Mealy Range Ski Traverse, Southern Labrador. Dartmouth student Dean Engle (recipient of an American Alpine Club Climbing Fellowship grant) organized our team of Dave McIndoe, Joe Catarini and me to conduct the first-known ski traverse of the Mealy Range, low peaks running along the lower edge of Lake Melville. We remained faithful to the traditional winter-camping methods of the Labrador fur-trapper. We flew to Goose Bay and were grounded for several days. Our Labrador Air single-otter plane got off on March 14 and set us down on a lake in the eastern-central Mealies. We headed southwest for eight days within lake and river valleys. Six feet of snow covered the ledgy, sparsely vegetated landscape. Excellent weather (sunny; no wind; -30° F at night and 30° F in the daytime) permitted speedy travel. Minor difficulties were encountered while navigating our sledges through the steep, winding river gorge down to the edge of Lake Melville. The final four days along the lake’s edge were monotonous. We reached Goose Bay on March 25 after covering 90 miles in twelve days.

Gregory Knoettner, Yale Mountaineering Club