Private Mads Hansen acknowledges that it can get lonely surrounded by nothing but mountains, drifting ice and a vast polar sea.
One of three Danish soldiers permanently stationed at a former mining outpost called Mestersvig on the desolate coast of eastern Greenland, his role includes patching roofs ripped away by storms, plowing back meter-high snowdrifts, training sled dogs for their next patrol, or stitching them up after a fight.
“You get used to it,” he said while showing off the base’s snowplows, a radio and handgun hanging from his belt.
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