Basejumper.com - archive

Hi all,

For anyone who may be interested . . .

You've heard about it, seen the pictures, read the stories, and always wanted to go. Now it is within your reach.

The Polar Safari Baffin Base Expedition is a 2 week base jumping trip to the massive cliffs of Sam Ford Fjord on the north east coast of Baffin Island. Renowned for its immense sheer walls and the variety of 3000 foot exit points, Sam Ford Fjord is a base jumper’s paradise.

The trip involves:
- A 14 day expedition to one of the most beautiful places in the world
- Camping on the ice of Sam Ford Fjord for 10 days, at the foot of multiple 2000 foot cliffs
- 20+ jumps planned
- 10+ major cliffs to jump, from 1500 feet up to 5000 feet
- A Jet Ranger helicopter to transport jumpers to the top of the cliffs

If anyone wants more information, check out the website at:

http://www.polarsafari.com/baffinbase/index.htm

Ok. Don't hide the price. How much?

It wasn't hidden, it was just conveniently on the last page of the site!

$8250 US all inclusive from Montreal, Canada. Get yourself there, and the trip includes pretty much everything else: all transportation, accommodation, meals, expedition and camping supplies, even most arctic clothing is provided so you don't need to go out and spend a fortune on clothes you will only need once in your life.

The goal is to provide you everything that you need to get to Sam Ford Fjord and look after you while you are there. And with the helicopter to get you to the tops of the cliffs, all you need to do is choose your exit point, and step over the edge.

You always find things the last place you look...

... unless you give up first.

so it should be on the front page then?

I don't know. It might be better the way it is, getting people excited first. That's a substantial amount of money.

Man, I'd love to buy a ticket for my boyfriend. We're going to have to sell a LOT more websites before I can afford that gift. Maybe in a few years...

holy crap! that is gorgeous! too bad i only have 2 base jumps and no money. oh, well.

I lived on the nothern tip of Baffin for 2 years

It is beautifull, but so remote! lol

don't worry, there's always next year

Two years!

Please tell me that in all that time, you took the opportunity to go flik something nearby!

You crazy? What for you jump off them cliffs?

Sorry, I dont have the gonads

How far away is the nearest hospital? :-|

you wont need one.. just the climb in thouse conditions could kill anyone..

Hat´s off for thouse who did it and thouse who will... im too lazy and i really hate cold... but a REAL beautyful place

wow... I never though I'd have usefull info to share in this forum! lol

Iqualuit (capital of the Nunavut territory), about 800 km.

no shit. well, i guess it's BYOPK then.

(bring your own pain killers)

That and BYOOS

Bring Your Own Orthopedic Surgeon

I hope you are not planning on needing one!

There's a Health Center in Clyde River, the town we fly into on Baffin, which is just out on the coast from where we are in the fjord.

The closest full service hospital is in Iqaluit, which is just a short fight from Clyde River.

I hope we never need to see either of them.

It's not IF, but WHEN in the sport of BASE jumping. Planning for worst case scenarios always pays off...

Hey Jason,

Absolutely, I completely agree. As I said, I "HOPE" we never need to see either of them.

As I mentioned in my response to you on BLiNC, rescue and evac plans are part of the organization of this expedition. Somebody asked the question, I was just trying to give the answer in a more positive light.

I'm a bit surprised its such a big deal.

I worked in a mine there. Allthought you never want injuries at work, and that mine had quite a good safety record, shit still hapens, and injuries in mining operations can be fairly big too (I think the same range as in BASE jumping or Skydiving).

Having a nurse and a health center there and a fairly short flight to Iqualuit was not such a big issue.

I'm sure some other important jump sites around the world arent that close to hospitals either.

That's quite a bit more cash than I had guessed, I was thinking around $5500. Is that $8250 canadian? hehe... I will still consider it, it is quite an adventure, and I'll save $200 on food for the week I'm gone. I read you want 50 jumps for this, I only have 29 at the moment, but am going to moab in Feb to do at least another 20. Maybe a few more inbetween now and then, gonna get my new rig this week!
Troy

Hey Troy,

I hear ya, it's a bit pricey, but Baffin is a pretty expensive place to get to. If one were to try and organize to go on their own, they'd be looking at more than the $5500 range just to get there, let alone equipment, supplies, Inuit Guides (who aren't cheap) It would push $8000 US going solo. And then you gotta hike to the top.

The beauty of this expedition is the helicopter. Gotta love rides to the top of 4000 foot sheer walls. Where else are you gonna have the chance to jump 10 different big walls in 10 days without having to hike them all!

Can't wait myself, hope to see you along.

Jonathan

Edited for spelling

You know how sticker shock works, it only remains on your mind until you're having fun with your new toy (or adventure) I am going to see if it fits into my schedule/budget. I wanted to go to KL, but since they require 100, I'll have to wait on that, so that'll free up some cash.
I am not a purist, I just want to get good at it, pick my sites, and jump the big time sites that make the papers (beautiful places).
Baffin is on my list!

Oh my god! I just crapped my pants (several times) looking at those pictures. Beautiful. Damn, I wish I was a trust fund kid.

I dont know about the crap in my pants but I really loved scoping those pics. What a beautiful place, looks every bit as spiritual as Norway. One question, is this a less popular BASE site simply because accessibility is so tough? I will love to make a jump there someday.

ManBird,

I apologize for the soiling! Tell you what, send me the receipt for the dry cleaning bill, and I'll see if we can get that taken off the expedition price for ya!

andy2,

Yeah, accessibility is the basic issue. Not for the cliffs themselves, but just for the region. It is extremely expensive just to get to Baffin Island and out into the fjords. Once you are there though, it's your playground. Some of the cliffs like are a couple of hours of easy hiking. Others require either a heli, or serious, serious advanced rock climbing.

Hope that answers your question

Jonathan

definitely man, thanks, do much kayaking up in that area?

No site naming dude.

Hey-

This looks like a great trip, I checked out the website but didn't see any information on the organizers. Is it somewhere on the site and I just missed it?

Thanks.

Hey SkyFlyer,

Here's a copy of my response to a similar question asked on BLiNC:

-------------------------------

To answer your question, and for anyone else who would like to know...

The expedition is being run by a company called Polar Safari (http://www.polarsafari.com), a division of SkyCorp (http://www.skycorp.ca). They have been organizing high end Canadian Arctic expeditions for the last 5 years and are very experienced in taking people to remote environments. Feel free to check out the websites for more info.

As for the base jumping side of things, this is what the adventure tourism industry would call a “self-guided” trip. The Polar Safari Team are not base jumpers themselves.

The goal of the Polar Safari Baffin Base Expedition is to provide experienced base jumpers with absolutely everything that they need to get themselves to the various different exit points on Baffin Island. This includes looking after all the transportation, all accommodations, all camping and expedition supplies, tents, sleeping bags, cooking supplies and nice hot meals, Inuit guides, radios, satellite weather reports, rescue and evac procedures if need be, and even most arctic clothing. You will be taken up to Sam Ford Fjord and looked after while you are there. You will be given complete details on numerous jumpable cliffs, some that have been jumped previously, and some that are waiting for someone to be the first to step off. There will even be a helicopter to take you to the top of the cliffs.

All you will need to do is choose your exit point and step off.

The organizers are prepared to deal with inexperience on arctic expeditions, but they are not guiding people on the specific sport of base jumping. Polar Safari’s expertise lies in organizing and financing the expedition.

As for my personal involvement, I’m a base jumper who happens to work part-time for the parent company, SkyCorp. I’ve given advice on some of the details of the trip, and am helping to get the word out. And I also happen to be the first person registered to go!

Any other questions, feel free to ask!

------------------------------

If you want more info on the Polar Safari company, feel free to email them at info@polarsafari.com

Jonathan