Last minute packing on the day of departure.

Thawing hydraulics and breaks before taking off. We had to wait for it to warm up to -30ºF before our bush pilot (Hap) would fly.

Hour and a half flight from Thompson with 1800 pounds of gear in tow.

The only thing you see for the hour and a half flight - pure wilderness.

We only had about 10 minutes to unload our gear before the plane started freezing up.

Scott and I surrounded by 1800 pounds of supplies.

Waving goodbye to the last person we would see for the next 4 months.

A very powerful moment. Watching the plane disappear and realizing we are truly alone. The silence after was oddly deafening to ears so accustomed to sound.

We anticipated breaking a snowshoe trail would take 4 hours. Four hours later we were only halfway there.

Arriving at the river with no cabin in site.

Searching for another 2 hours before finally succumbing to the cold, exhaustion, dehydration, and hunger.

Surviving our first night in a makeshift bivouac in temperatures exceeding -40ºF. This photo was taken 4 months after that first night.

Uncertain if we'd survive through that first night, the sunrise was an incredible sight.

We hiked back to the lake and all of our gear to regroup. We set up a canvas tent and began melting snow. We were extremely dehydrated at this point.

A tent fire prevented us from hydrating. Our only source of warmth was our frustration. Our tent was beaten by the wind being so exposed on the frozen lake.

Day 3. Back to the river with a more modern tent. Unfortunately at -30ºF the elastic cords holding the poles together loose their elasticity and we were forced to remove our gloves and cut each shock cord free from the poles.

Our view from inside the tent - looking directly at our bivouac which easily could (and probably should) have been our final resting spot.

A Coleman one-burner backpacking stove saved our lives. We finally had heat, food, and water. For the first time we could shed some of our heavy winter gear.

That evening was spent reviewing the maps and trying to determine where we were and where the cabin was located.

Day 4. Waking up in the morning only to discover Scott had frostbite. Now a 2 man team is cut down to 1 as we can't risk refreezing his frozen extremities. I returned to the lake to retrieve more food and medical supplies.

Day 5. I found a stand of huge spruce trees a mile upstream. Despite the risk, I decided to climb and to see if any landmarks were visible. I spotted this tiny lake which no one had ever mentioned. If the lake was on our map, I'd be able to locate our position.

Day 6. Sure enough, we located the lake on the map let us know were about a mile upstream from the cabins location. The following morning I found it. After inspecting everything, I took this photo before heading back to our tent camp. Now our adventure could actually begin.