Ocean to Asgard.
A two-month self-propelled expedition, where four friends paddled arctic ocean fjord and glacial river to access (and climb!) some huge remote mountain faces, including first ascents.
In summer 2019 we teamed up with Thor Stewart and Zack Goldberg-Poch for a multi-sport Arctic expedition on Baffin Island, Canada.
We set out from the Inuit community of Pangnirtung, riding the swelling tide 30km up the Arctic Ocean fjord to the mouth of the Weasel River.
We dragged the boats upstream until the river became too steep. There we hoisted our heavy packs and hiked another 30km up the valley and the Parade and Caribou Glaciers to Mt Asgard.
Our team in front of Mount Asgard (left to right): Jacob Cook, Zack Goldberg-Poch, Bronwyn Hodgins, and Thor Stewart.
Bronwyn and Jacob established a new route “Never Laugh at Live Dragons 600m 5.10+” on the South Tower of Mt Asgard, in a 20-hour single push from their camp on the glacier.
Zack and Thor made the first ascent of a south sub-summit of Mt Midgard (in a 27-hour continuous push), which they named “Mt Zacky” since Thor already has an epic mountain on Baffin with his name!
Next Bronwyn and Jacob climbed Baffin’s classic “Scott-Hennek Route 5.11- 1000m” on the North Tower of Asgard. Thor and Zack repeated “Polar Thievery 5.11- 400m,” also on the North Tower.
Time to change gears! We hopped back in our packrafts and started down the Weasel River.
Next stop was Thor Peak — the tallest vertical drop in the world.
… and Thor ticked a life goal to summit his namesake mountain!
As the final route of the trip, Bronwyn and Jacob set off to climb a 400m unnamed tower. Eyes drawn by a splitter crack on the upper headwall, we spent the first day navigating runnout, complicated terrain to reach it. We slept beneath the crack, a marvelously exposed free-hanging bivvy on Grade 7 Pods (inflatable porta-ledges).
On day 2, we climbed the splitter in five incredible pitches, making the first ascent of The Niv Mizzet Line (5.13- 400m). What had looked like a hand crack from the ground turned out to be just barley wide enough for fingertips! We believe this to be Baffin’s first 5.13 Big Wall to be put up in alpine style.
Zack and Thor also made the first recorded ascent of Mount Ulu via their new route “The Beached Whale 5.10+ A0 400m” on the south face. After only one day of rest, we packed up our camp for the final time and set off back across the fjord toward Pangnirtung.
We had one last important mission: We put up posters around Pangnirtung advertising a day of rock climbing. The next day about 20 local kids showed up and we spent the afternoon top roping on some cliffs above the town!
Afterwards, some of the kids asked if we could do it again tomorrow? Sadly we told them we were flying home, but we’ve left the anchors in place and with a bit of information sharing we hope to encourage future climbers to get the kids out again!
You can also watch Bronwyn’s presentation about the trip which she gave at the 2020 Vancouver International Film Festival!
Want to know more?
Bronwyn Writes.
“At exactly midnight we pull over the final lip to stand on the flat summit of Asgard’s South Tower. Shivering slightly we both pull on our second puffy jackets. Despite the cold, there’s not a breath of wind. We stand still. It feels like we’ve landed on another planet. Nothing lives here. We watch the sun dip below the mountainous horizon, covering us in a purple dusk for a few minutes. Then the fiery golden ball rises again, casting a new light on our little flat planet, while the icy world far below us remains in shadow.” …
Technical Expedition Report.
If you’re interested in planning your own expedition to Baffin Island, we have a delicious treat for you! Click below for a detailed trip report, including everything from climbing topos, logistics, expenditure and more.