Thursday 15th August. Day 1. The hike begins

It wasn't long after we had emerged from our tents that we were visited by one of the guys who had spoken to us the previous day. He was called Grant.  A nice chap who was clearly very knowledgeable about kit and assumed that we were less knowledgeable and in desperate need of his wisdom. A good 70% of what he said seemed to be a critique of our kit in comparison to his own. I had made the conscious decision that it was worth coming across as somewhat rude if it meant that I could crack on with sorting out my own breakfast, and my own kit in preparation for starting the hike.  Clearly Richard had made the same decision. Grant spoke at us for a while and then paused as if expecting a response.  There was none. I felt bad for not engaging him in conversation but I wanted to be absolutely sure that I had packed everything I needed and that anything I didn't need was packed in a small bag a locked in one of the lockers at the airport.  This had to be my priority.  So, if you are reading this Grant, it was great to chat to you and I'm sorry for ignoring you on the Thursday morning.  I'm sure, as a fellow trekker, he understands.
A quick visit to the loo at the airport saw me surrounded by that morning's new arrivals.  This seemed to included a small but significantly vocal group of Americans wearing their red-neck uniforms of Real Tree cammo. They had clearly come to shoot stuff. "we can go to the store to buy more ammo" said one particularly rotund member of the group. Either they were bad shots or they were here to kill a lot of stuff. Now, I appreciate that describing one of a group of American Red-neck hunters as rotund does not narrow down the choices much.  Rotundity is clearly a relative construct and the majority of the group would clearly fit that description.  However, by not adding any further description I hope to avoid being singled out one specific mammal slaughtering potential nutter.    Perhaps there was some hitherto undiscovered mammal which they were hell-bent on placing on the endangered or, if lucky, the newly extinct list.  
By about 11.30am we had donned our packs each weighing about 30kilos and had made a start on the trail. Cutting through the camp site we came across a tarmac road which lead to the Old Camp area of Kangerlussuaq.

Looking back towards Old Camp and the air port.

Heading up the hill leading away from Kangerlussuaq

The Old Camp was the initial settlement set up to house the workers who built the original airstrip. This is now a cluster of ramshackle buildings which includes the youth hostel.  The road took us through the Old Camp and as we left the settlement of Kangerlussuaq behind the road climbed gently and turned slightly north and away from the fjord on whose banks the settlement of Kangerlussuaq is built.  The road is followed passed a couple of small lakes before coming to a junction situated above a small harbour.  Here our route turns right onto a wide dirt track.  We are now heading North passed a small settlement which houses some of the workers from the harbour and further away from the fjord.  This small settlement consists of about ten dwellings, but there is no sign to announce its name nor is it named on the map.

The harbour as seen from the trail.

The track steepens as it reaches an even smaller settlement called Kelly Ville.  This is a cluster of dwellings which seem to be connected to the atmospheric research station which is a huge dish pointing straight up into the sky.  It's the sort of structure which would look more at home as the abode of some James Bond villain. The sign welcomes you to Kellyville and proclaims a population of 7 on the day we walked through.

The atmosphere research station at Kellyville.

The 'Papps of Kellyville'

In the area of Kellyville there are two large stone mounts on the right hand side of the track.  These have been painted and one can't help thinking that their resemblance to two large breasts is deliberate.

The sign welcoming people to Kellyville.

The track continues to climb where some huge concrete blocks can be seen.  On closer inspection, it is clear that these are the enormous anchor blocks for a long since dismantled aerial mast.  This is where the path leaves the dusty dirt track, this is where the Arctic Circle Trail officially starts. We stopped for lunch on one of the huge concrete anchor blocks.

The first cairn.

   

Me by the first cairn.

The caravan camping hut.

From the echo of the aerial mast, the path drops down into a valley below Mt Evans and skirts the southern edge of an unnamed lake.  The official start of the trail is marked with a cairn painted with what will become the very familiar red half circle of the Arctic Circle Trail. 

The path climbs gently for a short period before dropping down to the shore line of a lake called Hundesco.  On the southern edge of this lake we find the first of our camping huts which consists of a bastardised caravan which looks as though it has had a couple of garden shed stuck to the sides of it.  It has an almost post apocalyptic appearance. I almost expected to be greeted by some long lost hippy with crazy eyes smoking dope and expressing even crazier notions of alien abductions and government cover ups. The reality was somewhat less dramatic.

The caravan camping hut and the Hundesco lake.

However, given the long since disconnected switched and dials, it did look as though this eclectic outpost may have been established by the US military.  However, it's true original purpose is not clear.  There is a loo with a view (long drop style) in another small shed.  I can highly recommend "going" with the door open.  More light and you get a great view. The water in this lake is a bit salty but seemed ok to drink.  The weather for the last week or so had apparently been unusually warm which had had an impact on the temperature of the water in the lake.  As such it was more than warm enough for a much needed bath.  We were please with our progress today and decided to stay the night in the caravan and to try and make an early start in the morning.  We ate heartily this evening, partly because we were hungry but also in a determined effort to lighted our loads slightly.  We slept well.

The inside of the caravan.

Panoramic of the Hundesco lake and the caravan.