For the past five days I have been so incredibly tired that all I felt I could do, was sleep. Outside endless snow kept falling from the sky. Around 50cm of fresh powder must have been dumped on us during the past three days. When I was driving back PJ's overnight guests yesterday, they asked me if the… Continue reading The beginning of the end
Ever-increasing daylight hours have brought leisure and ease to the forest. All the little things that have to be done can now be done in daylight. Seeing what you are doing makes the same tasks feel much easier and actually much faster, so we have more time on our hands. On guest-free afternoons we can… Continue reading The delight of daylight
The end of the dark season is a tough time, every season again. After the sun has officially risen above the horizon it still takes an undefined amount of time before one can actually see the yellow ball of joy, depending on where you are and how many obstacles are to be found towards the… Continue reading Seven days of sunshine (but mostly snow)
Just as the best meal can be spoiled by eating too much of it, the finest place on Earth can feel too tight when you end up spending too much time there. "Cabin fever is a term for a claustrophobic reaction that takes place when a person or group ends up in an isolated or… Continue reading Cabin Fever
Twenty days ago PJ and I left civilisation behind once again and together with 36 huskies we were relocated to a cabin in the woods. When I wake up in the morning and step out of the door they are the first things I see, swinging their tail, jumping around. I see the sky turn into… Continue reading Howls in the woods
Hours upon hours, days upon days, even weeks, I spent wondering what New Zealand looked like before humankind lessened it forever. Lush forests that are still related to another era of the world, inhabited by creatures as old as the dinosaurs like the tuatara. An entire ecosystem based on birds: grazing birds, pollinating birds, predatory… Continue reading Walking on thin ice
Slowly but steady autumn is changing to winter and the training season is coming to a close. The days are getting progressively darker, every day, and the headlights come out earlier and stay on longer both mornings and evenings. The sky is getting its seasonal painted look: an explosion of streaks of color. The light… Continue reading A Snowless Autumn
2600 kilometres into my Te Araroa hike I arrived in Queenstown. From there, my companions and I decided to detour from the trail and include the famous Routeburn Track. At the Routeburn Flats shelter we encountered a young German, who with many gestures was explaining an admiring girl that he had walked up to Mount Luxmore, a… Continue reading Has anyone noticed the women out there?
Over three weeks ago we got back above the polar circle, unpacked all the wool we could find and started up at another kennel for a new winter season of dog sled guiding. This year it will only be the two of us taking care of a small pack of 36 dogs, with whom we will… Continue reading The Arctic Circle and Beyond
Going out on paddling trips in the deep blue waters of the Aurlands- and Nærøyfjords was a dream I'd cherished since first coming here two years ago. Because kayak rental is, however, expensive, and sometimes not allowed without proper certification, nothing ever came of it. Maybe one day, I figured, I'd have friends with a… Continue reading Packrafting the fjords
Team Belgica 