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Solo across Antarctica


j_b

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From the article, it sounds like the burliest land-based adventure record by a human. Apparently, if I interpret the story correctly, she did this entirely under her own power. Which would seem to indicate that any male that completed this same task before her used "kites or machines" of some kind.

 

Truly astonishing...

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I can't remember if Ousland used a sail for Antarctica in the mid-90's, but he also crossed the arctic solo. It's not technically land-based but the range of my burly meter doesn't extend that far to differentiate (although the Arctic sounds like a longer trip)

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I think a crossing from the Weddell Sea to the Ross Sea (what Aston did) is what has been done in the past. Ousland (mid-90's solo traverse) used pretty much the same itinerary but he went all the way to McMurdo station, which is significantly further because it is on Ross Island near the edge of the ice-shelf. He also started from some island on the edge of the Weddell Ice-shelf rather than at the land/ice-shelf margin. All told Aston's trip is ~1100km shorter than Ousland.

 

Perhaps, this will be a source of inspiration and we'll hear about NotMessner doing the East Antarctica to West Antarctica traverse? :crazy:

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I can't remember if Ousland used a sail for Antarctica in the mid-90's, but he also crossed the arctic solo. It's not technically land-based but the range of my burly meter doesn't extend that far to differentiate (although the Arctic sounds like a longer trip)

 

Ousland did have a kite/sail, but if I remember right he only had one size wing and one length of cords - today most kite-skiers in Antarctica will have three different size wings and three different length cords to address wind strengths/elevations. But the tech was still new in 1996, so I think he only used it occasionally. Regardless, what he did was phenomenal and I was lucky to be standing at the ice shelf/island transition on Ross Island when Ousland pulled up in January 1997. The coolest memory - his children had gotten to draw and color on the tops of his skis during their construction - inspiration and motivation to come home!

 

Just got home on Wednesday from my eighth season on the Ice. Every time is fantastic.

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Borge's effort, and that by Rjune Gjeldnes a decade later, are the benchmarks, imo. When Borge crossed solo, kites were not considered 'support' or 'assistance' by the polar community, as they are now.

 

In those days (early-mid 90s) the 'edge' was considered the outside of Berkner Island and the outer edge of Ross Island (McMurdo), as the ice shelves had always been considered part of the continent, but money, convenience and other factors led to the 'inside' land-edge, usually Hercules Inlet, being considered an OK start, leading to shorter 'crossings' like those from the northern ends of the Leverett and Axel Heiberg Glaciers.

 

Neither Borge nor Rjune used resupplies or airdrops, whereas Felicity did - and Messner/Fuchs did too.

 

As mentioned above, Felicity's route is significantly shorter than those other trips. It might be a continental 'crossing' in letter, according to some, but not really in spirit. Rjune's distance record was broken a few days ago by some Belgians, but they have done a big circular route, not a crossing.

 

Not to denigrate what Felicity's done, it's a great effort and great to see a woman doing something like that, especially solo. She also, it is said, went much of the way along the 'road' constructed by tractors to and from the Pole. Not sure how accurate that is, maybe just light gossip, but that was the word going around, nor, if true, was she the only one to ski for at least some of their route on a 'road' - easing the navigational, sastrugi and crevasse issues quite a bit.

 

Trips should be judged on their own merits, but when you claim 'firsts' etc then you invite comparisons. It was a crazy season down there this year, lots going on. Lots of fun had.

 

D

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Ousland did have a kite/sail, but if I remember right he only had one size wing and one length of cords - today most kite-skiers in Antarctica will have three different size wings and three different length cords to address wind strengths/elevations. But the tech was still new in 1996, so I think he only used it occasionally. Regardless, what he did was phenomenal and I was lucky to be standing at the ice shelf/island transition on Ross Island when Ousland pulled up in January 1997. The coolest memory - his children had gotten to draw and color on the tops of his skis during their construction - inspiration and motivation to come home!

 

Just got home on Wednesday from my eighth season on the Ice. Every time is fantastic.

 

It sounds like you had a fantastic season on the ice. I am jealous.

 

I always wondered about the effectiveness of kites considering the pervasiveness of mean sastrugi, unless the sail is just an aid to pull the load.

 

 

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Borge's effort, and that by Rjune Gjeldnes a decade later, are the benchmarks, imo. When Borge crossed solo, kites were not considered 'support' or 'assistance' by the polar community, as they are now.

 

In those days (early-mid 90s) the 'edge' was considered the outside of Berkner Island and the outer edge of Ross Island (McMurdo), as the ice shelves had always been considered part of the continent, but money, convenience and other factors led to the 'inside' land-edge, usually Hercules Inlet, being considered an OK start, leading to shorter 'crossings' like those from the northern ends of the Leverett and Axel Heiberg Glaciers.

 

Neither Borge nor Rjune used resupplies or airdrops, whereas Felicity did - and Messner/Fuchs did too.

 

As mentioned above, Felicity's route is significantly shorter than those other trips. It might be a continental 'crossing' in letter, according to some, but not really in spirit. Rjune's distance record was broken a few days ago by some Belgians, but they have done a big circular route, not a crossing.

 

Not to denigrate what Felicity's done, it's a great effort and great to see a woman doing something like that, especially solo. She also, it is said, went much of the way along the 'road' constructed by tractors to and from the Pole. Not sure how accurate that is, maybe just light gossip, but that was the word going around, nor, if true, was she the only one to ski for at least some of their route on a 'road' - easing the navigational, sastrugi and crevasse issues quite a bit.

 

Trips should be judged on their own merits, but when you claim 'firsts' etc then you invite comparisons. It was a crazy season down there this year, lots going on. Lots of fun had.

 

D

 

It'd be interesting to know where you heard that gossip.

 

I don't know how many first were actually claimed by Ashton beyond that of the first female solo crossing of the continent. Media does tend to take it from there ..

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It'd be interesting to know where you heard that gossip.

 

I don't know how many first were actually claimed by Ashton beyond that of the first female solo crossing of the continent. Media does tend to take it from there ..

 

Where? In Antarctica - Union Glacier and South Pole.

 

If you claim a continental 'crossing' then it will be compared to other 'crossings' - like Borge's, Rjune's etc. As for womens' trips, in 2000-01 Liv Arnesen and Anne Bancroft skiied and kited 2747km across the continent, from near the Queen Maud Land coast to the inside edge of the Ross Ice Shelf. Liv had already been the first woman to ski solo to the South Pole, 1130km from Hercules Inlet, in 1994.

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Firsts of this nature often have an element of arbitrary nomenclature that tends to obscure the accomplishments of others. Although aid from a tractor track is contradictory with the "human powered" claim seen in the media, it also would have occurred only on the shorter leg of the trip.

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Firsts of this nature often have an element of arbitrary nomenclature that tends to obscure the accomplishments of others.

 

Agreed, although it is often deliberately arbitrary. In this case, given the mostly-accepted definitions and categories of the activity in question, I think her claim is fine.

 

Although aid from a tractor track is contradictory with the "human powered" claim seen in the media, it also would have occurred only on the shorter leg of the trip.

 

No, there was also a track to the Pole from near Union Glacier / Patriot Hills / Hercules Inlet area. It was on this track that another 'unassisted' team was found one day. It's nitpicking, I know, but it's like a climber claiming a solo ascent of, say, Everest, where the track has been put in by Sherpas and other climbers. But then maybe she didn't use it after all ...

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I don't think it's nitpicking as using tractor tracks seems to change the nature of the traverse significantly.

 

What was the purpose of a track from South Pole to Hercules Inlet? Isn't it much shorter from McMurdo to bring supplies?

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