One week in, and the North Pole expeditions of 2014 aren’t off to the best start. The Irish team of Mike O’Shea and Clare O’Leary have abandoned after been injured by a shifting block of ice. O’Shea’s back was injured and O’Leary’s knee but both are ok and safely back in Resolute Bay, ready to head home. The Norwegian team have also been evacuated. Lars Flesland and Kristoffer Glestad suffered from frostbite on Sunday and were forced to call off their attempts to reach the North Pole. The two teams remaining on the ice are the Americans Eric Larsen and Ryan Waters, and Japanese Yasu Ogita. Progress is slow for both at the moment but they are enduring and doing well.
Explorer Levison Wood’s Walking the Nile expedition resumes after tragedy struck. Journalist Matthew Power passed away earlier this month from possible heatstroke while accompanying Lev on foot in order to write a story about the expedition. The 4250 mile journey, which has never been completed before, pushes on ahead with renewed vigour. The PNG expedition is currently two thirds of the way to Green River which will signal the end of stage one. Patrick Hutton and Richard Johnson are in the midst of a three month, 1000 mile journey across the wilds of Papua New Guinea. Meanwhile, Freya Hoffmeister continues to make progress as she attempts to kayak around South America. Hoffmeister is currently in Punta Pesqueira, Brazil, 631 days into the adventure.
Upcoming expeditions include Dave Cornthwaite’s latest adventure in his Expedition1000 challenge. On the 1st April he and two friends will set off across Chile’s Atacama Desert on a Whike. A contraption that uses both pedal and wind power to operate. As April comes to a close, twins Hugo and Ross Turner will embark on a 340 mile crossing of Greenland. They expect to take thirty days to cross the expanse on skis. To add another element to the expedition, one of brothers will be using only century old vintage gear to aid his crossing. The other will be dressed in the finest of modern gear, the results will illustrate how modern gear can improve performance. The gear is also a symbolic gesture to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Ernest Shackleton’s Endurance expedition. Tony Phoenix-Morrison’s latest challenge is to run 104.8 miles in 24 hours with 92.5-pound on his back. On April 13th he will run the London Marathon and then continue on alone for three more marathons.
Other expedition’s on the horizon are Alex Bellini’s Adrift. In 2015 Bellini will live on the tip of an iceberg in the North West of Greenland until it melts. The other is an attempt by two men to run all 220 kilometres of the Drakensberg Grand Traverse. Ryan Sandes and Ryno Griesel will race against the clock to complete this latest challenge unsupported in less than three days.
In other news, the latest solar powered charger on the market is the PowerMonkey Expedition Infinite Power. Finally we can appease our wanderlust and carry all our mobile devices with us without fear, the device can use sun, wind and water to power itself.
And lastly, the highly anticipated first issue of the printed Sidetracked journal is available to pre-order now. This 132 page journal is filled with remarkable long distance journeys, inspirational expeditions and features some of the most beautiful, dramatic and challenging regions on earth – all told and presented by the incredible men and women who undertook them.
Written by Orla O’Muiri | Photo ©Kelvin Trautman/Red Bull Content Pool