Tracking
the Journey

  • Distance to go: 0 Mi
    Distance

    Ben and Tarka will cover 1800 miles starting from Scott's Terra Nova Hut at the edge of Antarctica to the South Pole and back to the coast again. That's equivalent to 69 back-to-back marathons hauling up to 200kg each (the weight of roughly two adult men) of kit and supplies necessary to survive.

    Distances here are shown in statute miles.

90 Degrees South (Day 63)

Posted December 27th 2013,
by Andy Ward

Category: Expedition, The Return Journey

Day 63: S89° 52' 1.14", E178° 50' 19.32"

Duration: 18 Hr 00 Min

Daily distance: 35.3 Mi

Distance to go: 890.5 Mi

Temperature: -26 °C

Wind chill: -35 °C

Altitude: 9364 Ft

Yesterday evening at 20.35 GMT Ben and Tarka reached the South Pole and marked the halfway point of the Scott Expedition. They have since turned around and have started their journey skiing back to the coast 900 miles away.

Ben sends his apologies for not writing an update himself but after skiing 35.31 miles (56.83km) yesterday and almost 19 hours on thier feet he understandbly couldnt quite muster the energy to put pen to paper and express the emotions of this landmark day. Ben will be sending a full update in the next 24 hours once they have completed another days skiing. Ben and Tarka thank you all for your unwavering support that helped them reach the pole.

I am immensely proud of Ben and Tarka's achievement reaching the South Pole and in particular for having the strength to turn around and start the return journey back to the coast.

Today's photo was taken just before Ben and Tarka flew from Union Glacier to McMurdo at the start of thier expedition two months ago

Comments

# Richard Browning, December 27th 2013

Fantastic effort chaps! Homeward bound now.
You have us captivated, not least my two boys.
Crack on!

# George Chapman, December 27th 2013

Very glad to see the guys made it to the pole and are now heading home. It was exciting watching the journey from my warm home here in Florida. It will be nice seeing those photos and videos you made at the pole. So now we will follow you as you head home. I’m not sure if there is any real goal for getting back down. I’ve heard goals of 110 days total or 120 days but I’m not sure if any of these are absolutes. I would assume time is not extremely important. Take care guys and stay warm.

# Jen, December 27th 2013

Congratulations Ben and Tarka. A most fabulous achievement. I wish you well for your return journey.

# Lenin, December 27th 2013

How about press conference? ;)

# Alex Hibbert and team in Qaanaaq, December 27th 2013

Top class stuff and best wishes for the downhill bit.

# Rob Sheppard, December 27th 2013

Congratulations and well done for the 1st half of your epic journey.
Looking forward to hear how your big day went yesterday, and if you managed to sneak around the pole without being noticed :-)

# Rebecca, December 27th 2013

Congratulations to you both! Sending you thoughts of strength and good humor on the return trip. May it be uneventful!

# Christy, December 27th 2013

Awesome, well done!  Now for the hard and somewhat spooky part… May Mother Nature be kind to you on your return!

# Intrepid, December 27th 2013

Thank you for the update.

Presumptions/Assumptions/Imagined Possibilities - Although Ben and Tarka expressed their ideal pole and back circumstances, those at the pole may have spent many hours hatching a surprise welcome party/congratulations. Being English gentlemen, Ben and Tarka wouldn’t be in a pickle, they’d graciously say hello, acclimate to the situation (while still qualifying for what it means to be unsupported), be joyful, do what they came to do (sat pole calls), and be on their way again.

Ultimately, what matters is Ben and Tarka made it to the Pole and back to their tent for the night!! 35+ miles on day 63. Astounding!!  An epic half way mark with the beginning of the return. Congratulations!!!

# Jason, December 27th 2013

Wow! Posted a comment last night thinking you were approaching the Pole and in fact you had turned around and were on the way back, you made such incredible progress that you foxed me! Fantastic news, well done.

# matt, December 27th 2013

Great to hear you reached the pole safely.  And 35 miles in one day is remarkable.  Very well done.

# Intrepid, December 28th 2013

George, appreciate hearing about and posting the Huff link.

# SpareAlchemist, December 27th 2013

That’s just great! I’m happy for you, guys, it’s really a tough mission and you’ve just reached the half-point of it.
Wishing you good luck and calm weather ahead!

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