Crazy Arctic Guy: While I Was Out Cold

Mike's been doing pretty well in the time since I've been buried in Bronchitis Meds. The highlights:

DAY 39: PAST HALFWAY MARK - 495KM TO GO...
Wed, 1 Mar 2006 // 16:55

DATA LOG
Latest position: N85°33'37' E97°40'33'
Distance to go: 495km
Ice drift: Northwards
Ice conditions: Heavy pack ice
Temperature: -31°C

'We've basically reached the halfway mark of the expedition in distance. Although we spent 40 days reaching 500km, we expect another 30 days to end the expedition. The days are becoming much lighter, the ice conditions have improved. Although we've been battling with a lot of pack ice today, we made reasonably good progress.

DAY 40: 11 HOURS OF DIFFICULT SKI REPAIRS
Thu, 2 Mar 2006 // 17:07

DATA LOG 1/3/06
Latest position : N85°33'37' E97°40'33'
Distance to go: approx 495km
(no position received today, may have changed slightly due to drift)

We're going to have to have a serious word with our ski producer when we get back. These skis are clearly not what they're made out to be and not what we ordered. It looks like they've just given us ordinary skis, and not the reinforced ones that we were promised.

DAY 41: ON THE MOVE AGAIN!
Fri, 3 Mar 2006 // 16:38

DATA LOG
Latest position : N85°47'34' E92°
Distance to go: 469km
Temperature: -35°C
Days of food left: 28
Average daily distance required: 17km (to complete expedition)

'Now we're on the move again! We've reached N85°47'34" E92°, after a day with good ice conditions. We walked 23 km. We encountered a couple of open leads today, but managed to cross them without having to swim. I'm thankful for that, because temperatures have dropped to -35°C. I can promise you that you really notice the difference between 30 and 35 below - not so much when we're out walking, but when we're trying to do things inside the tent. Simple tasks can be complicated by the extreme cold of metal surfaces; even talking on the satellite phone is difficult.