DAY 7 Act: How many mosquitoes are too many?

Breakfast with one side of Deet

Get up and shine! It’s time for another day gloriously sunny at the Arctic Circle Trail! I know before I complained about too much wind. But at this time, there is very little. So I make sure to start the day with a little poison, Deet. I decided not to bring a complete bottle, trying to cut some weight. But at this moment it seems that I am rationing. I still have a few days on the road, and the bottle feels too light.

Last night I camped next to the lake. Of course, we can say that it is my fault, because where there is water, there are mosquitoes. But Greenland is a pretty wet country, so the difference is not so great … and I like the convenience of nearby water. So there is that.

Smile before swarm.

Skwelch Skwelch

After packing (my shoes and socks are pleasant and dry) I go to continue the path next to the lake. I enjoy dry shoes, jumping on some puddles, for almost 30 minutes. And then I have to give in and submit to flood my ankles. It is the way of walking in Greenland. And it comes with its own sounds 😉

Just a little more mud 🙂

Of course, trails wet much faster than a Gore-Tex boot. But they also dry faster. And if the swamp arrives on his ankle, he must see the swamp of his boot again.

Where to go?

Then I reached a point where the GPX path (which is the Act website officer) deviates from the path. I’m not sure what to do here. I do not remember that anyone mentions that you should leave the path. And the travers of trails continue to follow the path on the map. Then I decide to follow the real path. The path crosses a swampy area south of the lake, the GPX on some elevation north of the lake. Choose your poison, I suppose.

I guess the GPX tracker was a bit of hay here.

You don’t need to cross, just walk together. He’s wet, but look at his sight!

The mosquito apocalypse

The swamp is not so bad, until it is. I am on the way to the innajuattoq cabin for a break and the last 2 miles or so, the mosquitoes become horrible. I put my headphones to try to keep them out of my ears. I make sure I breathe through my nose since they are flying directly in my mouth. And, of course, they end behind my lenses. The mosquitoes have not bothered me so much until now, but here … I am cursing for losing the head of the head somewhere in Kangerlussuaq. I try to walk fast. There is a little breeze, but it comes from behind. If I need some relief, I turn around, so I have the wind on my face. Help, just a little.

How do you see your version of hell? This can be mine 😉

The path is not so well marked in this section. Be approximately where I need to go. But I don’t spend much time looking at my GPS, so I’m still moving away and I have to correct/go back. It’s hot, I’m hungry and I have mosquitoes everywhere. I’m so ready to find this cabin …

Are there 2?

And there it is, you can only see it once you reach the top of the hill. Run to the cabin and try to enter quickly, to avoid bringing too many mosquitoes. I don’t have much water at this time, but enough to lunch. I have a dehydrated meal, which makes me really thirst. I am in a hill and the only water I see is a lake on the other side. I begin to read the book HUT and read an entry of a girl from a previous week. He spent the night here and said she was too tired to get water (I know that feeling) but ended up going down to «the other cabin» … another cabin? I am confused now. I took my map again and I can see that, in fact, there is an innajuattoq ie innajuattoq II hut. I am currently in Old Hut, nr. I. And the second, newer, Cabaña is down next to the lake.

INNAJUATTOQ HUT

It is smaller and further from the water.

Driven by thirst, shed my things and prepare to go out again. The mosquitoes have been waiting for me. I accelerate to the other cabin and look inside. It is much bigger and has a great view. This is a really pleasant place to spend the night, either in the cabin or camping near. And there are less mosquitoes here …
But it’s time to continue. Camele (also known as a lot of water) and crossed a small river. There are some more walking miles next to the lake. The views are pleasant, but it’s hot!

INNAJUATTOQ II HUT

Ruined by ATV

This year, ATV track opened between Kangerlussuaq and Sisimiut. I have not seen much so far. It overlaps a bit in this section, and the hiking route is ruined. It is a bit inside and out of how bad it is. I am glad that the path and track are mostly separated. But I can imagine that they will want to redirect the act a bit so I can avoid areas like this.

Where the ATV track and the Arctic Circle overlap.

Hello Rudolph again!

Then I go, until I see the movement. And here, it’s another reindeer! It is the first wildlife I see today (mosquitoes do not count, although I saw approximately 10,000 of them). I enjoy seeing it, I take some photos and videos and keep walking. There are enough reindeer in my camera roll now.

What is that smell?

As I continue, I begin to think that I am smelling smoke. However, I’m not sure, I don’t see anything. It may be that my mind is playing tricks in my nose. I have not met anyone for 2 days, so I have not received updates of paths either. I read that around 1200 people walk along the path every summer. Where are they?

Everything alone …

It’s almost 6 pm now and I’m ready for camping and dinner. There are not many currents in this area, so I am looking for a decent size lake that has some dry areas around it. It is not as easy as it seems. I still get out of the way to reach the area. The lakes are small and have many wet areas around them. So I’m leaving.
After about an hour I get to a good place. I pick up the flattest place and get to work to place my store. There is still some mosquitoes buzzing, so I try to continue moving. It becomes quite annoying once I get to the part of Bathe & Wash of the day. They are not against bundling while I am rinse.

That’s house. Surprisingly, a dry area.

Night hooves

After a good dinner (Stroganoff lentils) I start preparing for bed. When I begin to drift, I listen to helmets. And what do you know, another reindeer that visits my tent!
I’m going to a happy bed, although a little worried about smelling smoke before. I have not seen any fire warning, so I just expect the best.

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