The Mission Spiritus team is on the move again in Patagonia.
After leaving their final camp on the glacier, the team is now making its way through the mountains towards the next stage of the route. All environmental samples collected during the glacier phase are secure, and the team is continuing towards a planned boat rendezvous.
A changing landscape
As the team looked for a safe route down from the mountain, they passed through a canyon shaped by the retreat of the glacier.
There, they came across a still lake, surrounded by newly exposed silt and rock. The landscape offered a striking reminder that Patagonia is constantly changing.
For the team, it was a brief pause in a demanding stage of the journey – a chance to take in the scale and quiet of the environment they are moving through.
Reaching the refuge hut
The team has now reached a refuge hut after a six-hour effort to move supplies from the end of the glacier and across the mountain range.
This process involved man-packing and portaging equipment, with some backpacks weighing more than 45kg. It was a tough but necessary phase of the expedition, allowing the team to move essential supplies forward from the ice and prepare for the remaining days in the mountains.
Each mile forward requires multiple journeys back and forth to transport equipment. It is a slow and physically demanding process, but it was planned as part of the expedition’s logistics.
Making use of the conditions
With strong sunshine in the morning, the team has been using solar panels to charge phones and Starlink equipment before continuing.
The team remains safe, in good spirits and focused on the next stage of the journey. With the glacier sampling phase complete, attention now turns to completing the remaining mountain route and descending to lower elevation.
Samples secure, next stage ahead
Mission Spiritus collects environmental samples in remote and extreme environments to support research into airborne micro and nano plastics. The samples collected during expeditions are analysed by Columbia Climate School’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory.
The scientific sampling planned for the glacier section of the Patagonia expedition has now been completed. The team’s priority is to continue safely through the mountains, deliver the samples to the boat rendezvous and complete the expedition safely.
