Day 3 - wind, toilet paper and sand storms
The weather can change rapidly without warning and there is usually a strong breeze blowing through the Akshayuk Pass and down the fjords. Day 3 saw that change - cloudy skies, a temperature rise to a balmy -15°C and a head wind, with wind chill so powerful I could not tell if my skin was feeling hot or cold, despite the vaseline and sun protection cream I layered on every morning.
This is where I learned to fold toilet paper as it comes off the roll instead of pulling off a length and then trying to manoeuvre it into a useful shape. I learned this because it is inadvisable to use toilet paper whilst wearing gloves - a certain level of finger sensitivity is required - and because a length of toilet paper immediately becomes a flag in strong winds that will not fold. Trouble is, it took a little while to learn that lesson. By the time I did, my fingers could have been made of plastic for all the sensitivity they had left. The tips on my right hand are still numb 10 days later. TOP TIP - use latex surgical gloves to protect against wind chill, whilst preserving sensitivity. TOP TIP 2 - pre-fold your paper!
The route overland follows the Weasel River passing several small lakes as it twists and turns, gaining height sometimes quite steeply over frozen rapids. We had to pass Windy Lake, where the wind can be so strong that there are stories of fully laden skidoos being simply flipped over. For us, it was not that strong, but it was strong enough to whip up the moraine into a blinding desert-like sand storm. Our consolation as we battled against it was that after our skin had been frozen, it was being sand-blasted to complete a whole skin rejuvenation programme!
