While the icebreaker threaded its way through the Bellott Strait, we took the helicopter aloft to survey the situation.

The extreme wilderness landscapes of the Arctic present striking and unfamiliar vistas to new visitors. This view of Bellott Strait shows it crowded with large ice floes.

Ordinarily this route is completely ice-locked and frozen over in October. While we circled above in the helicopter, Captain Klebert and his bridge crew aboard the Louis were able to thread their way through the center of the strait without the least hindrance by ice. We returned to the ship struck by the dramatic change now occurring in the Arctic.