Rickard Gustafsson | Friday, 25 August 2017
69 —- I travelled around in the 69 zone, not quite 71, but still quite far north.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - The 69th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 69 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane, in the Arctic. It crosses the Atlantic Ocean, Europe, Asia and North America, and passes through some of the southern seas of the Arctic Ocean.
The nature here is amazing. It is so beautiful that I forgot to fish sometimes. Just being there and feeling the air, seeing ocean and the mountains. It really moves me. Pictures do not do it justice but give a little idea. I have attached a few pixelated impressions. I hope the beauty come across.
I wrote already a bit about the practical part of the travel preparation - the packing of a motorcycle in particular. I did not go into the details of some of the gadgets I have with me. One gadget is a very interesting one though, and it sparked a lot of interest. A very compact solar panel with a battery included.
It´s called lightsaver and made by US based PowerFilm solar. They offer 2 versions. The standard LightSaver has 1 USB output and a multi-color LED that indicates percent of battery charge. Loaded with 18Ah of power, the LightSaver Max comes in at a mere 1,5 lb in weight. The Max takes the basic functionality of the LightSaver, but increases the battery capacity and adds a high power output for higher draw electronics, such as laptops.
https://www.powerfilmsolar.com/
I have used the standard version now for several weeks and it is working perfect. Very robust and super easy to use. The technology is simply fascinating. Place the “thing” under the sun and you have electricity. Simple as that. I wished there were many many more products like that.
Back to 69 - during the travel I also “met” the Greenpeace ship “Arctic Sunrise” which is on a mission to stop the oil drilling in the arctic. Brave and very dedicated people at Greenpeace.
http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/climate-change/arctic-impacts/
Drilling for more oil - What a crazy, backward, ancient and outdated idea. The planet is warming up, and there is no doubt that burning fossil fuels plays a big role in that.
The other day I sat by the beach, and both me and the lightsaver were collecting energy. I imagined the oil platform which is actually not too far away. While looking at the beautiful nature I felt a tug around my heart. It scares me to think about how greed destroys it all.
So the lightsaver is not only a gadget - It´s a statement. It reminds everybody how easy it actually could be. I want to a world plastered with this type of technology. No roof or other suitable surface should be without. The small gadget shows how easy it could be if we just insist on this type of technology instead of the ancient way.
TZ
