Tracking
the Journey
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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.
Nearly off the Plateau (Day 80)
Day 80: S85° 28' 5.81", E159° 49' 47.64"
Duration: 8 Hr 50 Min
Daily distance: 24.9 Mi
Distance to go: 585.1 Mi
Temperature: -21 °C
Wind chill: -31 °C
Altitude: 8215 Ft
A quick update as I'm in charge of the stove again tonight, we're both tired after another solid day's work down here (24.9miles (40.1km) in just under nine hours) and it's getting late as I type. We've descended about 150 vertical metres today; not a massive drop, but it meant that we had some stretches that were definitely downhill, and we were able to glide along with our sledges almost weightless behind us.
The surface has been pretty hard going, with a lot of sastrugi running in different directions, and it looks like there's been a lot of strong wind here since we last passed this way, as our tracks were almost impossible to pick out, and we travelled on a bearing for most of the day.
Despite having to put less effort into the dragging part of the exercise, I still feel beaten up lying here this evening; the now-puny muscles in my arms, shoulders, chest and back shocked at having had to brace with my ski poles countless times today to stop me falling over as we hurtled along on the good bits.
We should pick up our depot that marks the top of the Beardmore either tomorrow evening (if we cover a similar distance, as it's just under 24 miles (38km) away from here) or at some point on Tuesday morning. There's a clean pair of socks waiting for each of us, buried along with our cache of food and fuel, which is a surprisingly exciting prospect.
Comments
# Intrepid, January 13th 2014
Dear Ben and Tarka,
So many miles over so many days with so many people watching you from so many places around the globe. And all the while pushing yourself to the limits of bodily exhaustion and oft mental fatigue. Thank goodness for the ski pole!
Thanks for the update. It’s good to hear your voice. I am not sure why the self-criticism. Are there things not going as expected and it is hard to let go of this? Or maybe you have an image of yourself that is like a body builder hunky mondo man? You guys are still out there, still making the trip work. What is not amazing enough about that? You guys ARE AMAZING!!!!
Onward towards the socks… and then down Beardmore you go…
Cheers. Peace. Blessings.
# Ann L., January 13th 2014
Intrepid,
When you say you aren’t sure why the “self-criticism,” are you referring to Ben’s description of his upper body muscles? I didn’t read that as self-criticism, but rather as a candid description of the condition of his body. After many days of caloric deficits I would expect that both Ben and Tarka have lost all of their body fat and some muscle mass as well. Ben did say a number of days ago that they have both become quite lean.
# Intrepid, January 13th 2014
@ Ann L.
I appreciate your comment Ann. Yes, it seems I misread what Ben said about his puny muscles as well as why he has needed to lean on his poles. It did not occur to me that so much muscle could be lost as well as being a reason for the extra exertion. Thanks for bringing this to my attention.
Ben- my apologies for misinterpreting what you wrote and getting on your case .... I hope that you and Tarka maintain enough mass to stay strong!
# Dave, January 13th 2014
I am curious whether there are any plans to compare the findings of your post-expedition physical examinations with those of astronauts who have returned from long periods in space. Hopefully you won’t have to do much bracing with your ski poles on downhill runs. Is there any way to induce a bit of drag to prevent you from going too fast? “Hurtling” sounds risky.
# Rosie Vidovix Unsworth, January 13th 2014
Our boys have grown wings on their feet!
Keep up the good work and you will beat your deadline!
# jan, January 13th 2014
Hope you are saving all your socks for your mum to wash as most sons do. Nearly on the downward treck. Keep smiling, we are all with you both in spirit :-)
# bee, January 13th 2014
Mountains, weightless sledges, downhill, clean socks…
what’s not to love!
Careful on the descent, try not to pick up too much speed!
You continue to inspire and amaze :)
Stay safe and well
# Ana Belen , January 13th 2014
You guys are amazing! :) Saludos desde Boston
# Offroading Home, January 13th 2014
I don’t seem to ever be first in the morning to comment due to the time zones and need for sleep; BUT let me be the first to congratulate them - on clean socks!
What a day today! Navigating rough terrain, (by satellite view) even though it was down hill, turning the corner, blazing a new (more expeditious) trail, nearly meeting their record distance… and, making it back to clean socks and more food!
In case followers haven’t seen it, there’s an updated Google Earth Resource File - http://offroadinghome.blogspot.com/2014/01/scott-expedition-coming-home.html - which has buildings at the South Pole Station outlined so you can see, relatively, better what Ben and Tarka saw while they were there.
Additionally, there are tiny markers for every hour along the trail so you can guess better about the difficulty of that segment. Today, if you also turn on the MODIS image too, you can see their distances were slower over the lighter areas (high spots with more sun and warmer) and faster over the darker areas. If you squint and use your imagination you can almost feel them sleigh-riding down the hills. [Andy, that was a joke!]
Great going guys. It’s great to be able to watch you as you attain these interim goals—where do we go next? You got some new thermals stowed somewhere?
# Frederike, January 13th 2014
Dear Ben and Tarka,
I just stumbled on your Ted Talks, became curious about your 2013 expedition to the South Pole and then saw your blog and discovered you’re still ‘down there’. Just wanted to say ‘keep going’ and good luck! I hope you will come to Holland some time to give another talk and share your experience. Let me know when you do!
Frederike
# Chris Jeffcoat, January 13th 2014
Guys,
What you have done and what you have achieved so far is an inspiration to all who read your riveting blog.This is incredible and you should be extremely proud of yourselves.
Stay safe we are all with you in spirit.
# Zuena, January 14th 2014
Sorry, I ask, but did I understand that you don´t wash your socks? You have plenty of water and maybe in some cup you can do your tiny cloths washing. And in that temperature they will become dry after few days when they are hanging in the sled…first they are icesticks and little by little drying. Of course you want sometimes totally new ones.