Day 22: Today I found hell in Antarctica, and distance shows

File pic from Howard's North Pole expedition

86:55.002S 82:23.745W

Elevation 2076 metres. New biggest single day climb. It's bloody cold up here!

Well, as I was putting on my socks this morning, first job once I'm out of my cosy sleeping bag, I looked at my right foot, and didn't like what I saw: On the outside, just behind the small toe, was a sizeable swelling, like bruising, and very sore to touch. My boot can never naturally accommodate that, it just exacerbates the problem... Hmm, other than taking anti-inflammatories, I'd largely been in denial there was a serious problem. Breakfast was a bit of a sombre affair. I was thinking through all the options, even taking a day's rest, but "No, the show must go on" and I have hope that it will sort itself. I'll just try lace it loosely for the day. In all honesty I was concerned! Well....

Funny how things work out, hey? I had the best 'foot day' for weeks, finishing with no pain, but I had the worst day from shocking terrain point of view... It was hell out there today!

I managed 28.1 km, using the full 9 hours, so fairly pleased with that, as tomorrow I'll go through 87 degrees!

The day started well, great weather again, no wind and good, fast skiing surface. That means flat, no sastrugi, and a thin soft ice, almost snow, layer on top of solid ice. This is great for fast gliding.... First hour check I'd done 3.7 km. Perfect! Then things started changing, lots of sastrugi, and then a huge hill ahead. But to go the direction I wanted to go I had to angle across and up the hill. Right from the bottom of the hill I thought this surface felt different: It was as though many 'ice' plasterers had come with different techniques, leaving an effect where the surface was continuously changing, making it awkward and impossible to get any momentum. The predominant 'plastering' was glass-like, rock hard ice, and with my angle of travel up the hill, I end up slipping downhill on the treacherous surface... Hmmm, not fun. Sastrugi was everywhere, and either impossible to avoid or required large detours... When I came to sastrugi, I had to make an even bigger climb to get over its ridge, and the sled resistance increased more.... Anyway, I stumbled, and swore, but drove on ahead, and half way up a head wind picked up!

I sensed things were a bit 'cooler', but managing ok, I thought I'd wait for the rest stop to add mitts and windsuit top. Well I shouldn't have, because by the time I'd got to the rest stop, my core temperature had dropped, and I then had a 'difficult' fight to get my temperature (mainly my hands) back to normal. Usually it takes 10-20 minutes after I'm moving again, but this struggle went on for an hour. Probably due to the stop-go, slip-slide of the bad terrain. Ok, the cold was self inflicted, but the two together made for a very restless journey. I thought about how balanced and in sync with the environment I'd been earlier, and how peaceful and productive that was, but now it was horrendous. Balance (holistic), hey, it's so important...!

Eventually after a couple more hours, things settled down, and I made it to the top, to find a big plateau, and this was the next phase of 'Hell'!

The sastrrugi was larger, and running perpendicular across my direction of travel, and in between the sastrugi were big ridged, micro valleys and hills, making for short up and downhill skiing, but where I'd be going uphill and the sled a few metres behind going downhill..! Clearly my friend had had enough of the day too, but rather than deal with it 'herself', she took it out on me, violently tugging me backwards, with me landing on my bum on the ice, no less than 7 times! Crossing the large and complex sastrugi required each step to be considered, and often saw me strung precariously between two mounds with just the ski tips either end forming the bridge points. All slow going, quite stressful, and occasionally painful!
It required full concentration and come the end of the day, I was totally exhausted, mentally and physically.

The good news is (I think!) it's finished now and the surface for tomorrow looks pretty good again. It all suddenly changed 100 minutes before the end of the march today. Thankfully!

I'm wondering whether the struggle today is because I'm getting really fatigued. The build-up of day after day? I don't think so, as each day I feel I start as good as day 1. (Other than my foot, but that seems on a good track now). My recovery each day is astounding.... On stopping marching I'm totally and utterly knackered, but after warm tent, great food, a 'chat' with you guys, and good sleep I wake to a good breaky, and then ready to hit the road again. I'll just monitor the situation for now.

That's it for tonight, I need my bed badly!

All positive for a new day tomorrow

See ya

Day 18: Half way and a good one

85:52.805S 82:25.801W

Elevation: 1616 metres, biggest single day climb today....

You probably picked up from yesterday's blog that I was struggling a bit.... I woke today a bit worried whether things would go further down or spiral upward back to the positive days prior to 'Nunatak day'. It was mainly my right foot issue that was affecting me, but also I find reaching halfway comes with mixed emotions... It's like Wednesday of the working / school week: You are halfway through, but is that a long way you have come or long way still to go?

Well, with a total route distance of 914 km, I now have 461 to go, so almost spot-on halfway. That feels pretty good, and it also means Christmas day at the South Pole is a very real possibility, but 'Mother Nature' will no doubt decide!

Back to the start of today.....

I'm not a pain killer person, never take them, but today I packed 4 in my wind pants pocket, JUST IN CASE. I put an extra sock on my right foot (now 5 socks, including vapour barrier layer!). For those that haven't dragged a sled, it's not just like normal walking: one's back and shoulders are being yanked back, so your toes have to constantly fight back to keep the front of your boot from lifting upwards. When one really pushes the pace or has a very heavy sled, the toes get quite stressed, and almost need like a grab rail in your boot to help them claw back. This is the problem I have, where my toes and ball of my foot are now traumatised.... Anyway enough detail...

The extra sock helped a lot, I had a great day, and forgot about thee painkillers. Not that it's all hunky dory, it will take a while, but a least now I can manage the situation by wiggling my toes, yesterday I could do zip...

The day started with a moderate head wind, and in a big sastrugi obstacle park. I felt good, and patiently made detours around all the big ones... Not good terrain for getting into the zone, but I somehow managed a good average speed. Two hours later I was in exactly opposite terrain, not a sastrugi in sight, not even the occasional one, but just smooth VAST open desert... With the cloud shadow giving it a strange brown tinge, it really looked like warm desert sands, This was the start of the big hill today, but also perfect for getting in the zone, and so I did... The kilometres flew by, and my mind lapsed into a huge philosophical journey! Gee, I missed you on the other side of the debates... (I'll come back to the content later below.)

The now, infamous nunataks are STILL with me, but believe you me, I haven't been seduced again! Two days later they are stlll clearly visible, but other than them, it's just vaste ice wilderness. Today, as I stopped a few times to take it all in, it really hit me how vast and awesome it really is... strange shadows, magnificent skies, deceiving virtual hills and valleys, and nobody around, no sounds, other than the wind when it blows. I take my camera out, but almost each time I realise you can't capture on camera or video what I am experiencing and seeing... Photos will be scorned as showing nothing and that would be tragic, because there is SO MUCH in the scale of things and the experience. I use the 'Mother Nature' thing quite a bit, but today I thought , I'm SO small, and instantaneous in her vast timeless wilderness that 'she' is probably indifferent to my presence.

I managed 28, largely, painfree kilometres, in 9 hours of marching. To try and minimise further damage to my foot, I've decided that provided I'm over 25 km for the day, I'll stop at 9 hours.

You may wonder why I never mention the actual temperatures out here? Well, I'd been warned about Antarctica: At this time of the year it's not the still air temperature that is really cold, probably only -10 to -15 C. It's when the devilish wind blows, the windchill is biting. It's hard out here to estimate the temperature with windchill, but at the headwind peaks it definitely feels like the minus 30s. The worst is that one gets caught out by the warmish still temperature, almost becoming casual and complacent. Two of my fingers have big white frost nip blisters from just that, and most of my fingers are sensitive to touch from minor cold damage... I need to be more careful!

As I went through my planning tonight, it seems it's going to be touch and go as to whether I get to the Pole on or before Christmas day? I'll be pushing to try and do it, but largely weather wiill determine it. I plan to dump (burn off!) quite a bit of fuel soon, I have far too much, and can save 3-4 kgs.

So, my philosophical excursion today....

Well, I've been living out here for 18 days now, I'm halfway, and I asked myself: "So what are you craving for, what are you missing or needing?" I honestly couldn't find one item, thing, activity, etc. I then thought, that's a bit strange, because this life is SO different to breakfast at Empire café, socialising with friends, hours on the laptop, reading the latest news, etc, etc.

I definitely don't miss shopping, going to gym, paying bills, doing laundry and kitchen dishes, spermarkets, traffic, garbage duty, etc, etc. I'm eating the same basic food each day, wearing the same clothes each day, not shaving nor brushing my hair, not showering, I have no idea what's going on in the world, I haven't seen or spoken to anyone yet there is NOTHING I feel I need or want?? Not even a hot bath! Why in that 'other world', do 'we' need so much variety, external stimulation, so much socialising, news, gadgets, material pleasures, etc,etc? Strange hey, but why is this I asked?

The answer appeared to be in: I'm doing what I REALLY enjoy (holisticly), in a very spiritual aand healthy environment, ALL my BASIC needs are well satisfied, and above all I have huge meaningful, and all consumng PURPOSE. A purpose that is linked to me gaining 'personal height', a concept my friend Imi introduced to me back on our Yukon trip. As he said the words, I knew "That's what it's all about!" A sense of inner spiritual development that is free of ratification or approval, or motivated by others. It may involve others, but doesn't have to, and once gained, nobody can ever take that personal height away from you... A good concept.

Out here I have no need for the so called luxuries, boredom distractors, pampering, etc, and my life is SO simple, and free of clutter that I can get within myself and live and feel me!

So if some of this is true, then maybe it's all about having that meaningful and consuming PURPOSE? That then leads to the big question: So, what is the PURPOSE OF LIFE?

This took me back to day 35 in my full-on North Pole expedition, where in the same mind space as today, I had a Damascus experience, where I discovered my response to the question...! I''ll leave you with these thoughts and share with you further in the coming days...

Since 2004 I have been trying to live what I call 'Simply Adventure', a way of life which is Simple, as outlined above bit. But one also centred 'Simply' around adventure, because in adventure Ii find In can find myself and my soul, while still having strong meaningful purpose.

In sharing this with you I'm not trying to say I know the answers, and have it all sorted, I know many of you are much further down your own tracks... All I'm trying to do is share my exploring of an alternate approach.... And maybe it triggers a few thoughts for your journey...!

Lastly, this Blog and your participation, whether active or passive, provides a very important social / human connection for me, one that enables me to not have a craving need to 'get out of here', and be with friends / others....so thank you, it's a very special part of the 'not alone' part of 'Solo but not Alone'

Please feel free to post up your comments, disagreements, views, beliefs...It's all serious fun!

And you just thought this was a South Pole expedition, hey!

Off to bed, feeling very content... Bit of a wind outside, but nice and warm inside my little tent!