I got an evening update so I could hear what all the team did this afternoon. They appeared to be super proud of all of their hard work. So, we already mentioned that they hauled their boat and all gear up the path to the old research station. They were able to board up the windows and eat lunch.
After lunch, they each prepared a bunk to keep them up off of the floor. Jeff secured a bunk prepared of wood that was already made and he just used his sleep mat. West gathered up some roofing felt out of one of the other buildings, built up a small sleeping area slightly off of the floor. After preparing their sleep area, Jeff and West put together some scaffolding that was laying around. Jeff climbed upon the roof to cover the fire place flue to keep the wind and rain out.
Once their “bedroom” was set up they moved on to the “laundry room” and ”living quarters”. Jeff got to work in the main headquarters. They did not cover the windows so it would not be so dark. After sweeping it out and collecting the trash, Jeff laid out all of their clothes in the hope that they would dry out before they had to pack up to leave. They figured they would use this room to eat and hang out during the upcoming storm. Each building has an all-weather foyer to keep out the cold. Then, you enter through another door. They were able to attach all of the doors. They cleaned up around the buildings.
While doing their physical labor, they saw several very cute arctic foxes hanging around. They were very curious and then scatted away.
To end their day, they saw their first cruise ship. It was a Quark Expedition ship named “UltraMarine”. It’s the newest ship in their fleet, according to their website. It anchored just across from the Arctic Cowboys for about 3.5 to 4 hours. Immediately, the boys got out their VHF radios and made contact with the captain. They had a great dialogue going, explained their expedition, shared their website and then were invited over for drinks. The declined, gracefully. Getting out their kayaks, gear, clothes, etc. just to paddle over was more effort they were willing to make. Then, they were afraid they would enjoy themselves and have a hard time leaving. If any of you know Jeff and West, they can be pretty engaging, entertaining men.
–Barbara Edington
