Jan Baalsrud and His Wintertime Arctic Escape

Photo By dokaspar

It almost feels like it’s threatening to snow here in Vancouver, and while other Canadians might say we never get any “real” cold here on the West Coast, it’s sure plenty chilly enough for us at Krakit Vancouver Escape Game. And hey—it’s a wet cold here, all right?

It’s gotten us thinking about people who have been forced to make escape attempts in the dead of winter, into icy banks of snow and freezing cold waters. There is one particular wintertime escape—a story of ingenuity and perseverance—that stands out above all the rest: that of Jan Baalsrud, a Norwegian resistance fighter in World War II. 

After the Germans invaded his home country in 1940, Baalsrud fled Norway, eventually landing in Britain, where he was trained in combat. He and eleven other Company Linge men undertook an operation in early 1943, with the goal of destroying a Nazi control tower in the extremely northerly town of Bardufoss.

To say the least, things did not go as planned.

Baalsrud and company approached the tower by fishing boat (laden with explosives), but they were detected—and forced to bail out into the Arctic waters. Baalsrud was the only soldier to escape the clutches of the Germans. However, he now found himself in enemy-occupied territory, in the depths of winter, in wet clothes, and with no provisions.

He spent two months (two months!) evading capture in the Arctic environment, taking shelter with sympathizers when he could. In his weeks-long escape, Baalsrud suffered frostbite, snow blindness, and more than one self-operation (to alleviate what he thought was blood poisoning and to get rid of several frostbitten toes).

Finally, on April 8, 1943, Baalsrud made it to a resistance-operated house, near the Finland border. But his ordeal was not over: because of German patrols and weather conditions, to avoid detection a sickly Baalsrud was placed outside, in the snow, on a stretcher, for weeks. Then, finally, on May 30, two Sámi reindeer herders smuggled Baalsrud across Finland and into Sweden—neutral territory. 

Following his two-month escape ordeal, Baalsrud spent seven months in a Swedish hospital. Then, he went straight back to the UK to help train other members of the Norwegian resistance.

Though our Nightmare Before Christmas room has a frosty theme, we can assure you it’s nice and toasty inside. Book your freeze-free winter escape at our Vancouver escape rooms here: http://bookeo.com/krakit.