Wow! It's hard to believe that the 2013 North Pole season has ended. We had an incredible group of people from nine different countries make up our five North Pole teams. They were an inspiring crew and together we had a lot of fun. We experienced remarkably good weather despite a 24 hour delay for our two last degree teams and Chinese ski team. Despite the short set back everyone made good progress on the ice.
Our dogsled expedition had the most challenging ice conditions with a lot of water in the first few days that hampered progress. They persevered and managed to put in some long days to make up the miles. Only 2 miles from the Pole they encountered a game-stopping lead that would have prevented them going further BUT with the luck of the Arctic on their side the lead closed before their very eyes. That's good ice karma!
All our team members are now homeward bound and eager to share stories with families and friends. Our guides are wrapping up the season's logistics and will be heading home in the next few days.
Our attention will now turn South towards South Georgia Island and Antarctica. We hope you will continue to follow our blog as we explore "the other half" of the world in the months ahead.
We look forward to traveling together again soon, either by ski, dogsled, ship or "armchair".
Take care,
Your friends at PolarExplorers
Polar bear tracks near the pole. The bears once again have the ice all to themselves. Photo by Mr. Li
Our teams awoke around 9 AM to cloudy skies, blustery winds and the possibility that the weather might prevent a return to Longyearbyen. They were told to leave their tents up until they had confirmation that the plane could in fact make a landing. There was nothing left at Barneo. When the plane did land, the reloading was a bit chaotic as everything, including all our kit, our dogs and the remainder of the Barneo Basecamp, was loaded on to the Antanov for the final flight to Longyearbyen.
When the plane touched down in Spitsbergen everyone was transferred to the Radisson for the final night of the expedition. Everyone enjoyed hot showers (ahhhh!!!!) along with clean clothes, access to internet, phones, etc. A celebration dinner offered (no dehydrated food!) and after dinner drinks gave people the first chance to relax and reflect on their experiences. A good time is being had by all.
The expedition officially ends tomorrow morning but not everyone is going home right away. Some people will be staying on to explore Spitsbergen, while others will begin their homeward journeys.
We will have one more blog posting tomorrow, but in case you don't check back we want to thank you for following all our 2013 North Pole teams. It has been our pleasure sharing their adventures with you.
Our next expedition will be the Shackleton Crossing of South Georgia Island in October 2013. This expedition was just named of of Outside Magazine's 50 Trips of a Lifetime, so be sure to follow along.
It was a marathon day for the dogsledders who managed to get to within 2 miles of the North Pole before hitting what could have been a deal-breaker lead. They searched and searched for a way across and finally found one. They reached the North Pole around 5 PM local time (Norwegian time). Congratulations Dever, Anna, Alex, Cheryl, John, Maher, CP and Nancy! They and had a couple hours to celebrate before the helicopters came to pick everyone up and fly them back to the Barneo Basecamp.
The other two ski teams spent the day not far from the North Pole. Rick and Mei skied back to the North Pole to welcome the dogsledders and help them celebrate their accomplishment.
Now everyone is back at Barneo, which is mostly packed up for the end of the season. There is only a runway and pilot tent left.
The teams plan to fly back to Longyearbyen tomorrow for a final celebration dinner, showers and a well-earned night in a warm bed!
Check back again soon for another update from the teams!
We just received these great pictures from the Last Degree Ski Expedition, taken yesterday during their celebration. Included is another wonderful aerial shot from Keith's kite. Enjoy!
A HUGE congratulations to our two ski teams for reaching the North Pole today. It was another sunny day and ice conditions were good. There is much merriment at the North Pole right now, and less than eight miles away another teams prepares to reach the Pole tomorrow. A quick look at yesterday's photos will show a unique one, an aerial view of camp taken from Keith's kite. The team looks quite small compared to the vast Arctic Ocean! We hope to have more pictures to add soon so be sure to check back.
The Last Degree Ski Team called in by accident, apparently pocket dialing my number (not easy to do on a sat phone). For approximately 45 seconds I listened to what was clearly a great party with a lot of laughing and shouting and even Queen playing in the background. The team has two reasons to celebrate. Not only did they reach the North Pole (!!!)but it also happens to be Usukhbayar's birthday! Happy Birthday Usukhbayar! Finally someone noticed I was on the line and after a good laugh they said they were all well and very happy to be at the North Pole after a six mile ski today.
The Chinese Ski Team also reached the North Pole after traveling approximately three hours. They are very excited to be at 90 degrees and the festivities were in full swing. They spent a while taking pictures then making toasts with PolarExplorer's official cocktail of the North Pole the "Aurora Borealis" (vodka, champagne and snow from precisely 90 degrees North all stirred together). Now they are in tents continuing the celebration. Everyone is happy, healthy and very proud of their accomplishment.
The Last Degree Dogsled Team reported in from N 89.52.6. They were ready to travel a little further but they ran into an east-west lead that they could not find a way around. They expect it to freeze overnight making it possible to reach the pan on the other side. As far as they could see to the north the ice looked good. The team did a great job today logging 9 miles despite several leads. Dever skied most of the day in training for a half Iron Man that she plans to do upon her return. Cheryl and John also put in long hours on the skis. Everyone is doing well and enjoying the Caramella Koala's that Cheryl brought from Australia. They will use all those calories up tomorrow on their final push to the Pole!
The teams continued to make good progress today and both ski teams are within striking distance of the North Pole, despite some close encounters with the Arctic Ocean. They had sunny, clear skies with very light wind.
TheLast Degree Ski Team is at 89.54.203 N, 174.33.100 W. They crossed over the international date line which was exciting. After traveling 3 miles, they encountered a 15 foot lead which they had to ski parallel to for about 2 miles. Sebastian got his feet wet but was quickly able to change into dry socks and spare boot liners (he speaks of his adventure in the audio dispatch below). After that, they had clear sailing for about 5 hours and made camp around 5:00 PM (a relatively early day). They report the wind has shifted to blowing from the north vs. south. Their drift is still northerly and they're hoping it will take a while for this to change with the wind. They do anticipate a cold day tomorrow skiing into the wind but all are very excited by the prospect of reaching the North Pole tomorrow.
Skiing into the sun
Skiing alongside a lead
The Chinese Ski Team called in from 89.57.88 N, 168.19 W.They had a beautiful day with big pans of ice
and a handful of leads, one of which two of the team members fell into though
the excitement was short lived as they quickly changed and got warm
again.They are very excited to reach
the North Pole tomorrow.Everyone is in a
festive mood and they are looking forward to standing at the top of the
world.We expect them to arrive some time
mid-morning.
TheLast Degree
Dogsled Team called in from 89.44.034 N, 176.28.7 W.They reported good travel conditions, mostly
pans of ice. They crossed 5-6 leads that were relatively small.They saw an amazing horseshoe shaped rainbow
pointing upward on top of the sun.We
take that to be a good sign as an upturned horseshoe is good luck.The team members are all in high
spirits.They have a rallying cry of “one
team, one dream” that they use to keep themselves motivated.When they phoned in, they were all gathering
in one tent for some snacks and hot drinks.They enjoyed Mike and Sara’s white chocolate fudge and Stacey’s banana
bread.They send their best wishes to
Sara and Mike and hope she is feeling better.This morning Chris Maher’s cinnamon sugar quesadillas got the team ready
for a day of hard work.They’re hoping
for continued good conditions with the plan to make as many miles tomorrow as
possible.
Check back tomorrow for what we hope will be updates from the North Pole for two of the teams and within shouting distance for the third!
All three teams reported great conditions and weather today, with temperatures around -25 C and a light wind. The ice offered a welcome change for the dogsledders who have been struggling through lots of open water and rubble. After a little research about birds near the North Pole we've determined that the Last Degree Ski Team most likely saw a Ross's Gull, named after the polar explorer James Clarke Ross who discovered the magnetic North Pole in 1831.
The Last Degree Ski Team reported in from N 89.45.742, E 178.36.678. They had a great day skiing 8 miles in approximately hours of travel. Everyone is doing well and having a good time. They are happy to have a supply of Portuguese sardines, compliments of Angelo. Tonight they are enjoying the "finest cut of the tuna". They saw a lot of east-west leads between 1-2 feet wide which are easy to ski over. They also crossed a 1/2 mile stretch of much younger ice, but most of the day was on big pans. They are drifting slowly to the N/ NE. When we spoke they had three flags flying off their kite and Guy and Carl were just making their way over to Angelo and Keith's tent for some after dinner hot drinks and conversation. They sent in a few photos from their day:
Helping one another over a pressure ridge
Angelo with camp in background
The Chinese Ski Team reported in from N 89.51.52, E 179.41. Rick called the day "one of the best days ever" with calm, sunny conditions and 90% travel across big pans of ice. Everyone enjoyed the day and are now enjoying a social hour (or two...) in the tents.
This is what a big pan of ice looks like. Easy skiing and fast travel.
Typical break. Everyone sits on his/her sled with their back to the wind.
Time to eat and drink! Photo from Mr. Li
The Last Degree Dogsled Team finally broke away from all the water and found big pans of ice to travel on. This increased their speed significantly and allowed them to make nearly 14 nautical miles. They are now at N 89.33.8, E 176. Unfortunately Sara Schroeder who has spent the last several days fighting a nasty illness left the team with Mike (her father) to recuperate. The pack ice is a miserable place to be sick and we hope she recovers quickly. The good news is that on the way back to the Borneo Basecamp they were able to land at the North Pole and spend some time at 90 degree North. Back at tonight's camp the team is feeling very positive about the change in ice conditions. The mileage they pulled off today was critical to put them in a position to reach the Pole. Spirits are high and they feel rejuvenated and ready for the next challenge.
On big pans of ice the dogs can run without interruption and travel is much more efficient.
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