Another picture perfect day today, but the team couldn’t shake the slow start
they got in the morning. They put in a long day of skiing ending at S 81.57.708,
W 82.10.080. If my math is correct (not always the case!) they traveled nearly
21.5 kilometers.

Bob cooking outside on one of
the recent calm evenings

The cold that had been
bothering Bob seems to be traveling a bit, giving some of the team members
scratchy voices and stuffed up noses, but nothing too terrible. The
terrain appears to be flattening out, and this has been a welcome change. Soon
the team will reach their first resupply.

A few people have asked
questions about resupplies, and how they are positioned. The resupplies are all
pre-positioned by plane so they are ready for the team when they arrive. The
resupplies were packed by the team prior to the expedition, while they were in
Punta Arenas. Everything that arrives in the resupply will need to be carried by
the team. Only once, at their second resupply, will they be able to leave
anything behind, such as their trash. The second resupply is positioned near a
regular refueling runway for South Pole flights and the team will be able to
pick up what they leave behind on their way back from the Pole.

We will
send more details about the resupplies as they occur. Needless to say the
resupplies are significant events, and milestones. It is great to have new
supplies of food and treats, but the sleds get heavy all over again!

Make
sure to listen to Bryony’s audio report from today and visit again tomorrow for
another update from the team!

The team reported that they had a good day with clear, sunny weather, but more
wind than the last few days with a speed of around 10 knots. Even with the
relative warmth of -15C a wind of 10 knots add a sharp sting to the air.
Needless to say they ate dinner inside tonight! They traveled 23.6 km today with
much of it uphill. Their current location is S 81.46.077, W 81.49.356

The
terrain is now bringing to take the shape of the imagined polar plateau. With
only the very tip of the Patriot Hills to the North on the horizon. They feel
that in the next two days they will be clear of that benchmark and onto the next
navigational feature which is two nunataks, a couple days off.

100 years
ago today Amundsen also had a good day. He wrote in his journal…

One of our great days.
Although it didn’t look like it would be this morning. Fog and bad visibility as
usual. But the wind had slackened a lot during the night; the little bit that
remained came from the NE. Terrain and surface were first class. Flat, really
flat with no signs of snowdrifts. The annoying small heaps of loose snowdrift
which had been such a nuisance these past few days, had disappeared and the
surface for the skis was absolutely A1

Today the team reports a difficult day, with heavy sleds and low light.. They
traveled 23 kilometers in 11 hours, and now “it is time for sleeping bags!”
Dennis comments about finding the resupply yesterday, and compares it to the
earlier expeditions of Amundsen and Scott. It”s only two days until the first of
the centennial celebrations at the South Pole! But for our team still 30 days
from reaching that point it is back to the grindstone of putting one foot in
front of the next. But as always, that is one step closer to the Pole!

One of the benefits of traveling in Antarctica is that you are on a
continent. Unlike travel to the North Pole, which is on sea ice, you get to
“keep” every inch of southward progress. At the North Pole you might make 15 or
20 kilometers in a day but you might drift backwards while you sleep! That”s not
to say that Antarctica is free of challenges… the altitude, the cold and the
wind combine to pack a serious punch!

Of course on every expedition some
days are bad, some are good and Der Slot Book of Ra selbst ist zum gro?ten Teil selbsterklarend. some are great. 100 years ago today Amundsen had
a great day. He wrote in his diary:

Magnificent weather. Almost
still and partly clear. About –25°C. Same fine terrain and surface. According to
the hypsometer it looks as though we are going very slightly downwards. Maybe it
is just the weather conditions that make it seem so. Midday observations, which
were taken under the most favourable weather conditions, still, clear, distinct
sun and horizon, 89°6’. Observations and instruments again completely coincide.
We have done our usual 17 n.m. and now lie at 89°15’ – three days march from our
goal.

Make sure to listen to
today”s audio report from Lisa and check back again tomorrow for another update
from the team!

Today the team reported, amidst what sounded like a pretty good party, that they
had reached the first resupply. Together in one tent they were celebrating their
biggest milestone so far with a honest-to-goodness steak dinner, one of the
special treats that awaited them at the resupply.

They skied 15.8 km is
7 hours of travel and the temperature was colder, at -25C. There was a wind of 8
knots, which was a welcome change from yesterday’s 25 knot wind.

Tomorrow they start the next leg of the journey with heavy sleds, but
happy stomachs

Make sure to listen to Bryony’s audio report and check
back in tomorrow for another update from the team!

Please visit this link to keep updated with Dennis and the team on their Trek in Antartica over Christmas.