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Arctic Circle Expedition 2009

We left school at 5am on Monday 6th July to go on an adventure well within the confines of the Arctic Circle. Our destination was Oksfjordokelen on the northern tip of Norway. We arrived in the small town of Alta to spend our last night in a comfy bed for some time. The following morning we set off on our expedition to tackle the mountains around Oksfjordokelen. We were completely self sufficient for 6 days, carrying all of our food, clothing, tents, ropes, ice axes, harnesses, helmets and crampons. The going was extremely tough, with each pupil carrying a rucksack averaging around 18kg and travelling over very difficult terrain. The good team spirit and stunning scenery kept moral high and after 2 days we reached the snowline.

After finding a suitable place to set up a base camp, we could finally take in our surroundings which were completely breathtaking. It was then down to the serious business of learning how to use an ice axe and crampons. Much fun was had practicing an ice axe arrest (arresting a fall whilst sliding on your stomach or back down a steep slope!). The group also learnt how to travel safely whilst roped together and what to do if somebody fell into a crevasse.

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Once everybody was confident with the use of an ice axe, rope and crampons an attempt was made to get even higher and up on to the glacier. After a couple of hours of walking and upon closer inspection it proved too dangerous to make an attempt to get onto the glacier due to the high risks of avalanche after a heavy snowfall during the winter. All of a sudden the thought of walking downhill rather than continuing uphill proved to be very appealing to some of the pupils! So all was not lost, the group had learnt how to be self sufficient in the mountains, learnt some valuable mountaineering skills and all overcome the personal challenges of carrying heavy kit over difficult terrain whilst keeping a smile on their face! Our last night in the mountains was spent next to a fjord, again in beautiful surroundings and we had the pleasure of being visited by a pod of dolphins that had come into the fjord to hunt fish.

Our camping was not completely over! After leaving the mountains we headed back to Alta for a well earned break (and pizza) and to pick up more supplies. Our next destination was the most northerly point in Europe – the Northcape.

The Northcape or ‘Nordkapp’ is the best place to see the midnight sun as there is often a spectacular scene as the sun dips but never quite sets over the sea. This experience was just one of many experiences during this trip that will stay with the pupils for a lifetime. All of the pupils performed brilliantly throughout the trip. They had to negotiate difficult terrain, keep going despite being extremely tired and at times suffering with sore feet and blisters, eat dehydrated food for days on end and survive without a toilet and shower! Despite this hardship, all of the pupils made up of 6 different nationalities remained cheerful and worked well as a team throughout. Well done!

Mr Walker

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