Busy weekend...

...and likely to stay so for a few days, as I continue to do backstory research for my new project when I'm not working or being Dad.

In the course of my research, I came across the name Borge Ousland, and some information on trips he made in Antarctica in the mid to late 90's...including a solo trek. Amazing. And it reminded me that I'm a couple days behind on the Crazy Arctic Guy Update...the walking trip across the Arctic he's in the midst of with Mike Horn. In my partial defense, they've been less-than-daily with the uptades, as well.

Latest:

IS THE BATTLE WITH THE SOUTHERN DRIFT OVER? (Day 20)
...Fri, 10 Feb 2006 // 17:24

Quote of the Day:
'It's really important to keep our clothing and equipment free of ice and snow, and frost from condensing sweat. Each evening in our tent, we take more than an hour to brush it off of our mittens, our anoraks and face protection...'

DATA LOG (9.2.06)
Latest position: N82°17'36' E106°06'
Distance to go: 861km
Temperature: -36°C

After 19 days of walking on the sea ice, and still with 861km to go out of 1000, things seem to be finally looking up for Mike Horn and Borge Ousland in their quest to be the first men to walk to the North Pole (unassisted) in the sunless winter months...

Until the last few days, the icecap they are walking across had been drifting south taking them further away from the North Pole - a bit like walking on a treadmill that is sometimes going forward but then occasionally slips into reverse! It is proving extremely difficult for the two adventurers to gain ground towards their goal as they get pushed in the opposite direction. Not only are they dealing with the demoralising effects of such slow and frustrating progress but also with broken ice that reveal open tracts of icy water that can only be crossed one way - by getting into a survival suit and swimming across, floating their sledges behind. Temperatures reaching as low as -37°C are the kind of temperatures where hands without gloves would freeze within minutes:

'It's really important to keep our clothing and equipment free of ice and snow, and frost from condensing sweat. Each evening in our tent, we take more than an hour to brush it off of our mittens, our anoraks and face protection. That is vital, really. Especially the mittens, because otherwise they would quickly become icy cold and very dangerous to use...'Temperatures as extreme as -37°C pose considerable danger to the human body and all skin must be covered with masks worn to prevent hypothermia and frostbite.

In a previous expedition, Mike was very close to losing three fingers - he removed a glove and stopped for 45 seconds to re-tie a bootlace, a decision he did not take lightly as he knew what the repercussions might be. And his greatest fears were soon realised, six hours later when he took off his glove his fingers had turned to 'meat you take out of the freezer'. Frostbite had completely cut off circulation and Mike had to go back to Switzerland for surgery, where doctors removed the top of his three fingers.The extremes of the conditions Mike and Borge are experiencing are difficult to convey, especially in the permanent winter darkness that surrounds them. But they are both experienced adventurers and know what it takes to survive these Arctic elements. And things are improving if not in temperature, then at least in the direction they are going. The pair have approximately 52 days of food remaining and in less than 39 days the sun will rise over the horizon for the first time this year in this part of the world.

EMAIL FROM BORGE (9.2.06):"It's been just as cold as yesterday. We had to set up camp and retreat into the warmth of our tent after Mike started having problems with his fingers. I have lent him my Norwegian woollen mittens, and hopefully that will help. The coldness is a challenge, of course, but all in all we're managing well. It's really important to keep our clothing and equipment free of ice and snow, and frost from condensing sweat. Each evening in our tent, we take more than an hour to brush it off of our mittens, our anoraks and face protection. That is vital, really. Especially the mittens, because otherwise they would quickly become icy cold and very dangerous to use. We walked through heavy block ice most of today as well, after crossing a fairly open stretch early this morning. The ice drift is helping us for a change, pushing us northwards - and that is fantastic! According to the weather report, we can expect at least a few days more of this. We need every extra kilometre we can get. Today we walked 12 km, and adding 4 km drift, Mike and I are now 861 km from the North Pole. All is well, except for my friend's hands. We're hoping for slightly milder weather, because our bodies really notice temperatures below -30°C."

'It's really important to keep our clothing and equipment free of ice and snow, and frost from condensing sweat. Each evening in our tent, we take more than an hour to brush it off of our mittens, our anoraks and face protection. That is vital, really. Especially the mittens, because otherwise they would quickly become icy cold and very dangerous to use...'

DAY 21: PICKING UP SPEED AT LAST!
...Sat, 11 Feb 2006 // 17:05

Quote of the Day:
'Would love to send you some photos but with this temperature it is not only the hands that don't want to work but also the equipment - everything tends to stop working around - 40°C...'

DATA LOG
Latest position: N82°38'32' E105°35'10'
Temperature: -36°C

Mike calls at 15h30 sounding very happy: 'We had a great day. We walked our average 9.5 hours and advanced 17 kms. The winds have calmed down and are now from the North East. We have unfortunately stopped our northward drift for the time being, but this is okay as long as we are not drifting southwards!!!It's now exactly three weeks that we have been walking, and as we expected on the 82°latitude, the ice is finally getting better. There is still a lot of pack ice but we are managing to find our way around it rather than having to go over it. We are also coming across some open areas. After these few days of very cold weather the leads are completely frozen and are solid enough to walk over without the fear of breaking through. Also with the more food we eat and the more fuel we burn our sledges are also slowly but surely getting lighter. We are now beginning to see more during the day. There are several hours of twilight in the middle of the day, and the moon is almost full. Behind us is a magnificent glow on the horizon, which unfortunately, we are walking away from. We are beginning to distinguish the contours and contrasts in the ice well enough to choose a good path.

My fingers are pretty painful in this extreme cold and are my main preoccupation at this time. I have changed my gloves, am taking aspirin daily to thin the blood and an occasional vasodilator to help get the blood circulating. This seems to being helping for now. Would love to send you some photos but with this temperature it is not only the hands that don't want to work but also the equipment. Everything tends to stop working around - 40°C.

I'll have to keep you up to date with my phonecalls for the time being. Luckily the phone works still!

DAY 23: HEAVY PACK ICE YET AGAIN!
Mon, 13 Feb 2006 // 14:58

Quote of the Day:
'The sledges are slowly getting lighter and we are certainly noticing the difference but unfortunately they are also sticking to the snow today. Even on the downhill they are not slipping...'

DATA LOG
Latest position: N82°57'50' E104°53'10'
Distance to go: 786km
Temperature: around -30°C

TOUGH DAY HAULING 120KG SLEDGES OVER BLOCKS OF ICE...Mike and Borge experienced slightly warmer temperatures throughout the day (-28°C in the morning dropping to -35°C in the evening) and with virtually little to no winds. This meant that the conditions were a lot less harsh than their previous days.

Heavy pack ice once again encumbered their path and no getting around it this time! They struggled with their heavy sledges (around 120kgs each) hauling them over the blocks of ice the entire day.'

The sledges are slowly getting lighter and we are certainly noticing the difference but unfortunately they are also sticking to the snow today. Even on the downhill they are not slipping!

We have walked right into a compression zone, which seems to last for as far as the eye can see. We're hoping to move out of this vast area of pack ice soon because it really does slow down our progress a lot. That's why we only managed to move 14 km today. We are well but are both tired. If things continue like this we'll be able to take a rest day in 5 days time, which will be our second since the beginning of the expedition.

Borge's taking medicine for his knees and me vasodilators for my hands. I have a little bit of frost nip on my fingers, which is pretty normal under these circumstances. My sore hands do tend to hold me back somewhat because I am unable to carry my skis. This means I may need to double track to recuperate equipment on the other side of the blocks of ice. Our position today is N82°57'50" and E 104°53'10". We are getting closer to the 83rd latitude and are 786kms from the North Pole! It's getting lighter and lighter. Just think, in a about 3 or 4 more days we might even be able to turn our headlights off for an hour!!'

Yesterday was a record breaking day for the walking duo...advanced 20kms - our record yet!!We stopped at N82°49'10' E105°10'25' which means we have 802 kms to go until we arrive at the North Pole. It's great to see that we are gradually getting closer to the Pole. We'll sleep this evening and expect we will drift 2 km north throughout the night. Sleeping is virtually impossible in these temperatures but at least we'll have more peace of mind tonight!"