The Patagonian Icefield

It’s the time of the year when deliveries arrive daily in our office and we’re wearing new Baffin boots to test their fit. Meticulous preparation for a crossing of the Patagonian Icefield has begun with the arrival of the first maps. Not laminated OS maps but cut-out flimsy papers, laid on top of each other and stuck down with Sellotape.

The whole feel of the expedition is like this. Less certain, less straightforward, lots of thinking laterally. There is not a lot of information in general, and none of this complete or trustworthy enough to base main decisions on. It’s the opposite of typing in ‘climb Mt Blanc’. All of this is also one of the main appeals. A summer crossing brings its own complications. On the east side you tend to get a lot of snow and on the west, a lot of rain. Snow we could deal with, but rain and being damp sounds like a less desirable proposition.

The expedition uses multiple modes of travel, which adds enormously to its complexity: boat crossings and port...