Supporting Epilepsy Action Blog

Tyre Training – Richmond Park

This Saturday I went to Richmond Park via the local tyre garage, to do the obligatory tyre-pulling synonymous with aspiring Arctic Explorers!  With all our kit now packed up to go, the harnesses are all in store with the sledges, so the previous training we’ve done on the sand dunes of South Wales with the actual kit can’t be done.

Instead I used a rucksack, rope and bungees to attach a tyre but the drag wasn’t much good, so then strapped a log to it for added weight.  Needless to say I had a few weird looks and a few people came up to chat – always useful to carry a supply of business cards with the blog website address on, just in case!  A young boy asked for a lift which I duly gave – only occurred after I could have charged!  A few dogs as well found the tyre irresistible to have a go at, although I was mindful of spooking the horses so kept clear of them.

I’ll be heading down a few more times in the coming weeks, and will try to get Epilepsy Action featured prominently on me or the tyre for good measure.  It's useful training although the real feel of pulling a 13 stone sledge over snow and ice is very difficult to replicate with a tyre over mud and grass - a sledge is designed to slide and there's very little friction on the snow and ice, so once moving it's not that hard, but technically challenging with obstacles like ice rubble and so on obviously.  You use different muscle groups though, particularly in your legs, which is hard to replicate in a gym on a cross trainer.  It does add to the variety of the training of course!

Thank you to Laura - training buddy, travelling PR rep, motivator and camera woman, all in one!

I'll be talking about the Baffin Island Expedition I did in April 2008, and also about the upcoming Expedition to the Magnetic North Pole.  This is a great opportunity to see some of the great work Epilepsy Action does, helping people affected by Epilepsy, both as patients and their carers, friends and family.

All are welcome - if anyone wants to come along, please email Mary-Jane Atkins on episup@hotmail.com, and copy me.

Beyond the Pole

Just a quick blog to let you know about a film I saw recently.

Their own synopsis of the film is below.  It's set in the Arctic as two utterly unprepared idealistic young men decide to attempt the North Pole not only unsupported, but as a "carbon neutral, organic and vegetarian expedition".  It manages a good balance of poking fun at the overly-zealous climate camp without losing sight of the serious side to the debate.

For me though - and anyone else interested in (or going to) the Arctic or Antarctic - it's just a lot of fun!

"BEYOND THE POLE is Touching the Void with laughs, and Withnail and I on ice.  Funny and subversive it’s the story of two men trying to find their place in the world before the end of the world.  And it asks one question of us all: how far would you go to save the planet?"

Website: www.beyondthepole.com

Shotgun Training

On the packing weekend we were also trained by Rob – ex-Army and one of the team members – on using a pump action shotgun to protect us against Polar Bear attacks.

The chances of an attack are very remote – in 20 years of Expeditions to the Magnetic North the number of attacks requiring shootings number only a few.  We will carry a variety of counter measures – bangers, sprays and trip wires – of which the shotgun is the last resort.  The shells used start with simple bangers to scare rather than injure or kill, then “slugs” which are bolts of solid metal designed to stun but not penetrate.  Finally there are the actual shotgun shells themselves, which really are the last resort and only for use if attacked and at close range.

Each of us had a turn at learning first of all safe handling of the shotgun, then loading and firing a few shells at a target.  It was quite fun although the seriousness of why we were doing it wasn’t lost on us.  We’ll practice this again with the actual shotguns we’ll be taking onto the ice in Resolute.  It will also give us a chance to see how the cold affects the handling and operation, and of course how easy they are to handle wearing thermal gloves.

Packing Weekend

This weekend we all met in a barn in Gloucester to pack up all the kit, food and equipment we’ll be taking with us to Canada.  Aside from fuel – which we’ll pick up when we arrive in Resolute – every other bit of kit had to be tested, weighed and packed into the 12 sledges and 12 bags we’ll be transporting from Heathrow to Ottawa, then onto Resolute.  Due to weight restrictions on Air Canada and First Air – one of the airlines we’ll use which services the Nunavut region of the Canadian North, our bags must weigh not more than 23kg and the sledges 32kg.

All our food was stripped of packaging and repacked into the day bags we’ll use for energy during the day – chocolates, sweets, nuts and so on – and tent food for breakfast and evening meals.  Soups, tea, powdered milk, sugar and so on were emptied into freezer bags in tent-size rations.

Tents were put up, checked and taken down, fuel stoves lit and packed with repair kits and spares.  Thermos flasks, pan handles and karabiners were taped to prevent the chance of cold metal coming into contact with skin and ski poles were measured, cut down to size, labelled and packed into ski bags with skis and bindings. 

After the fabric and poles were checked for any faults, one of the tents being slightly wet from use was moved into the house we were staying in to dry out completely, and fuel bottles were washed with washing up liquid to remove any smell of fuel – which may prevent them being allowed on the plane if checked.

When packing we’re careful to distribute the supplies across all the sledges and bags – so if one bag or sledge goes missing we don’t lose all the stoves or all the bindings for example.  It’ll be a lot easier to replace one fuel bottle than nine, and in any case we have spares of pretty much all kit.  It’s a very long and tedious process, but essential to make sure we get to the start line with everything we need for our Expedition to stand a good chance of success.

Thank You from Epilepsy Action

Just a quick note to share with you a letter I received from Epilepsy Action, on my return from a week's training in Switzerland.  The actual total now stands at just over £3,000 - £430 through Just Giving (plus £88 Gift Aid), £1,580 received in cheques, and a further £910 pledged - so THANK YOU ALL!

I'll upload pictures and a blog update on the training week soon.

I'd also like to extend a thank you to all those members of the Downhill Only Ski Club (DHO) in Wengen, who attended a talk I gave on Monday evening in their Club Room, on my previous Expedition across Baffin Island, in Arctic Canada.  It was very well received and many members gave me many kind compliments.

If you'd like to read about this Expedition and see the photos, please see my Blog for April 2008.

If you'd like me to come and present to a group of you on the Baffin Island Expedition - maybe at your work or Support Group - please just drop me an email with the details.

Training in Switzerland

This last week a few of the team including me went went out to Switzerland with a sledge and harness, hiring cross country skis to practice pulling the sledge across snow and ice.  It's far different to pulling a sledge across the sand (or tyres for that matter!) and also gave us a chance to practice the skis, which even for experienced downhill skiers is not as easy as it looks.

The Fischer Crown skis have a toe-only binding so the heel lifts up, allowing a walking motion, and the skis have grooves in the bottom which allow them to slide forward but "bite" the snow as you pull pack.  We practiced on the flat, building up weight in the sledge and then trying up and downhill - needless to say we all spent some time on our arses!  However by the end of the first day we were all feeling pretty confident.

We stayed in the beautiful village of Wengen, pulling the sledge up and down the Lauterbrunnen Valley to Stechleberg and back.  It was a great few days and thanks especially to the Downhill Only Ski Club in Wengen - 50 of their members attended a talk I gave on the Baffin Island Expedition (April 2008), in their fantastic new club room.

Polar Bears

One of the biggest threats we will face in the Arctic is Polar Bears.

Also known by their scientific name “Ursus Maritimus” or the “sea bear”, there are estimated to be around 20-25,000 in the world, exclusive to the Northern Hemisphere and populating mainly USA (Alaska), Canada, Russia, Greenland (Denmark) and Norway.  Around 90% are estimated to be in the Canadian Arctic.

They are perfectly adapted to the harsh cold environments, with  layers of blubber up to 4.5 inches thick, two layers of fur, small ears and tails to prevent heat loss, special bumps on their feet to prevent slipping on ice, powerful claws to catch seals and a nose that can detect prey miles away.

Polar Bears are more likely to suffer from heat exhaustion than the cold, and although they can move very fast, with so much insulation cannot run over long distances.

Polar Bears are at the top of the food chain, keeping seal populations in check as their principle source of food, although they have been noted hunting anything from arctic foxes through to beluga whales.

Polar Bears do not hibernate in the true sense of the word, although pregnant females will enter a den to give birth in November/December, remaining in the den until March/April, after which of course she will need to feed to replace the weight loss of birth and nursing.  Cubs will stay with their mothers up to 2-3 years until they can hunt for themselves.

Polar Bears measure up to 3 meters tall and weigh up to an average 1,700 pounds (121 stones).

Our route will take us up the East Coast of Bathurst Island – past the aptly named “Polar Bear Pass National Wildlife Area” – right through their annual migration.

Our small arsenal of counter measures starts with common sense and “prevention” rather than “cure”.  Polar Bears are known not to like large groups of humans, and with 12 in the team we’ll be sticking close together in known Polar Bear areas.  Polar Bears are more likely to approach us out of curiosity or the scent of food than with hostile intent, and basic admin when securing camp, cooking and sealing all food and food-waste will be part of our daily routine.

We also have shotguns (with bangers, rubber bullets and proper shells as a last resort), trip flares and bangers for putting around the camp at night, and “bear spray” (not as stupid as it sounds – a polar bear may poke his head inside the tent while cooking).

On Baffin Island we were giving a good briefing on how to deal with Polar Bears, and the useful advice included "don't run" and "don't look a Polar Bear in the eyes"!  We all want to see Polar Bears while we're out there, but not that close!

Last Training Weekend

On a wet Friday evening we congregated in the Pelican pub just south of Ogmore, in the aftermath of the snow which covered much of Southern Wales, now melted on the frozen ground causing fields to swamp, rivers to burst their banks and even cattle grids to overflow.  It was this that greeted us on our last training weekend before we leave the UK at the end of March.  From now on when we meet for a weekend we’ll be doing the long, painstaking task of checking, packing and rechecking all the equipment we’ll be taking with us.

This weekend was simply to revolve around tents, stoves and sledges on the Saturday, a team dinner on the Saturday night and on Sunday a long walk – a good opportunity to get to know the team better and discuss any queries and concerns.

After getting soaked in torrential downpours on the Saturday morning however, and with most of our tents, sledges and stoves covered in wet sand from Ogmore’s sand dunes – a perfect environment to practice pulling sledges on the many other occasions I’ve been down here - we decamped back to the pub to dry out, and took the opportunity to piece together all the maps which chart our anticipated route to the Magnetic North Pole.

Camping in our groups on Saturday night was a good opportunity to go through the routines which will become our daily lives, although thankfully we won’t have wet mud to contend with!  It was also an opportunity for those who haven’t done similar Expeditions before, to discover what it’s like cooking and sleeping, while packed in like sardines, with 4 to a tent!

On Sunday the sun dried us out and we got back to the skills training which will become essential to our success – understanding importantly the MSR stove which will be our lifeline for all heating, water and most of our food.  The other essential components on which our success will depend are our shelters - tents were put up, taken down and put up again, taking it in turns in our teams of 4 to make sure each person knows how they operate, and the weak points to look out for.

Although there is a lot of detailed planning and organisation behind these Expeditions, fundamentally their success comes down largely to the basic elements of survival – water, food, shelter and warmth.  A solo Expedition to the Geographic North failed last year after just 2 days – sending £250,000 down the drain – because two plastic pressure stove-valves costing £60 failed in the cold.  These are the realities of Arctic exploration and our success will depend on our diligent attention to the small details which keep us watered, fed, warm and sheltered from the wind.

Just Giving page is now Live for the Magnetic North Pole Expedition, leaving the UK at the end of March 2010!

Please visit www.justgiving.com/SteveGoesPolar2010.

100% of the costs for my place on the Expedition is being met by myself, so 100% of your donation will go straight to this indespensible charity.

Thank you for your donations.

Please email us if you want to be kept up to date with the training and preparation in these last few months.

What is the Magnetic North Pole?

The first question I know most of you will have is this – what is the Magnetic North Pole?

The Earth has a number of “North Pole’s” – the most common being True North (aka Geographic North), or put simply, as the Earth rotates around an axis, the point at the North and South where that axis would extend from the surface of the Earth.  Think of a globe on a stand.

The Earth also has a Magnetic Field much like a bar magnet, which moves with time – when you’re looking at a compass the needle will point to the Magnetic North Pole, however this point is currently moving roughly North West by around 26 miles per year.  There is a similar Magnetic South Pole in the Antarctic which also moves.

There is also a “North Geomagnetic Pole”, but I shan’t confuse you anymore than I have here – suffice to say if you’re interested, try Wikipedia!

The Magnetic North Pole was first established by the explorer James Clark Ross in 1831, who located it on the Boothia Peninsula, which is part of the Canadian mainland to the North West of Hudson Bay.  At roughly 70° North, that was roughly the same distance South of Resolute Bay – our start point – as we have to head North for the 1996 position!  Roald Amundsen subsequently found it in a different location in 1903, and subsequent research established it moving North West from Canada into the Arctic Sea.

In 1996 its position was established and surveyed using magnetometer and theodolite at 78°35.7'N 104°11.9'W.  The Magnetic Poles are also referred to as the “Dip Poles”, since they are the point at which the needle of a compass – were it to move about freely – would point directly down at 90° to the Earth’s surface.

Since 1996 the position of the Magnetic North Pole has drifted somewhat further North West into the Arctic Sea and in time is expected to pass the Geographic North Pole and head down to Siberia.

The 1996 position however has become the “official” Magnetic North Pole, and since its official survey has become the source of many challenges and expeditions.  The annual Polar Challenge and bi-annual Polar Race send teams of three to race the 360 nautical miles to the Magnetic North Pole from Resolute Bay, however while still a gruelling challenge, these include two resupplies en-route with support.

By contrast our Expedition is entirely self-supported from start to our pick-up at the finish, and we won’t be trying to beat anyone but ourselves!

Picture reproduced with thanks to the Smithsonian Institution National Musuem of Natural History.

Kit Day

On a wet and windy November Saturday we met up in a village hall in Goucestershire, to issue all the clothing and most of the equipment we'll be wearing on the Expedition.  The cold hall was quite a good setting to be trying on layers of thermals!

Some of the kit we'll be wearing includes inner and outer layers of thermals, which need to balance being comfortable enough to wear while walking, while being a snug enough fit to keep the warmth in and wind out.  On top of thermal layers over legs and torso are the gloves, boots, jackets and head gear, including sun glasses and goggles.

The reason for issuing kit so early is to make sure we have enough clothing which fits well in advance - much of our kit is made to order and some imported, so there's no easy way of getting specialist kit last minute.  We also need to spend time customising it for our needs - opening zips for example is hard work wearing two layers of gloves, so all zips need to have strong tags or cord tied onto them to make them easier to grasp.  Windsuit hoods need to have fur linings sewn in which must stand the test of brutal winds, and since we'll be four to a tent, and all mostly wearing the same clothes, absolutely everything has to be clearly named so we don't get our clothing mixed up!

I'll be setting quite a few evenings aside in the coming months for my needle and thread!

Below are pictures of Richard trying to keep track of all the kit that has been issued, me sporting my sexy new thermals and boots, and a lesson on packing our "pulk" (the proper name for a sledge pulled in the Arctic).

Immigration Restrictions in the USA - 1875 to 1924

I was on holiday in New York recently and doing the tourist thing, took the ferry over to Liberty Island and on to Ellis Island - home of the United States Museum of Immigration.  It was here following Independence and the rush of people from around the globe flocking to the land where the streets were paved with gold, that the country's first immigration polices were put into practice.

From encouraging immigration to help the country's growth the tide soon started to work against America, with residents feeling their jobs, land and quality of lives were under threat from cheap foreign labour, in a story which has alarming familiarity today.

In the late 1800's - rather than impose a blanket ban on immigration - the authorities began imposing restrictions on categories of people - convicts, lunatics, idiots, paupers and imbeciles to name a few.

If you look closely at the picture below, you'll see the entry for 1903 - "Epileptics, professional beggers, and anarchists...".

I had mixed emotions when I read this - first anger and disbelief, not just at the inclusion but at the other categories with which Epilepsy was associated.

However I also found it quite warming - we still have a long way to go, but look how far we've come.

Brecon Beacons

5am start in London on Saturday to drive to Brecon in Wales, where I met Mark & Sean at a campsite for a weekend in the Brecon Beacons.  Despite a very frosty start - apologies to my team mates for not meeting them on the Friday night when temperatures went below -2C! - it was a beautifully clear day as we set off from our campsite for a c. 20km walk taking in 3 peaks, finishing on Pen Y Fan.

Pen Y Fan is the highest mountain in South Wales at 2,907 feet, and the highest in Britain south of Snowdonia.

I haven't been walking in this area properly since my days in the Wales University Officer Training Corps, and I had a trip down memory lane passing Crickhowell Training Camp.

We camped out on the Saturday night, cooking on an MSR stove similar to those we'll be using on our Magnetic North Pole Expedition.  On Sunday with long drives ahead of us, we did a shorter 11km walk up the back of Pen Y Fan to Corn Du, following the gentle southerly ridge down towards Merthyr Tydfil.

When time allows, long walks in the mountains carrying weight, is some of the best training we can do.  Camping in cold weather - albeit a lot warmer than the temperatures we'll be experiencing - is also a good help and experience in using essential kit like the MSR stove will be invaluable.

In all though, a beautiful weekend in the Welsh Mountains!

The Great North Run 2009

I went up to Newcastle with friends who were also running on Saturday 19th September, having a quiet evening before the big event on Sunday morning.

The air was cool but the skies were blue, and in increasingly warm conditions I joined 54,000 runners on the 13.1 mile run from Newcastle to South Shields.  Having run 3 times before, rather than aim for a specific time I ignored my stopwatch and as a result had a far more enjoyable race!

The support along the way as usual was fantastic, not just from the charities lining the route, police and first aid crews, but the spectators as well, and despite the huge turnout I didn't find the running crowded at any time.

I was lucky enough to be on the Tyne Bridge as the Red Arrows screamed over, and arrived in South Shields 2 hours 2 minutes later, to a warm and welcome reception from the staff of Epilepsy Action.  They had around 120 runners in this year's race.

I raised £370 (plus Gift Aid) and my site is still receiving donations if you'd like to nudge me up to my £400 target!

http://www.justgiving.com/stevegoesnorth2009/

All in all a great day out, a fun race and although I've been saying I'd like to do a half-marathon in Bristol or Cardiff next year, the Great North Run will be hard to beat!

A big thank you from Epilepsy Action and me, to all who sponsored me.

Unfortunately I don't think the official photographers were fast enough to snap me (!!) but below is one photo taken by Epilepsy Action on my arrival at the finish.

Magnetic North Pole - Planning our Unsupported Expedition for March 2010

On Saturday 5th September I met the full team of 12 together for the first time, when we set in stone the date of Sunday 28th March 2010, when we would depart the UK from Heathrow Airport, bound for Ottawa, onto Resolute on Cornwallis Island, and by foot the 360 nautical miles – unsupported - to the Magnetic North Pole.

The specific destination is the 1996 surveyed position of the Magnetic North Pole – its actual position is constantly moving slowly further North and West – which has become the officially recognised position for the Polar Challenge, Polar Race, and other Expeditions.

We are an all-British team of 12 with 10 men and two women.  The Expedition will take around 25 days of walking, skiing and camping on ice, in temperatures down to minus 50C and below, pulling sledges weighing up to 14 stone, avoiding frost bite and 80% of the World’s Polar Bears which live in these regions.

I need to do more research at the RGS, but if we succeed we believe we’ll be the first all-British mixed-sex team to reach the Magnetic North Pole unsupported.  Most attempts are supported through the Polar Race, or Polar Challenge, and only have to carry enough supplies for one week at a time.

We have an experienced guide in Richard Bull, who has led numerous Expeditions to the Magnetic North Pole and across Baffin Island, also supporting and advising on many other Expeditions to this hostile region.

The team comprises four members (including me) from the Baffin Island 2008 crossing – Roddy, Tracey & Nick.  We also have two ex-Army soldiers in Rob & Steve.  Another Steve (three of us in total so nicknames will be required!) went to Baffin earlier this year for a shorter Expedition, while the rest – Mark, Shaun, Mina & Ben - are new to Arctic Expeditions, however bring with them diverse and extensive experiences in the outdoors.

More training dates have been put in the diary to teach us the skills we’ll need to survive for up to 4 weeks in the Arctic, particularly the basics of pulling our sledges through large fields of ice-rubble, safely using and maintaining the MSR fuel stove – our only source of heating and water for the duration – and erecting and dismantling our tents – our essential and only form of proper shelter – often in high winds.

More to follow in a few weeks...

Great North Run 2009 - Just Giving page now live!

I've just launched my Just Giving page to raise sponsorship for the Great North Run 2009, which I'm taking part in on 20th September.

54,000 runners will attempt the 13.1 mile half-marathon course from Newcastle to South Shields.  This will be my 4th attempt and I'm looking forward to the great atmosphere which always surrounds this terrific event!

Please Click Here and take a moment to put £5 my way for a very worthy cause - my chosen charity Epilepsy Action!

Please check back after 20th September to see how I get on!

Itex Certificate

Received a certificate from Itex this morning, congratulating me on our 48.1 mile round-Jersey walk in June.  As a local event it supports local charities, and although not for Epilepsy Action it was a great charitable fundraiser to be part of, and a great incentive to keep the training up for next year's Expedition!

Very satisfying, and brought back a lot of (mostly) nice memories!

Thames Path – Fulham to Waterloo

On Monday evening Michael & I walked the Thames Path from Fulham to Waterloo – around 12 miles - joining the dots between the Twickenham-to-Fulham and the Greenwich-to-Waterloo sections we’d previously conquered!

The evening was very mild and fairly clear, so good walking weather as we headed to the start point at the Crabtree Pub, on the border with Hammersmith.  From there a nice leisurely stroll took us along side the Thames, around the Fulham Football Club – Craven Cottage – and into Bishops Park and Fulham Palace Gardens to Putney Bridge.

We stayed on the North side of the Thames crossing through Hurlingham Park – a remarkably large and deserted expanse of greenery – past Wandsworth Bridge around Fulham Wharf.  A lot of this next section was spent on roads and pavements as we crossed around Sands End to Chelsea Harbour, through Lots Road into the busy one-way system of Cheyne Walk, where the Embankment links up to the A4.  The old Lots Road Power Station is a remarkable building, but best appreciated from a distance, not close up.

We crossed over the famous Albert Bridge – covered in lights – where “…Troops must break step when marching…” to walk through the serenity of Battersea Park, before crossing back over to get a good look at the more-famous Battersea Power Station.  It’s a truly magnificent iconic building, but desperately awaiting redevelopment.

From here it’s hard to hear yourself think, walking alongside the Embankment once again until we crossed Vauxhall Bridge, where I was slightly surprised to be able to walk in front of the “Secret Intelligence Service” building (MI6), up to Lambeth Bridge.

Past St Thomas’ Hospital it was a short run to the Houses of Parliament in time for Big Ben to chime 9 o’clock – glowing in the evening orange lights – under the London Eye for a well deserver dinner in front of Royal Festival Hall!

A lovely evening and thanks to all who have been following my blog.  Especially to Karen who has included a link from her blog to mine, and who has raised sponsorship for Epilepsy Action.  She is currently training for Ben Nevis and the West Highland Way, to raise sponsorship for the Multiple Sclerosis Society.  You can follow her blog by clicking here.

Thames Path - Shepperton to Richmond

An early start this Saturday morning for another section of the Thames Path, this time getting the 8.20am train from Clapham Junction down to Shepperton with a colleague of mine - Geoffrey.  We had a quick wander down the High Street before joining the Thames Path, crossing to the South side for the section up to Richmond.

Despite the forecast of light rain all day, we were walking in T-shirts under blue skies for the duration, watching the many rowers, sailers and canoeists enjoying the Thames.  The Thames Path out here is again well sign-posted, but much less diverse than the previous sections I'd done in East London, or from Twickenham to Fulham.  For most of the way we were on dirt tracks surrounded by greenery, with expensive houses (and their boats) lining the River.

From Shepperton past Sunbury, heading to Hampton, we passed large Victorian Reservoirs - the Molesey being right next to the Thames - and it's extraordinary to think of these huge banks being built largely by man and horse.  From there we followed the big U-bend around Hampton Court and back up to Kingston and Hampton Wick, before the final leg towards Ham and Twickenham.  To finish at Twickenham - my original goal - would have involved crossing to the North side for the last mile, but that would have meant pavement walking away from the Thames, so we stayed on the South side, up to Richmond.

This gave me another view of the impressive Royal Star and Garter Care Home for ex-Servicemen and women, situated on Richmond Hill with its imposing view over Richmond and the Thames.

British 10km London Run

The British 10km London Run is a great race, if only because it takes you through some of the busiest streets of London, without having to run the London Marathon!

Starting at 9.35am on Sunday 12th July 2009, I arrived at Whitehall to drop my bag off at 8.30, and already the whole of Haymarket up Piccadilly to the start was full of people - the total number of participants is around 30,000.

From Hyde Park Corner down Piccadilly, the route carried us South to Pall Mall, through Trafalgar Square (past the 4th plinth!) turning left onto the Embankment.  Once on the Embankment it's a fairly quick course through underpasses and up past St Paul's, doing a loop before Tower Bridge then heading back along the Embankment to Westminster Bridge.

The only two criticisms I have of this race are the lack of a phased start (30,000 people all at once, with no zoning for different speeds makes it quite the scrum!) and the 180 degree turns you have to do on Westminster Bridge, then again on Victoria Street.

Nevertheless, after the 180 degree turn on Westminster Bridge, it's back up into Parliament Square, down Victoria Street, another 180 turn, and back to finish along Whitehall.

I finished in 53 mins 22 secs, which wasn't much over my 52 mins target, so fairly happy with that!

Great atmosphere, lots of fun, and some more exposure for Epilepsy Action!

Jersey Itex Around the Island Walk

On 19th June 2009 I flew to Jersey (in the Channel Islands) to take part in the Itex 1 day 48.1 mile "Around the Island Walk".

Photos from the walk can be seen by Clicking Here.

Since it's inception in 1991 - when fifteen intrepid walkers started the first of what would become an annual event - the Walk has become one of the largest fund raising events held in Jersey, with 11,700 walkers over the years helping 103 local charities.  Although not for Epilepsy Action, it was a great target for me to train for, plus I have cousins and friends who live on the island, and one of the team members from the Baffin Island Expedition - Nucky - lives on Guernsey.  Nucky had already done the Itex walk around her own island, and flew over to embark on the Jersey Walk with me.

Over the past sixteen years around half of the walkers who venture out at 3am into the 48.1 miles challenge, make it to the finish line.

The walk started early on a fairly clear and dry Saturday morning, after we had ventured from our hotel at 2am to the Elizabeth Ferry Terminal, past drunken revellers spilling out from the clubs and bars, via kebab shops to taxi ranks!  Needless to say we hadn’t much sleep prior, and scoffed down a cereal bar, banana and some water to get us going.

From the Ferry Terminal at 3am - along with 1,200 other walks - the route headed anti-clockwise around the island, heading east around to Longbeach Gorey, then up to St Catherine’s where we had our first “Bag Drop” check point, along with a bacon sandwich and tea.  We had walked 11 miles by 6am!  Bags are ferried around the route so you can walk with the minimum required, which was a fantastic help for thermal tops, waterproofs, spare socks and first aid kits.

From there we continued up to the spectacular cliffs of the North Coast – past White Rock and La Pierre De La Fetelle, to Wolfs Caves.  By 9.30am we had covered over 20 miles and were going strong, although the feet were starting to feel the pinch with all the climbs and drops of the cliff paths.

Devil’s Hole was roughly the half-way marker at 23.7 miles which we past at 10.20am, and onwards to Greve de Lecq and Grosnez at 12.30, which put 30 miles under our belts and the cliffs of the North Coast now behind us.  Although we’d be snacking all the way, we had a light lunch, changed our socks and got back underway before the stiffness in our legs started to set in.

From here the 5 mile West Coast of St Ouen’s beach stretched out to Le Braye, before turning the South West Corner onto Beauport at 3.20pm, marking 39 miles.  The pain really started to kick in by this point, but with 9 miles left to go we couldn’t afford to rest and risk our legs seizing up, so after a brief drink, snack and stretch, we continued on to Noirmont Point, which at the opposite side of St Aubin’s Bay, gave us just 5.4 miles to go, and gave us a moral boosting first-sight of St Helier, and the Elizabeth Harbour Finish Line!

But those 5.4 miles, passing St Brelade’s and onto the promenade was tough going – not just physically but mentally.  Nucky and I strode out and allowed ourselves to start dreaming about taking our feet from our boots and dipping them in cold water!

The Finish Line – when it finally came – was full of supporters applauding us in, and we were welcomed with tea, water, chocolate, congratulations, and the knowledge that we had placed ourselves at 294 & 295 from the 1,200 walkers who started, finishing in 15 hours and 10 minutes.

It was tough going, and a Big Thank You to all the supporters, organisers and especially the Check Point staff.  The cadets, boy scouts, ATC, Itex staff, Freedom Church and many others who welcomed us in, sorted us out and waved us off were a great support and put in a lot of appreciated effort to make it an enjoyable and safe challenge.

"One Big Drop" - Abseil down Earls Court Exhibition Centre

At lunchtime on Sunday 14th June I took part in "One Big Drop" - a Charity Event organised by "Children with Leukaemia" being held at a number of venues around the country.  The idea was simply to abseil down a landmark building, which for London was the front of Earls Court Exhibition Centre, which is conveniently a 20 minute walk from my front door!

A few friends and colleagues also did the abseil which was held in glorious sunshine.  The views over London from the top made me sorry to have not taken my camera up with me, although I did have a few taken on the way down for you to see.

The total descent apparently from the roof to the top of the entrance was around 20 metres, although looking down it felt higher!

A big thank you to the organisers and supporters for a fun (and safe!) day and great experience!

Thames Path - Greenwich to Tower Bridge

With the "Itex" 50 mile walk around the island of Jersey on 20th June fast approaching, another training walk was in order.  But with weekends busy it only leaves evenings after work to pack it in.

So at 6pm on Tuesday evening, Michael and I met at North Greenwich tube station (next to the 02 Venue) and walked along another section of the Thames Path, West to Waterloo.  We saw first hand the regeneration of Greenwich with its numerous buildings sites, following the Thames along the South around the Isle of Dogs looking up to Canary Wharf.  From the Cutty Sark Pub and the Greenwich Tunnel, we walked through Deptford up to Rotherhithe through to Bermondsey.  We saw the numerous Piers that line the Thames, the Greenland and South Docks, walked through Pepys Park and down Drakes Steps.  At one point the detour around a building site was gazumped in favour of climbing down the sea wall to the rubble strewn beach for a few hundred yards!  We resisted the urge to pause in the Mayflower, Spice Island and Angel Pubs, and made it to Tower Bridge by dusk to see her lit up in all her glory.  The whole area around there and HMS Belfast is buzzing with restaurants, pubs and bars, but we carried on past the South Bank for dinner at Waterloo before getting the bus home.  Another wonderful evening on the Thames and highly recommended!

Walking in Snowdonia

I spent this last weekend enjoying glorious summer weather in North Wales, staying in the Swallow Falls YHA just outside Betws-Y-Coed with Shaun and Steve - both also going on the Magnetic North Pole Expedition next year.

After arriving late on Friday night, we set out for the car park at Pen-Y-Pass at 8.30am, but as suspected it was already full and we had to park a mile down the hill.  Regardless we started our attempt on the Crib Goch route up to Snowdon by 9am - the highest peak in Wales at 1,085 meters (about 3,500 feet).  There are a number of routes up Snowdon - including the popular "Pyg Track" which is a well established fairly easy walk with steps for the last steep section.  Of course, you can also get the train!  The Crib Goch ascent however is a real scramble - "three point" climbing with a jagged ridge requiring good balance and a pretty good head for heights.

We made a good ascent to the top in time for a lunch enjoying the spectacularly clear views on offer, descending down the opposite ridge across the West and East Peaks, to drop down onto the Miners Track.  This route is known as the "Horse Shoe" and gives the best views of the entire region of Snowdonia.

On Sunday in equally spectacular weather, we parked by Llyn Ogwen and climbed Tryfan to the North of Snowdon.  Again this was technically quite challenging and at around 980 meters is not much smaller than Snowdon.  Again we were rewarded with spectacular views, and treated ourselves to an easy amble down by 2.30pm, to start the long drive home.

Here's hoping for equally great weather on the rest of our weekends away this summer...!

Thames Path - Twickenham to Fulham

Left work slightly early yesterday and met a good friend at Twickenham Station in South West London at 6pm, for a walk back to Fulham along the Thames Path.  Since our original evening plans involved Soho, Chinese food and beer, I was thankful for good weather!

The Thames Path is a well sign-posted walk that goes from Oxford right down through London to Greenwich, around 150 miles.  As the crow flies it's much shorter, but with the weaving of the Thames it's probaby around double the distance.

In 3.5 hours we covered around 14 miles with the sun setting behind us.  It was lovely to see parts of London which are so close and yet such a contrast to City life.  We walked through beautiful Parks I never knew existed, past canals and house boats which look 100 years old, and saw locks and pubs nestled in quiet green Utopias minutes away from one of the busiest roads in the UK - the A4/M4!  We made Fulham in time for a well-deserved pub dinner with pints of Guinness!

I'm looking forward to exploring more of the Thames Path over the coming weeks and months, and would recommend it to anyone with a few days, or even hours to kill.

And for the record, I'm feeling fine today, and still looking forward to the Jersey Itex 50 mile walk in June!

Training Updates...

I spent some of the bank holiday looking through the diary and planning out one weekend a month dedicated to training for the North Pole.  I'm also looking at organised events like runs and walks that give me some fixed bench marks to aim for, and break up the monotony of training over the next 12 months.

The first training weekend is at the end of May, and although we haven't planned anything yet, depending on who can make it and what the weather is looking like, will probably involve mountains in the Lake District or Wales.

My first organised run is a 10km in July - although I'm looking for a 10km earlier than that - with more 10kms and the Great North Run (half marathon) at the end of September.

In a spasm of (slightly deluded) inspiration I've also signed up to the "Itex Walk" in Jersey on Saturday 20th June.  This is a 50 mile walk around the coastline of Jersey starting at 3am.  I registered, booked my flight and hotel all in the space of 10mins, then considered what I'd done - 50 miles is a long way!  It's 25 miles from my house in London to Maidenhead, so given that I have a vacant rental property out there, will punish myself in the next two weeks by getting the train out and walking back.  Will let you know how it goes...

On a lighter note, I've also signed up (and signed up most of my office in the process) to abseil down Earls Court as part of a Leukemia Research charity event, also in June.  I'm not anticipating abseiling in the Arctic, but when the option is placed in front of you - like walking around Jersey, or an Expedition to the Magnetic North Pole - you just get that gut instinct and have to run with it, or regret it for the rest of your life!

Training for the Magnetic North Pole

So the decision has been made!  In 2010 I shall be part of a 12 strong mixed-gender team attempting to walk unsupported from Resolute on Cornwallis Island, 360 nautical miles to the 1996 position of the Magnetic North Pole.

As the Magnetic North Pole moves around a lot of the years and decades, its position is constantly changing.  The 1996 was surveyed and established, and since then has become the goal for the Polar Race, and subsequent to that the Polar Challenge, amongst other Expeditions.

This was not a decision for me to be taken likely.  The temperatures are likely to be down to -50C and below with windchill, we'll be walking across sea-ice on an Expedition which could take up to 30 days (and nights), pulling all of our equipment, food and fuel by man-power alone, in a hostile environment home to 80% of the world's Polar Bears.

But the decision has been made, and this weekend in January, we were back to Ogmore in South Wales meeting the team, and practicing with the kit we'll be using.

Half of the Expedition is made up of people who succeeded with me on Baffin Island in 2008, and it's great to be heading back to the ice with them!

Pangnirtung Fiord to Pangnirtung - our destination!

After an early rise tents come down, we’re packed up and away by 8am.  Rich called ahead on his sat phone last night to arrange a skidoo to pick him up first thing, so he can go ahead and organise for our arrival.  We walk the remaining few miles into Pang with no stops arriving at 10.30am, where Rich comes down to meet us.  It’s a strange feeling – happy to have made it but having to leave behind such an incredibly beautiful part of the world, and head back to the politics and stresses of everyday life.

Rich welcomes us into Pang with congratulations and two bits of news – one good one bad.  The bad news, is that there’s no chance of flying out before Wednesday.  The good news, is that he’s persuaded the Auyuittuq Lodge (a fairly basic youth hostel) to accommodate 16 people at short notice (which out here means having oil delivered to provide hot water, and rounding up people from the community for cooking and cleaning).  We will have showers, beds, food that hasn’t been freeze dried and a solid roof over our heads for the first time in a week, and we’re all happy with that!

Only four others have made it through the Park this season, 3 groups failed and there’ll be no more attempts this winter.  We are the largest team to ever attempt – and succeed – a winter crossing of the Park.  We definitely had the weather on our side, but that doesn’t detract from our accomplishment – 128 km (or over 80 miles) over 7 days and 7 nights, through all types of terrain in temperatures below -40C at night and around -25C during the day.  The size of our group and our success is largely down to the preparation and team work of everyone in the group, but it must be said that the organisation and leadership of our guides – and especially Richard – played a very large part in our success.

I thought the trip would be tougher – I thought pulling the Pulk would be harder and I was braced for much worse conditions than we had.  Not to say that it was easy – every step of the way, from the moment I woke up to the moment I went to sleep, was effort.  Going to the loo, getting a cup of tea (or water for that matter) and everything in between, was effort, although after the first day you just settled into routine.

I didn’t think much about it at the time as I really enjoyed “tent life” – the banter in the evenings and mornings especially – but it was tough.  After the first few days, body perspiration at night made the sleeping bags damp, and by the end of the week the hoods of the bags were actually wet.  Having the bag in your Pulk all day meant that when it came out to sleep in, there would actually be visible ice that you had to crawl into, which was always unpleasant, although it warmed up fairly quickly.  A small hole in the tent one night caused a wind to blow through around my feet, and I quickly lost feeling and had to stuff the hole best I could until the next day when it got repaired.

On the flip side however, I was completely unprepared for the sheer scale of the scenery we encountered.  I knew it was going to be incredible but sometimes it was almost too much to take in.  Some people I think would find that kind of remoteness quite unsettling, but I love it.  It’s impossible to describe the feeling of standing in a vast glaciated valley or in the middle of a huge lake, with an hour’s walk either side just to get to the edge, and in front and behind you maybe 100 miles of Arctic wilderness to the nearest community.  Huge glaciers hanging off vast mountains, some rising a good kilometre straight out of the ground, and beneath it all, 16 tiny people inching their way along.

Would I do it again?  Definitely – although I’d rather try and different location rather than the same again.  My only gripe with this area is the dependence on incredibly unreliable airlines.  We were lucky coming out, but as if to highlight the point, when we did fly out on Wednesday, we arrived in Iqaluit to discover not one piece of our luggage had gone on the plane.  It eventually turned up in Ottawa on the day (i.e. about 1 hour) before we were due to fly back to the UK.

The barriers to launching an attempt across Baffin are probably the reason why there are so few attempts, and why we saw only one other person on a skidoo for virtually the entire crossing.  As well as the flights, fuel, skidoo transfers, contingency planning and simply getting that number of people with kit to the start line is a huge operation in itself, and dealing with the Inuits never easy.  Again this is testament to our guides with Absolute Arctic.

So what next?  At Heathrow before we left the UK, Rich asked me if I’d be interested in an attempt of the Pole next year.  Obviously my reply was, let’s wait and see how this one goes!  On reflection however it doesn’t appeal – I loved this trip mainly due to the scenery, the mountains, lakes and fiords.  On the Pole, it’s basically sea ice for 3 weeks and a very long slog.  There is no definite goal either – just co-ordinates.  So I’ve declined that offer, and think my next trip – if only for contrast – will be a summer Expedition!

Once we’re settled in the Lodge there’s a lot of admin to sort out – all our kit must be prepared for flying out, which includes ditching all the food which can’t be used (the locals are very happy to receive the chocolate and sweets we haven’t eaten), and all the remaining fuel must be disposed and fuel bottles thoroughly cleaned before going on the planes.  We have time to sit down, chat and reflect on our accomplishment as we watch the weather close in around us, and thank Rich for pushing us to get out before it got too bad.  I manage to make a call out to my parents to tell them we’ve made it and I’m surprised to find a lump in my throat when I tell them we’ve succeeded and are all out safe and well.  It’s only talking to people who weren’t on the trip that it starts to settle in what we’ve accomplished.

It was, after all, only one week.  But one of the most incredible week’s of my life, and will be fondly remembered.

Overlord Shelter to Pangnirtung Fiord

0800 – 1800 approx 27km.  An early start and another long slog today, although the going was easier after a short stint on ice rubble packed up at the mouth of the Fiord, we hit flat sea ice mostly covered with a few inches of snow.  The skis came back out and we really started to burn the miles, as the sun came out again and layers came off.  Even if sub-zero temperatures as I took off my outer thermal layers and rolled down my windsuit, I noticed my own smell today, which can’t be a good sign!

Morale high today even though many I think our thinking more of hotel rooms than tents, now we’re out of the Park – it helps that being on a huge open Fiord we can easily walk in pairs and everyone spent the day chatting.

We had one slight detour as we aimed to cross an ice boulder field this morning, but when we got there one of the guides scouted ahead for a path and found some of the boulders shifting under his weight.  This is too dangerous for us all to drag Pulks over, so we had a 1 hour detour going around the long side of the island in the middle of the Fiord, across the flat sea ice.  Nobody complained.

This evening I sewed up two big holes by the tent door.  There is wind this evening and you can really feel it taking our warmth away, and overnight would make a big difference even inside our sleeping bags.  We traded our freeze dried beef stew for lamb with another tent this evening – we’ve had beef twice already and my Colman’s mustard is a great compliment to the lamb, so everyone’s happy.  We have to dig shallow snow for water since we’re now very much on sea ice – digging deep we’d get salt in our water, but camping near the coast line I walk inland slightly to take snow from the edge.

Tomorrow we’ll be at Pang, and none of us are talking about the possibility of camping outside the community for a few nights until we can get a flight out.  With the weather closing in the chances of a Wednesday flight are looking less likely, but even with that flight we still have two more nights in sleeping bags.

Thor Shelter to Overlord Shelter

The long slog.  15 miles and bloody hard work today.  Crampons falling apart under my feet, lots of ice down the Weasel River, wind around Windy Lake Bridge and when we had to come off the river, we were pulling Pulks over rocks, gravel, ice, snow and everything in between.  A few people had falls – Lucy has injured her ankle, Rosanna her knee, a few blisters and generally morale is quite low.  We have a weather window closing behind us with cloud and wind moving up – there’s a concern that if we’re out here when it comes in, we’ll be stuck for a few days and will miss our flight from Pang.  The weather is due to be closed in completely by Wednesday, which is the day of our flight, so we’re pushing to get in for Tuesday morning, if not Monday, which will be a hard push.  We didn’t stop much today for photos or breaks generally, and once we were past Crater Lake, it was clear we were aiming for Overlord Shelter which is at the entrance to the Park itself.  We’ve basically covered two days of walking in one day.

We got around Windy Lake Bridge though to Windy Lake Shelter, which is just above the Arctic Circle at 66° 30 North.  This was where the previous attempt from the South got stuck for three days in 2006.  In that group were two of our guides – Richard and Andy – and one of us guests – Nucky.  When we sighted the Shelter, Nucky pushed ahead and by the time we all arrived and unclipped our Pulks, she was sat on the hut step, with the visitor book she’d written in two years ago.  Her entry then was “I will be back”.  Her entry today “I’m back”.  And she promptly burst into tears (although she’ll hate me for telling everyone).  When I took a photo she put her glasses back on to hide them.

Shortly after setting off we arrived at the marker for the Arctic Circle and stopped for the obligatory photos.  Being quite cold I pulled my Epilepsy Action sponsors T-Shirt over my windsuit, and had a picture taken that makes me look like the biggest pie-eater in Canada!  On reflection I think I would rather have braved the cold for what may be a once-in-a-lifetime picture!

With Richard – normally bring up the rear – out in front driving us on we made Overlord Shelter at the entrance to the Park around 6pm by which time everyone was shattered, having put on a hard pace with few stops all day.  At dinner Andrew surprised us by producing a bag of dried cranberries, which were an absolute God-send.  We’re now ahead of schedule and only have 2 days on the Fiord ahead of us – weather permitting.  The Fiord should be flat and quite fast going assuming we don’t have lots of ice, so we can afford to burn extra fuel this evening, which is a welcome relief for me since I’m feeling dehydrated and am drinking lots of water.  This evening I cut twice the amount of snow blocks we would normally for melting.  This last day there hasn’t been much decent snow to mix with thermos water so my two litres didn’t go as far as usual.

There’s a strange feeling in the group – we have now walked from the North to the South of the Auyuittuq National Park, and all that stands between us and getting out of here, is 31km of Pang Fiord.  It feels a bit like the Expedition is now over, which is slightly dangerous – a bit like getting to the top of a mountain and feeling that you’ve achieved your goal.  Of course, the Expedition – like being on top of a mountain – is not over until we’re all safely home, and it’s important not to let basic admin go out the window or to start slacking off.  We still have a least one night on the ice and a good 2 days walking ahead of us.  We have to stay hydrated, fed and look after our tents, ration our fuel and supplies as if an Arctic storm were coming in and we were going to be out here another 3-4 nights.  There’s also a possibility that when we get to Pang we could end up sleeping out on the sea ice until we can get a flight out – a sobering thought!

It’s a nice feeling though, to think that our challenge was to walk this National Park in Baffin Island from the North to South, and that we’ve achieved that.  I’ll allow myself a bit of self-congratulation as I nestle into my (cold, wet) sleeping bag this evening.  Today for the first time I allowed myself to talk to Mark about what I’ll do when I get to Ottawa – I’m thinking a barber, some new clean clothes and an Italian restaurant with a good bottle of red wine!  I know we’ve only been out here a week, but one hell of a week and it feels a lot longer!

I’ve just been told we’ll be breaking camp at 8am tomorrow morning – Rich I think is aiming to get us to Pang – or very close to it – in one day.  That’s 31 km and will be tough going.

Summit Lake to Thor Shelter

0900 – 1700.  We set off and clear Summit Lake, Summit Lake Shelter and the Warden Hut at the SW entrance to Weasel River before our first break – quite a long first slog.  It felt like a long slog today since we constantly had our destination – Thor Shelter at the base of Thor Peak – in view but never seemed to quite get there, right until the end!  We covered around 10 miles as we start the descent, which means we’re well and truly past the half way point and there’s only one way out, which has definitely boosted morale.

Weather turned slightly today but threatening high winds – we could see on the tops of mountains – and a cloud front never fully materialised, although a noticeable drop in temperature with sun trying to break through cloud.  We’re moving better with less stops – probably also to do with less sun and lower temperatures, but with less stops it’s important to take on more water when we do stop to prevent dehydration.  This evening the wind has picked up and the tent is being knocked about, but we’re a long way off a proper Arctic storm so despite a few small tears in the tent, nothing to worry about.

Our main problem today was a section of river that we were concerned wasn’t strong enough to support us.  We came off the river onto the bank but there was limited snow cover which made pulling the Pulks hard work over rough terrain.  We had a surprise pass on the way down of a skidoo coming up, which was a welcome sight – if he can make it up, we can make it down!  Our other problem were the crampons – it’s hard work keeping them on the larger sized boots (which includes my size 12’s) and I only managed to keep one on consistently, making best use of both poles when the other foot went down.  Walking across pure ice though was incredible, and I’ve some amazing pictures.  The Pulks skid around on the slightest gradient and you have to second guess where it’s going next so you can brace your footing without risking a twisted knee or ankle.  The Pulks are connected from an upper body strap with two lengths of rope, connected with a bungee.  The bungee acts as a spring and really comes into it’s own when the Pulk starts sliding around, so there’s no sharp pulls – just gentle tugs.

Our total descent today from 420m on Summit Lake to 150m at Thor Shelter, but as we continue the descent down Weasel River tomorrow we’ll hit the last of the big concerns at Windy Lake Bridge, where the valley acts as a funnel and we’re guaranteed strong winds.  Two years ago they spent 3 days stuck there, rebuilding snow walls to protect the tents every 3 hours.  However, on that aborted attempt they were travelling south-north, and since we’re coming from the north and will be way beyond our halfway point, even if we get stuck there a few days, we’re still going to Pang!  That’s reassuring to know.

Our camp site is simply stunning – we’re camped next to Thor Shelter, which is a tiny hut with solar powered emergency radio, and a tiny toilet block.  The toilet block is an oil drum with a hole cut in the top, and smells so bad I’d prefer our usual snow hole in the ground!  However, a break from the wind is a light relief.  The shelter hut also has a visitor’s book in which we have added all our names to.  I walked up the bank behind our tents to try and get a shot of the tents with Thor towering above.  I ended up walking for over 20 minutes before I was far enough away to get the huge piece of glaciated rock in one picture – it’s an incredible sight.  It’s as if a massive ice-cream scoop has just chopped half the mountain away in one go.  Given the wind that usually plagues this valley, there’s not a lot of snow on the ground and finding places to get a secure footing for the tents was hard work.  More so finding suitable snow to melt for water.  After a few days of intermittent use my ipod battery has virtually died, but the Power Monkey I brought along is doing a good job of recharging the battery.  We did a lot of single-file walking today since with Pulks skidding around it’s not safe to be close together, and the ipod was a welcome companion.

Owl River/June Valley to Summit Lake

0900-1730.  Blue skies most of the day, gentle breeze picked up to wind on lake in afternoon and felt the cold.  Some put wind-mits on and a number of people really felt knackered by the end of the day.

After finishing the walk down the valley we climbed up to Glacier Lake which is the only steep climb of the trip.  Slow going and on a number of occasions 2 people dragged one sledge up, and returned to pull the other up.  Real team effort as some struggled more than most, but all made it up without incident.  At the entrance to Glacier Lake we’re standing at the bottom of Norman, Highway and Rundle Glacier, all snaking their ways back up into the mountains around us.  Quvneq Glacier bulges like a huge ice blister from the top of Mount Alvit above us.  There are lots of pressure fractures on the lake and where the ice is exposed you can see thousands of tiny air bubbles frozen into the ice.  As we rounded the moraine field at the bottom of Turner Glacier onto Summit Lake, we got our first glimpse of Mount Thor in the distance, and the vast expanse of Summit Lake was simply breathtaking.  I had to stop for a few minutes to take it all in – took a picture but it barely seems enough to do the scale of the sight in front of us any justice.  We also saw the edge of the Penny Ice Cap today – I’d love to get up there.

We found a slightly sheltered spot in the moraine field of Branstock Glacier since we’re lightly to have winds tonight down the Lake.  We’ve built a small snow wall in front of the tent in case the winds pick up, and with high mountains close either side, we lose direct sunlight fairly early and the temperature drops quickly.

Putting up the tent a pole snaps – fortunately this is one thing we have spares for but with only one tent’s worth of poles, we can’t afford many more breaks.  I also felt quite dizzy when we stopped today, and realised I hadn’t taken on enough water through the climb.  It’s so easy to forget what a dry environment we’re in and how easy it is to dehydrate.  I’ve decided that every morning and evening I’ll have 2 cups of water before doing anything else.

This evening using the temperature gauge with a remote sensor, without wind-chill we record -24C outside the tent, while inside with burners on, the temperature is up to +32C!

Our position puts us 37km to Overlord which we could reach on Sunday if the weather holds out, then another 2 days to Pang hence 29th, which would give us a 1 day margin, which is very reassuring.

June Valley to Owl River

09:20 strike camp to 17:00 – around 9 miles

We’re walking gradually uphill along the Owl River through June Valley, and I’m getting a sense of how difficult it is to judge distance.  I think it’s the clarity of the air – last night I thought we camped about half an hour from a turn in the valley.  3 hours after setting off, we finally reached it!  Still have beautiful weather – unfortunately it’s not due to last but generally we have a light wind, blue skies and sunshine.  Since we’re walking South we have the sun on our faces all day and despite 2 layers of sun screen I still caught the sun.

Looking at the map this evening I notice there are very few names for the mountains we pass.  According to my map “Feature names are uncommon in the northern part of the Pass, a testament to its relative isolation and as a deliberate contrast to the busy naming period of the 1950/60’s for the southern part.”  We did get our first glimpse of Mt Asgard today though – a strange sight like a huge rock table top that has been dumped in the middle of the mountains.  At 2010m high it apparently has the highest pure vertical cliff face in the world, and was the scene of the James Bond sequence at the beginning of “The Spy Who Loved Me”.

Finding my Pulk much easier to pull than I’d anticipated, I’ve off-loaded some of Andy’s gear into mine – spare tent poles and a meal box.  May well regret it tomorrow when we do the big climb up to Summit Lake at 420m.  What I am noticing however is how everything is an effort out here – from the moment we wake up in the morning and starting pumping the fuel bottles, to digging out Pulks and trying to de-ice the tent poles (being careful not to touch them with bare hands) without breaking them so we can collapse the tent and all the rest of the admin, before we even start walking.  Then throughout the day it’s a fine line between making good progress and trying not to sweat, which will make the few clothes we have wet and prone to freezing while we’re wearing them.  In the evenings, there is no such thing as just having a cup of tea – snow must be cut, fuel bottles filled and pumped, snow melted, water sieved and only then are we ready for a drink.  But we’re getting into the routine and despite the work we don’t really notice it as an effort.

North Pangnirtung Fiord to June Valley

I wake up around 04:30 desperate for a pee.  I quickly resign myself to the fact I’ve just got to get the first one over with and force myself up to a kneeling position in my bag, grab my pee bottle (a plastic 1 litre flask) and have my first pee in the Arctic.  All the time I’m in my sleeping bag, one finger just inside the bottle to make sure I don’t overfill – peeing inside a sleeping bag would not be pleasant.  Fortunately it transpires I’m not in the “1 Litre” club but have a 7-800ml bladder.  Being in the middle I now have to reach over one tent mate, unzip the inner fly sheet and poor the contents carefully into the snow, being sure not to hit any of our outer boots.  Doing this very slowly – spilling urine in the tent is a nightmare since drying anything in the Arctic virtually impossible – by the time I’ve finished I’ve started to lose feeling in my fingers and ears.  Once back in the bag I’m quickly warming up, but the reality of Arctic life is settling in.

I wake up again around 6am.  I have cold water dripping onto my face.  As I open my eyes I can see ice crystals all around the hood of my sleeping bag – only my mouth and nose are exposed as I sleep, and the condensation quickly freezes to the bag in elaborate formations.  As I’m breathing out, the warm air is melting some of the ice and it’s dripping back onto me.  With most of my clothes inside my bag I start to feel restricted and frustrated I have so little movement, and quickly decide I’ve got to get up and out of the tent.

I start pulling out clothes and putting them on – inner thermal layer, outer thermal layer, inner gloves, two layers of socks, fleece, full body windsuit, inner thermal boots, outer gloves, windproof hat, face mask, Arctic sunglasses, thermal Rab jacket, and then I attempt to get over Treve without waking him (not very successful) open the inner door and in a hunched position pull on two outer “Baffin” boots that have almost totally frozen solid.  Through all of this every brush with the tent brings down flakes of ice, some hitting my neck and running down my back.  Doing up the frozen laces with cold hands is a challenge beyond me at this point and I’m desperate just to get out.  I unzip the outer fly sheet, zipping both doors closed behind me, and just walk quickly away from the tents for a few minutes, taking some deep breaths which sting the back of my throat.  All I can think is we’ve got 8 nights of this – and I’m wondering what the hell I’m doing here.

And then I stopped to look at the view – a vast glaciated valley with dawn breaking over the mountains stretching as far as I could see in both directions, and in the middle, 4 green tents, and aside from last nights’ skidoo tracks, not a single other person or man-made object in sight.

I can honestly say from that point onwards, there was no other point on the entire trip when I regretted being there, or wished to be anywhere else.  I documented the moment with a picture and panoramic video, and went back to the tent for breakfast.

Daily Routine

Since our days followed a very similar format, I’ll run through it here:

6-6.30am – MSR Stoves on, warm up tent, boil water for day, breakfast of water, tea, hot Alpen then around 8-8.30 stoves off, kit on and tent down, packed into Pulks (the proper name for a sledge towed behind you as I discovered), and off we set.  At breakfast I would also take a few multi-vitamins and cod liver oil to compliment my diet, which was mostly dry food high in calories.

8.30-5/6pm – we walk throughout the day stopping every hour for around 5 minutes when everyone takes on water and food from their day bags.  Water, day bags and thermal Rab jackets are stored in the front of the Pulk for quick access, and the usual format – especially with skies on – is to give the Pulk a quick tug and slide it between your legs so you can sit down and pull out everything you need easily.  In those temperatures long stops would get too cold, even with the extra thermal layer on.  Water is a scoop of snow in the thermos flask cup, melted with boiled water from the thermos.  It’s very dehydrating being in such a dry climate, so melting snow on the way stretches two 1 Litre thermos flasks to 3 or 4 Litres.  Day bags are large freezer bags – one for each day of the 8 day trip plus 4 emergency bags each – full of boiled sweets, chocolate, biscuits, raisin bars and an assortment of other goodies.  I say goodies, but can honestly say that by the end of the trip, I never wanted to touch chocolate ever again.

Walking was on average (including stops) a leisurely 2 mph.  We usually walked either in pairs or single file – with full thermal kit on it’s not easy to have conversations hence the iPods.  iPods and cameras have to be stored close to the body to prevent the batteries freezing up – in my case they were zipped into my inner thermal layer.

5/6pm – depending on how everyone was feeling and our mileage, we’d aim to have tents up while the sun was still on us.  I tried to get my body into a routine of going for a Number 2 (sorry but I know you were thinking about it) at this point since it was much warming generally than the mornings.  Hygiene is paramount in such a remote location so toilet spots are quickly defined well away from where we cut snow for melting into water, and the two different shovels are colour coded, clearly marked and carried on separate sledges to avoid contamination.

With tents up one person goes into the tent and starts arranging the two layers of thermal flooring – one layer of carry mats with a further crossed layer of therma-rests over the top.  While this is going on, one person sorts out the fuel bottles and stoves – refilling if necessary – while the other two secure the tent, pile snow up around the perimeter to stop wind getting under the fly sheets, and then pass all the other personnel kit and food into the tent, finally arranging and securing the sledges around the perimeter.  Stoves are put on once the tent is secure, and the long process of snow melting for water carries on for the few hours it takes to have dinner, repair any kit, wash (usually a baby wipe defrosted over the stove), sterilise hands, look after feet, dry gloves and socks if necessary, then around 8.30pm, stoves off and quickly into sleeping bags.  Once the stoves are turned off, the temperature falls quickly inside the tent.

It was also around this time I would write my log.  Dinner was usually a few cups of water, a cup of soup, and a freeze dried meal complimented often with my Colmans Mustard (especially good with the lamb and pilaf!).  We had a lot of pork scratchings in our rations which were a real God-send.  The high burn rate during the day would leave my body desperate for salt.

Our first day was very warm – starting around -20C with a real feel with the sun out of probably not much less than -10C, with no wind, which made it a good opportunity to get the Epilepsy Action “Out in the Open” T-Shirt on for a photo!  We only managed about 6 miles today as people got used to their kit and found their pace, but by the afternoon – after a fair bit of messing around in the morning – we’re moving quite well.  The biggest problem today was the sun needing lots of sun screen for our faces.  The surface we’re walking over has a light level of snow with the occasional bit of grass poking through, but on the whole it’s a lot easier pulling the Pulk along than I thought it would be.

The sheer scale and feeling of remoteness exceeds any of the expectations I had for the trip – it truly is astounding being out here.

I spoke to Rich today who says now we’re moving, and with weather reports as they stand, he’s 70% confident we’ll be walking into Pangnirtung (“Pang”) in 7-8 days, which would obviously be great.  I really hope we get another few days of this weather, but we will need to step up the pace to 8-10 miles per day minimum if we’re going to make it.  We’d need to be at Summit Lake by 25th to guarantee we’d only be heading south on the way out, rather than turning around.

We stopped to camp at around 5pm to get tents up while we still had the sun on us, and I found a perfect rock for taking a dump – never had such good views we’ll on the loo!  Had my first Arctic crap and don’t think I’ll ever get used to it, although after 24 hours now on Arctic rations, I was relieved not to have diarrhoea.  It’s true what they say though – the best way to take a dump in the Arctic, is quickly.

After everyone was in their tents getting dinner on, I walked up to a small ridge above the camp site and took some pictures and video.  It’s an incredible feeling to be so remote with such stunning scenery, in the knowledge that you’d have to go about 100 miles in either direction to get to the nearest settlement.  The air is so clear that mountains miles away are sharply defined, and it makes it difficult to judge distance.  It’s so quiet it’s difficult to imagine there’s anything else going on in the world.

Having got a few miles under our belts and with everyone that bit more confident in putting up tents and using stoves, morale is noticeably improved.

Iqaluit to Pangnirtung to Qikiqtarjuaq (Broughton Island)

We’re off!  And despite all the horror stories all our kit along with 16 intrepid Arctic Explorers make both the flights and are ready for the final leg to the start point.  On our last flight over the park we have our first views of the terrain we’ll be walking across – a vast expansive Arctic Wilderness of mountains and glaciated valleys.  The air is excited but slightly anxious.  Nervous laughter greets the odd joke.  Our last duty as we arrive in Broughton Island is to pick up our white fuel for the stoves, decant the cans into fuel bottles and load up into skidoo trailers for the transfer into the Park.  I’m pleased to hear that due to Polar Bear activity, we’re being taken in further from the sea ice than we’d planned.  Losing the distance we’ll accomplish is annoying, but after all the local stories and conversations I’ve had, my mother will be happy we’re erring on the side of caution.  I’m sure she wants her fur collar back unstained.

The wooden skidoo trailer is uncomfortable to say the least.  We are togged up with every bit of kit we have available for a journey across the sea ice and take it in turns to be in the middle – the warmest place to be.  We sit 3 or 4 per trailer all facing backwards with sledges packed on the front and rear.  One person takes a turn at absorbing the bumps against the wooden back board, while the last person as the most exposed has the hardest job staying warm.  Wedged in the middle is light relief.  I also take a turn riding on the back of the skidoo, but find trying to hang on with three layers of gloves virtually impossible and by the time my hour is up, my thighs are aching.  The skidoo is constantly dipping into deep snow on alternate sides which the driver skilfully rides out of, but the effect for the passenger reminds me of sidecar riders in professional motorbike racing, without the handholds.  Every hour we stop to get out, run around, warm up and have a breather before carrying on.  Progress at 20mph max is painfully slow and after a 2.30pm start we finally reach our drop off point 6 hours later.  Some are feeling motion sickness not helped by diesel fumes, but not long after we have tents up and are cooking our first meal on the ice.

We’ve also had our first problem – during the skidoo transfer one bundle of skis flipped off a sledge, breaking two skis beyond repair.  The guides assure us this is not a problem, but someone will have to go without.

My first meal of soup, water and freeze dried beef bourguignon goes down well, but moral amongst the group is low.  It’s cold, the reality of what we’re doing has hit everyone, a number are feeling sick from the skidoo transfer, and of course on the first night few people other than the guides are sure about what they’re doing.  One of the tents has a problem with the valve on their fuel bottle causing flames to shoot up – quick thinking gets the fuel board out before any damage is done to the tent but the fear now is in everyone’s mind – we’re not carrying any spare tents, it’s very cold and they’re our only means of shelter.  I also realise just how incredibly dehydrated I am from 6 hours on the skidoos without a drink and kick myself for making such a basic error so early on.  After boiling up enough water to fill 2 flasks for each person in the tent and after meals are eaten, stoves are turned off and immediately I feel the temperature start to drop.  Sleeping bags are quickly gotten into and at 10.30pm, exhausted after a long day, I’m quickly asleep.

Iqaluit - final thoughts...

23:00 – this is it.  Last night in a bed, last chance for a shower, and last food that’s not been freeze dried.  Everyone is making last minute adjustments to kit, deciding what little luxuries to take with them (books are heavy to pull but sitting in a tent for 3 days in an Arctic storm could get pretty tedious).  We fill two thermos flasks each with boiled water and set alarms for 4.30am.  We’re told the current temperature in North Pangnirtung Fiord – our start point – is -39C with windchill.  I double check the stitching of mum’s fur collar I’ve sewn into the hood of my windsuit – it’s obscenely large compared to anyone else’s but I don’t care, and I’m rather proud of the job I’ve done!  In my personal kit I’ve got a 7 day pill pot with a small cocktail of vitamins, a small tube of Colman’s mustard, a sewing kit, power monkey, iPod, spare camera batteries and memory stick, Leatherman, baby wipes, vaseline, deck of cards and a book.  I also take a tourist map of the park, waterproof notebook and printout of all my sponsors with their comments – I have a quick last read before going to bed.

Iqaluit - Training and Prep Day

What’s the coldest I’ve ever been?  A few years back I was skiing in the Monashee Area of Canadian British Columbia, when the temperature dropped suddenly from around minus 30C to minus 40C.  The guides made a quick decision to helicopter us off – it wasn’t an immediate danger, but the danger of someone injuring themselves and lying in the snow while others hang around in the bitter cold.  I remember seeing an exposed piece of cheek on one of the skiers turn white in front of my eyes, and remember my gloves going as stiff as cardboard, and feeling a cold that seemed to penetrate my bones.  I had a full body thermal layer on, windproofs, fleece and ski jacket, with two layers of gloves, hat and facemask, and I remember feeling incredibly exposed.

Today we don full kit and practice skiing out on the sea ice with our touring skis.  They’re very light, and have a toe-only binding allowing a heel lift for a walking motion, and scallop-shaped cuts in the wax base which allow the ski to glide forward, then bite the snow to provide traction when you pull back.  They’re excellent for our use – they’ll stop us sinking into soft snow and allow a glide on flat or slightly downhill terrain.  After a few laps most are happily taking confident strides – this is the one thing we weren’t able to properly practice in the UK.

Ottawa to Iqaluit

The next morning we’re on the first of three First Air flights – the local and incredibly unreliable local airline which services the Northern parts of Canada – which will take us to Iqaluit – the capital of the Nunavut region which encompasses Baffin Island.  Despite the horror stories of previous expeditions we arrive with only one sledge missing – which thankfully arrives on the evening flight.  We get our first taste of the cold weather and the incredibly deprived level of living in the Inuit communities – the local newspaper has 8 Alcoholic Anonymous meetings advertised (even though it’s supposed to be a dry community), and very little evidence of industry, aside from major outside companies setting up mining camps.  There’s even a picture diagram of how to wash hands, counsellors offering help on home abuse, and a story about a shooting they think was part of an escalation of shootings designed to get the best headlines.  The biggest concern on my mind were the two Canadian women on the plane next to me who didn’t ask me if we were taking guns, but how many.

That evening we have a meeting with the National Park Office to register, which we have to do before entering the park.  Part of the questionnaire includes questions such as “would you be prepared to assist in a rescue”.  We’re reminded a skidoo rescue would take minimum 2-3 days, and that would be weather dependent.  We’re briefed on the use of radios in the few shelters in the Park, and told there has been 1 successful attempt this year, another 2 groups have been pulled out, and we will be 1 day behind a team of 2.  5 attempts and no others planned.  Most of the 500 annual visitors to the park – well over 400 – are summer visitors, and most hike the summer trail, which of course excludes any sea ice.  The bulk of the meeting however is taken up with advice on dealing with Polar Bears – the usual useful stuff about not running, sticking together in large groups and trying to make yourself look larger and louder, and oh, don’t look a polar bear in the eyes.  I wonder just how close you’d need to be to look into a polar bears eyes, and if I was that close, just how big and loud I’d have to make myself to intimidate the beast.  Call me selfish, but I work on the Safari principle – you don’t have to be the fastest man in the jungle, just faster than the slowest.  Firearms are not allowed in the park – the principle being that shooting Polar Bears is only allowed in self defence, and there seemed to be an awful lot of ‘defence’ going on.  Hence we’re carrying a small arsenal of other kit – flares and so on.  Polar Bears appear to dislike large groups, and 16 is a large group by any stretch – that’s what I console myself with as I try to get to sleep that night, and pledge never to be the last man in the group.

Apparently alcohol and drugs are not just a big problem for Inuits out here due to social reasons, but also as their bodies simply can’t cope with it.  Everywhere seems to have its own by-laws and Iqaluit does have limited alcohol available.  As I leave the bar opposite the hotel, the Inuit in front of me walks straight into the door frame, as if to prove the point.

Heathrow to Ottawa

We all arrive at Heathrow amidst a pile of red and blue sledges, black bags and our own carry-on luggage, quickly sort the confusion into a more organised form of chaos, and successfully manage to check in all kit for the first of four flights that will – hopefully – get all 16 of us with all our expedition kit to the start line on Baffin Island for Monday afternoon.  All checked-in luggage must weigh no more than 23kg and a few items are thrown around the hall before all bags are accepted.  “Did you pack the bag yourself” - “well, define ‘yourself’ – yes of course I did, with 15 others who I kept eyes on all the time”.  “Has the bag been left unattended at any time” – “you mean since I drove to the Cotswolds 2 weeks ago for the packing weekend and left 16 sledges and 16 other large bags with Andy and Richard – I’m sure they had them in their bedrooms every night….”.  A few hundred quid later for some excess weight and we’re on.

There’s something horribly intimidating about any immigration officer, in particular those working in North America – America or Canada.  “Are you here on business or pleasure” – it’s definitely not business so I chose the latter.  “And what is your final destination in Canada” – “Baffin Island” – “and what are you planning on doing there” – “we’re going to walk across it”.  He stops staring at his screen and stares straight at me – “you’re what?!”.  “We’re going to try and walk across the National Park from North Pangnirtung Fiord”.  He pauses - “are you bringing firearms into Canada” – “no, just expedition equipment”.  “Why not?”.

We’re in Canada, all kit accounted for and checked into the Lord Elgin Hotel and smugly I take a dip in the pool, being the only one who remembered to pack a swimming costume.