28/3/2007

A North Wales Police detective will test his survival and mountaineering skills to the limit when he sets out to be one of the first people to conquer a mountain range in Arctic North East Greenland.

Detective Inspector Gerwyn Lloyd will be heading off to Dronning Louise Land where he and a team of up to six people will be heading for uncharted territory by being the first to climb in the so called Fairy Tale Mountains.

The journey to conquer Dronning Louise Land will not only be a team challenge for the Caernarfon based officer and his colleagues from the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation but will also have important scientific aims.

The blue ice fields on the Western side of the area have been identified as a possible collecting ground for meteorites that fall further inland.

Due to the topography, the deposits are carried East by the icecap and, when the icecap collides with the mountains, are deposited on the Western side of Dronning Louise Land. On reaching the area Gerwyn and the team plan to collect samples of the deposits they discover for scientists in Denmark who have expressed great interest in the expedition.

"It is very exciting stuff," said Gerwyn, "there is no doubt that the climate and the challenge we face will push our skills to the limit. It is such a remote area that if anyone sustains an injury we will have to deal with it ourselves with little possibility of immediate external help, so all our planning and preparation will have to be spot on."

The team will also have to be alert to other dangers in the environment posed not only by the severe weather but by polar bears and Musk Ox.

Unlike three other members of the Ogwen Valley MRT, Gerwyn (who is also a member) has never set foot on Greenland but training for the expedition is already well-underway.

In a bid to develop their mountaineering, self rescue and expedition skills members of the MRT make frequent trips to Scotland to train while others have spent time in Greenland and Denali in Alaska.

"Our aim when we reach Greenland is to climb beyond the 77th latitude, the Northern end of Dronning Louise Land" added Gerwyn. "We are confident and have set ourselves three weeks on the ice to achieve this but we know that it will be a tough task."

With Global warming such an important issue, the expedition team will also be able to witness the effects firsthand and report back to the scientists in Denmark.

Everything now is set for the team to travel out to Greenland in mid May when they will fly from the UK to Reykjavik and on to Constable Pynt on the East coast of Greenland before taking two flights in a ski equipped Twin Otter to reach Dronning Louise Land.

Meantime, the only uphill struggle they have is funding the full cost of the expedition as each of the team has to find a considerable amount of money to cover the cost of the expedition.

Sponsorship is being sought by the team and they would welcome any offers from companies or individuals who would like to support them in their bid.