Equipment

Fortunately, we aren’t the first to trek the route from Kangerlussuaq to Sisimiut, and we know many who have completed it. Thus, there was a wealth of valuable advice to gather. Maliina Abelsen, who had undertaken the journey the previous year, provided us with an equipment list that we heavily relied on. I updated the list to suit our needs, and you can find it here.

I purchased a high-quality 55-liter Haglöf backpack, which turned out to be a bit small. To address this, I added extra compartments using waterproof and sturdy dry bags of various sizes, secured with bike bungee cords.

My sleeping bag is a lightweight one, weighing around 1 kg, designed for temperatures as low as minus 4 degrees Celsius. I also opted for an inflatable lightweight sleeping pad.

During a previous hike from Kilarsaarfik to Kapisillit, Jacob Nitter had an impressive Jetboil that boiled water in no time and was super easy to use. I decided to invest in one, and it turned out to be the coolest and best purchase.

Preparation

Before this trip, I had hiked with lovely colleagues from Kilarsaarfik to Kapisillit (27 km) earlier in the summer and from Oqaattut to Ilulissat (21 km) with my family. Drawing from personal experiences and tips from others, I incorporated these into our preparations. Over the years, I’ve learned the importance of covering many kilometers during training to prepare the body for long, challenging journeys.

In the lead-up to the trip with Magdaline and Evi, our training involved hikes with and without equipment to acclimate our legs, knees, and ankles to the trek. We filled our backpacks, which we would carry, with items like milk, flour, oatmeal, and anything else that added weight. We walked together, not only because we enjoy each other’s company but also to gauge our individual readiness for the journey.

We hiked a few times together without equipment and a few times with full gear to the dwonhill point.

Food

I brought the following:

Breakfast: Overnight oats with blueberry jam for the first three days and oatmeal mix for the last three mornings. All breakfast items were packed in self-sealing freezer bags. Of course, instant coffee and coffee milk powder were also included.

Lunch: A handful of homemade dried fish (cod) by Kreutzmann with aromatics, 6 strips of homemade beef jerky by my beloved Marie Lundblad (<3), 3 slices of smoked reindeer, 2 slices of reindeer salami, 2 slices of rye bread for the first 3 days, and 3 pieces of rye crispbread for the last 3 days.

Dinner: Freeze-dried dinners from Blå band (I bought them on Outnorth.dk, but they can also be purchased in local stores up here).

All-day Snacks: A small handful of salted almonds and a small handful of Hitmix (candy), cup soup sticks, tea, and coffee.

I portioned everything and placed them in daily bags (everything I need for day 1 in one bag, day 2 in another, and so on).

I didn’t have enough coffee, but luckily, Evi did, so there was enough for both of us, and she also brought a lot of delicious treats, from candy and fig rolls to chocolate and giant chocolate turtles J.

Clothing

I wore shorts, running leggings, a sports bra, a thin merino wool sweater, a fleece jacket, and my hiking boots when we left Kangerlussuaq. As the sun shone from an almost cloudless sky, we quickly shed the jacket, and the following days were spent in small shorts and a sports bra—anything else was too hot.

The spare clothing included comfortable leggings, a comfortable sports bra, underwear, a merino wool sweater, dry socks, and Skechers shoes (which we would use for river crossings).

I brought 5 pairs of hiking socks and am really glad I did. For the first 3 days, I reused 2 pairs (hung to dry during the trek and washed when we reached the huts) and switched them out for clean ones for the last 3 days.

We were advised to bring rubber boots by someone who had just completed the route. So, last minute before Torrak Fashion closed on Friday, the day before we flew, Evi and I rushed down and bought tall rubber boots (Magdaline already had some). It was the best decision we made, completely lifesavers J.

My backpack weighed 17 kg.