozen fjord around the island. The picture above of me paddling a Folbot Cooper was taken at the end of May last year as the ice was beginning to break up.

At minus 20 C there is, thankfully, no sign of the ice breaking up anytime soon.

Posted by Chris
20. februari 2009

Trying to figure out HTML

2009-02-16T20:08:00.001-03:00

If you stumble across the blog then just know that I'm working on it! : )

Posted by Chris
16. februari 2009

Getting started ...

2009-02-12T22:02:00.006-03:00

First post to get the show on the road, or the expedition on the water. There is plenty to be done and plenty of time in which to do it. Most importantly, Folbot, the expedition sponsor has generously agreed to sponsoring a Kodiak expedition ready folding kayak.

Check out the Folbot company and their kayak by following the links above or this one here:

www.folbot.com

More later.

Posted by Chris
12. februari 2009

save

Going Solo

2009-01-29T11:23:00.003-03:00

There has been a change of plan. I have decided to continue the expedition alone, solo. Lars and I are still firm friends and have agreed upon this change in the crew line up.

I have decided that after many years in Outdoor Education and personal trips in the wilderness I am still searching for the ultimate challenge: a solo journey. Living, dogsledging and paddling in this incredible part of Greenland I have been inspired to finally take the plunge and paddle this trip solo.

I have also decided to move away from the previous idea of using plastic/fibreglass boats and, in keeping with the local hunting community, adopt the skin on frame design of the traditional Greenland Kayak, albeit a modern version. To that end I have had the pleasure of discussing possible sponsorship with the Folbot company and we have agreed that it will be possible and we are looking forward to working out the details.

The educational aspect of the expedition will also change focus and become cultural with an emphasis on communication, i.e. I will be learning and discovering the language of West Greenland during the expedition. See the specific pages for further details.

So while I continue to plan the expedition Lars is looking forward to exploring more mountainous areas of Greenland and developing his photographic portfolio; currently featured in an traveling exhibition, calendar and many postcards. Look out for his website coming soon.

The proposed date of the expedition start remains unchanged: July 2010.

Posted by Chris
29. januari 2009

636 days ... yep, there's a long time yet!

2008-10-04T11:28:00.001-02:00

Not much happening around here, but the thought is there. We are currently working on the purchase of the kayaks and figuring out when and where to get them shipped. We both want to get out and paddle in them next season, but now Lars is in Nuuk and I am still in Uummannaq. We’ll figure it out.

Also, is this just a long holiday or an actual expedition? Either way, it is going to happen. Right now though it is more of a glorified holiday - there’s nothing wrong in that per se but it means we’ll be looking at the goals sometime this winter and making the decision as to what we are going to call it and what we hope to achieve.

There are advantages to starting the planning phase this early, but it means there is very little news to post.

Posted by Chris

10. oktobari 2008

Expedition Teaser

2008-08-23T11:32:00.001-02:00

With the expedition still a long way off we needed something to brighten up the webpage. Here’s a teaser video of kayaking in Uummannaq fjord.

Posted by Chris

23. augusti 2008

Looking forwards ... 697 days

2008-08-03T11:30:00.000-02:00

There are 697 days before the start of The Seven Settlements Kayak Expedition. We have a lot to decide and much planning to undertake before we begin. We will be sure to write more when we know more!

Posted by Chris

3. augusti 2008