SAMAYA x SÉBASTIEN VARLET
DISCOVERING NEW FACES IN SVALBARD
In May 2023, Sébastien Varlet flew to Svalbard, a land made of blue and white, in search of pristine faces for his upcoming film, which will be released in festivals this autumn. For Samaya, he looks back on this month spent far from everything, battling the cold and carving new lines.
Sébastien Varlet: We left with some friends for Svalbard, in search of new lines, new mountains. We were really drawn to this place, which is truly beautiful, where there is only white and blue. It’s a project we developed over 4-5 months before leaving, scouting the places we could go based on snow conditions and accessibility. We decided to head toward the Fridtjovbreen glacier, where we got in touch with local guides who explained all the risks and dangers of the area.
SV: We had quite a few things to take into account. First, the cold. The average was between -15°C and -20°C, so we had to ensure we were well-protected from the wind to avoid frostbite. And then there’s the polar bear. That’s a super important element, because you’re in their territory and you don’t want to run into one. In our planning, we knew we had 23 days of good weather. But the weather remains very uncertain; it changes all the time. We had a favorable window, so we decided to head out for 6 days of autonomy. We had defined the slopes we wanted to ride, the mountains where we wanted to go, using maps. We were very inspired by photos and aerial views. We went to see lines that no one had ever skied before.
SV: These are slopes that are quite steep and where a fall can lead to injury, and you don’t want to get injured there. We had wind, ice, and cold constraints, and everything went very well.
SV: Partly. We had chosen a first line facing the ocean, very pretty, completely frozen because it was highly exposed to the wind. After that beautiful line, we set up camp right next to what we wanted to ride the next day. We set up our tents on a glacier, about forty-five minutes from the coast, far from the polar bears. It took a lot of energy to set up camp because it was very, very cold. We put all our things inside our sleeping bags so they wouldn’t freeze. After a very cold night and doing rounds around the camp to make sure no bears were approaching, we followed up with the second day and the most beautiful face of the trip. We returned at midnight to ride in the middle of mountains turning a golden hue. On the third day, we set out for the face we absolutely wanted to ride for the film. We waited for the right light, but unfortunately, the clouds started to roll in, bad weather was coming, so we decided to turn back. A few days later, when the weather was favorable again, we tried to go back, but 60 centimeters of fresh snow had fallen, which implied a high avalanche risk, so we didn't go for it.
SV: Why not! We know we made the right decision. In any case, we were really happy to be in the middle of those magnificent mountains and to have been able to trace some beautiful lines. It’s an atypical destination, and it’s the first time we’ve brought back "big mountain skiing" footage from a place like this.
