Antarctica 2015: Worsley at the Pole!

While the rest of us have been enjoying the holidays over the past few weeks, the Antarctic explorers have continued to toil away on the frozen continent. There is now roughly three weeks left in the ski season, and it has been a difficult one to say the least. But each day brings them closer to their ultimate destination, which for most is the very bottom of the world.

Yesterday, Henry Worsley became the first skier of the season to reach the South Pole. It is the third time that he has skied across Antarctica to stand at 90ºS. It took him 51 days to get there, which means he is about a day behind his intended schedule. The British polar explorer enjoyed a bit of down time at the research station there, but due to his "solo and unassisted" status, he didn't interact with anyone or receive any kind of aid. Today, he is already back on the trail, as he looks to complete a traverse of the continent.

Now that the Pole is behind him, Henry will continue on towards his finish line at the Ross Ice Shelf. From here on out, the skiing should be a bit easier, although he is no doubt exhausted and his muscles are sore. He'll continue to race the clock however, as the last plane off the continent is scheduled for January 28, and he'll need to be on that flight one way or another.

Elsewhere, American solo-skier Doug Tumminello continues to make progress as well, although he still has a long way to go. Yesterday he crossed the 84th degree, leaving him six more to go until the Pole. He's spent a full month on the ice now, and his sled is getting lighter as a result, which typically translates to going faster too. But Dough has struggled with sore feet and blisters since early on in the expedition, and that continues to be a problem now. He's about three or four days from Thiels Corner – an important milestone on the journey – at which point he intends to reevaluate his position and pace. It is possible he could pull the plug altogether and head home, but we'll just have to wait to see.


Scotsman Luke Robertson is making better time on his solo journey. On day 30 he has now passed the 87th degree and is narrowing in on the South Pole. He expect to reach that point in about ten days, and is counting down the miles now.

Carl Alvy and Emma Kelty have not updated their progress since New Year's Eve, but it sounds like they are in good spirits and making headway towards the Pole as well. It has been a difficult journey for Emma in particular, but the duo are picking up the pace as the get closer to 90ºS. Both weather and surface conditions have been better over the past few days, which has improved their spirits too. There is no word yet on when they expect to wrap up their expedition however.

Finally, the team of Devon McDiarmid, Stew Edge, Mostafa Salameh, and Shahrom Abdullah have achieved the 87th degree as well. It took them 25 days to get to that milestone, leaving them just three degrees to cross before the Pole. They'll likely get there sometime in the next ten days as well, as they are moving quickly and efficiently now despite whiteout conditions along their route. They just reached their final resupply point, and should now be set for the push to the finish line. Despite their late start, this group looks like it'll have no problems reaching the South Pole on schedule.

Over on Mt. Vinson, it has been a busy couple of weeks as well. A number of teams summited during the holiday time frame, which is a popular period on the mountain. While not everyone has finished their expeditions to the tallest peak in Antarctica, climbing operations are starting to wind down there for another season.

More to come soon.

Antarctica 2015: Climbers Pinned Down on Vinson, Worsley Enters the Sastrugi Field

We have more news from Antarctica today, where the season is progressing rapidly already, even though the teams still have a very long way to go before they reach the Pole. The weather continues to be the top story, although at this time of the year the explorers just need to make the most of it, and take what they can get. Still, there are some interesting things to report as these intrepid adventurers press on with their expeditions.

We'll start today with news from Mt. Vinson, the tallest peak on the continent at 4892 meters (16,049 ft). December and early January are popular climbing seasons the mountain, with a number of teams arriving as climbers go in search of the Seven Summits. Earlier in the week we had our first successful summits of the season, with at least 18 people topping out. But one squad has been stranded at High Camp on Vinson over the past few days due to extremely high winds.

The Madison Mountaineering team reached the summit on Monday, and after a brief celebration at the top, the five members of the squad descended back their campsite. But the winds picked up as they moved down, so they decided to stay put rather than risk a tricky descent in poor weather. The winds haven't abated for the past four days however, so they have been stuck in place, waiting for conditions to improve. Reportedly the wind speeds were in excess of 50 knots (57 mph/92 km/h), which is simply too dangerous to try to move in. There is good news on the horizon though, as the winds are expected to die down later today, giving the team a chance to descend at long last.

Other than these stranded climbers, Vinson is apparently empty at the moment. The latest dispatch from the Madison Mountaineering team indicates that they have been the only ones on the hill over the past few days. It's likely that the high winds are also keeping other climbers from arriving at Base Camp, although that will soon change too I'm sure.


Elsewhere, Henry Worsley is closing in on the 85th degree and is expected to cross that point later today. It won't be easy going however, as he reports that he has now entered a large sastrugi field, which making progress very difficult. Sastrugi are hard ridges of snow and ice that form on the surface in Antarctica. Some are small enough to ski over, but they require a bit of extra effort and can be tough on the body. Others grow so large that they have to be skied around. They are a common obstacle for anyone skiing to the South Pole, but they are annoying and frustrating as well, slowing progress and taking a mental and physical toll on the body.

Italian kite-skier Michele Pontrandolfo is still waiting for the winds he so desperately needs to appear. He has gone days without seeing much of a breeze at all, which has forced him to lug his two sleds behind him, instead of pulling them along with his kite. His original intention was to ski to both the Geographic South Pole and the Pole of Inaccessibility, while making a traverse of the Antarctic continent. He still has time to complete that journey, but he will need to make up some serious distance if and when the wind does finally appear.

The team of Carl Alvy, Khai Nguyen, and Emma Kelty has seen the whiteout conditions pass and the sun return. They have had strong winds in their face for much of the journey though, which is making progress slow at this point. They report better surface conditions however, and after just five days on the ice, they're still finding their rhythm. Still, everyone seems in good spirits and morale is high as they head south to the Pole.

American solo-skier Doug Tumminello continues to struggle in whiteout conditions, but is forging ahead nicely. He's hoping for conditions to improve today as well. Scottish skier Luke Robertson is in a similar boat, although he did report the sun putting in a brief appearance yesterday.

That's all for now. More news as it is warranted.

Antarctica 2015: Whiteouts Make for Tough Going, First Summits on Vinson

While I was off romping around the Caribbean last week, more explorers and adventurers hit the ice in the Antarctic and have now begun their journeys towards the South Pole. But as usual, the frozen continent is not making it easy on anyone as surface and weather conditions test their patience and resolve.

Henry Worsley has started to pick up the pace some, in part because the snow beneath his skis has become more firm, allowing him to glide along a bit more efficiently. The British polar explorer also seems to be finding his rhythm after more than three weeks on the ice, which is helping as well. A few days back he crossed the 84th parallel, which means he is now nearing the halfway point to the Pole. But considering the fact that he aims to traverse the continent, he is actually only about a quarter of the way done. As of now, he has skied about 240 nautical miles (444 km/276 miles), with the last couple of days being completed in whiteout conditions. That type of weather can truly test the spirit, but Henry continues to press ahead as best he can.

Worsley isn't the only one dealing with whiteouts at the moment. The three-person team consisting of guide Carl Alvy and his clients Khai Nguyen and Emma Kelty also have been skiing through the soup the past couple of days. After being delayed at Union Glacier due to weather, the trio finally hit the ice this past Saturday, and have been making solid progress at the start. But the weather conditions do test their mood as they press on towards the South Pole.


Italian kite-skier Michele Pontrandolfo continues to struggle due to a lack of wind. Progress has been incredibly slow mostly because he can't break out the kite to help haul him and his heavy sleds across the Antarctic expanse. He is hoping to traverse the continent as well, but unless he finds some wind soon, he may run out of time before he can accomplish that goal. That said, if he does get some strong winds, he can also make up a tremendous amount of time, so don't count him out just yet.

American adventurer Doug Tumminello is now two days out from Hercules Inlet on his solo and unsupported journey to the Pole, and is already reporting tough conditions. He says that high winds and sastrugi – hard ridges on the ice – are making it tough to get going. Throw in the long, uphill slog that starts at Hercules, and his first few days have been challenging to say the least. But, as with most Antarctic skiers, he'll find his ski-legs within a few days, and will be steaming along before we know it.

Similarly, Scottish solo-skier Luke Robertson got underway this past weekend as well, and has already spent the better part of three days on his route to the South Pole as well. He reports whiteout conditions as well, making it tough to see the horizon and navigate. He's climbed up to 800 meters (2624 ft), but still has a ways to go before he reaches the polar plateau, but so far everything seems to be going well, and he remains in great spirits.

Meanwhile, over on Mt. Vinson we've seen our first summits of the season as well. Reportedly 12 climbers – including three guides – topped out over the weekend, setting the stage for others to follow in the days ahead. They were followed yesterday by the Madison Mountaineering squad, who also placed five climbers on the 4892 meter (16,049 ft) summit. High winds are keeping those climbers at High Camp however, where they are reportedly resting comfortably. They'll descend as soon as conditions improve, and start the process of heading home.

The climbing season on Vinson should continue for a few more weeks, typically culminating right around the start of the new year. We can expect a number of other teams to summit in the days ahead, as numerous people look to bag another one of the Seven Summits.

That's all for now. More updates to come soon.