Indonesian Digital News Archive

Earlier this week the big news surrounding polar exploration was the announcement that Sir Ranulph Fiennes would be attempting a South Pole expedition in the dead of winter, something that has never been accomplished before. But it seems Fiennes isn't the only Brit set to leave his mark on polar history next year, ultra-runner Tim Williamson has announced plans to make a solo and unsupported round-trip journey to and from the North Pole. Considered by many to be the last great polar adventure that to be completed.

Describing Tim's adventure as a round trip to the North Pole and back simply doesn't do it justice. He has so much more than that planned. The entire journey is expected to cover approximately 2200 miles (3540 km) beginning and ending in civilization. That means he doesn't plan to charter a plane to fly him out to a starting point, but will instead embark on January 13, 2013 directly from Resolute Bay in Canada. Tim expect to return to Resolute just 100-120 days later, which is an incredibly fast time. Even more impressive, he plans on completing the expedition without the use of skis.

In a press release I received earlier in the day Tim is quoted as saying "The majority fail because they aren’t built for walking long distances. This is the thing I’m specially built for. The North Pole holds a great amount of wonder to me, and as an ultrarunner, it is the ultimate challenge."

For anyone who understand the logistics of travel in the Arctic and the herculean task of getting to the North Pole, this will be one epic journey to watch unfold. Traveling across the ice and snow without skis, while dragging all of his gear, food and supplies behind him on a sledge is not going to be easy, even for an endurance athlete. Add to the fact that he's going in the dead of winter, when there is no daylight, and you begin to get a sense of challenges that Tim will face. But the extreme cold at that time of the year will also help to keep the pack ice in place and he could possibly face fewer open leads of water along the way.

I've said more than once in the past few years that the days of traveling to the North Pole on foot may be coming to an end soon. Climate change is making that a very dicey proposition to say the least. It'll be interesting to see an ultra-fit and fast runner give it a go early next year, as Tim's approach is certainly a unique one. I'd hasten to bet he's doing it on a budget that is fraction of what Sir Ran is using to go to the South Pole and back. One thing is for sure, 2013 is going to be an interesting year for polar explorers.

Tim's expedition will be coordinated through DiscoverALifeLessOrdinary.com, in conjunction with Chillisauce.co.uk/.

Following yesterday's announcement that Sir Ranulph Fiennes would be attempting an Antarctic journey to the South Pole in the dead of winter, the BBC today asks what other adventures remain undone? The article laments the fact that satellite imaging and communications technology have taken some of the mystery out of exploration and that in the 21st century most of the remote places of our planet have been visited. Still, they do manage to come up with a list of adventures that have yet to be accomplished.

Some of the suggestions include a climb up Gangkhar Puensum in Bhutan. That 7570 meter (24,835 ft) peak holds the distinction of being the tallest unclimbed mountain in the world. The problem is, climbing ins forbidden on that mountain as the people of Bhutan see it as sacred. The BBC does suggest looking for unclimbed peaks in western China and Tibet however, where plenty of first ascents can still be made. They also note that K2, Makalu and Kangchenjunga have never been skied, although I'd say climbing K2 in winter should sit high on the list of big adventures yet to be done.

The BBC suggests that no one has gone to the North Pole in the dead of winter, but to that I'd say they are wrong. Back in 2006, Mike Horn and Borge Ousland made that journey on foot and without support. It is my belief (as well as that of some polar explorers that I've spoken to) that a trek to the North Pole will become increasingly rare in the years ahead as climate changes makes that journey a more difficult proposition.

According to the article, there are a number of "firsts" that can still be accomplished for the adventurous swimmer. For example, no one has completed a swim across the Pacific, although Ben Lecomte is planning on giving it a try. They also list the Straits of Hormuz, Gulf of Aqaba and Le Perouse Strait as all looking for their first swim as well. Perhaps the ocean depths are the next big area for exploration, as much of those areas have yet to be mapped. That requires a great deal of preparation, technology and planning and is not unlike traveling into space.

I thought this was an interesting article although I am of the mind that there are still plenty of adventurous things to do out int his wide world that we live on. The problem is, there is a perception amongst many that unless you're taking on the tallest or largest target, it really isn't that impressive. With that I definitely disagree. Besides, adventure is a very personal thing and it means something different to all of us. Finding our own adventures are what really matters.

Arctic explorer Lonnie Dupree has an impressive resume. Not only has he crossed the Northwest Passage by dogsled in winter, he has also circumnavigated Greenland, visited the North Pole and attempted Denali solo in the heart of winter – twice! In the video below, Lonnie shares footage from his various cold weather adventures, giving us a glimpse of his life on the ice and the expeditions he has taken to the remote places of the world.



25 Years of Arctic Exploration from Lonnie Dupre on Vimeo.

Norwegian explorers Audun Tholfsen and Timo Palo have completed their arctic adventure at last. The two men, whom I've written about a couple of times throughout their journey, arrived at Longyearbyen a few days ago, closing out a 1600km (994 mile) expedition that took 72 days to finish.

The two men launched their excursion on April 23, starting at 90ºN and heading south towards Svalbard. Using skis and kayaks they crossed vast open areas of ice and ocean, enduring incredibly bad weather, daunting surface conditions and the occasional polar bear while en route.

Audun and Timo estimate that of the 1600 or so kilometers that they covered in their journey about 400km (248 miles) of that was done in a kayak. The rest of the time they were on skis and pulling their gear, including the kayaks, behind them. That's a lot of miles to cover on foot in some of the toughest conditions on the planet.

Now that they've been back for a few days the two men report that they are in good physical condition and recovering nicely from the challenges of the expedition. They say that they've missed hot showers and pizza the most, and I suspect that they are enjoying both right now. They promise to share more information on their adventure once they've had a chance to rest and settle in, so be sure to watch their website for any future updates.

Congrats to both Audun and Timo on a job well done. Those pizzas and hot showers have been well earned mates.

It has been over a month since I posted an update on the progress of Audun Tholfsen and Timo Palo, the two Norwegian explorers who were dropped off at the North Pole back in April and have been making their way south ever since. The boys have had their struggles over the past weeks, but they continue to make good progress and are slowly, but surely closing in on the finish line at last.

While on their journey, Audun and Timo have traveled by ski and kayak as they make their way towards Longyearbyen, on the island of Svalbard. The entire excursion will cover approximately 1400km (870 miles) once it it completed and will mark the longest and most challenging North Polar expedition of the year by far. As of yesterday the duo were at about 82º30' north latitude, which would put them squarely in the Arctic Ocean. But since the area is still mostly frozen, they continue to use a combinations of skiing and paddling to make progress.

The two explorers have been making periodic updates to their blog in which they share the experiences of their travels. Those experiences have included nasty storms that have lasted for several days, dealing with broken equipment, polar bears, difficult terrain and more. All of those things have made the journey a challenging one, but they are still on track to finish sometime late this month, provided they don't encounter more unexpected challenges.

Its great to see that one of the North Pole expeditions is doing well and continuing forward. It's beginning to look like more expeditions will be starting at 90ºN in the future instead of ending there.