May 2013

The GPR is still not working, I am sorry to report. The team have not been able to get advice from the providers of the equipment because it is a Sunday and so they have not been able to work on it today. Spencer and Richmond on the other hand, have been getting busy trying to fix an as yet unidentified problem with one of the Cats which has resulted in power loss. Given the moderate winds and…

It’s minus 43C with 28 knot winds this morning, so things are certainly starting to get a little chilly with the Ice Team right now. Progress has been hampered by mechanical issues with the GPR which is still not fixed. The team have been working closely with Allied Associates over email and are hoping that they are now very close to resolving the problem. Combined with the slow progress of t…

Ian Prickett journeys down the full length of the 500m winch cable which the guys have created to pull back the fuel scoots which are stranded in a huge crevasse field. The video also features a close up of a 20m deep hole in the ice. Impressive. &nbs…

The Coldest Journey’s Ice Team have taken on the biggest challenge of their lives and they’re asking what you can do to challenge yourself and raise money for Seeing is Believing. Every day, for the 285 million visually impaired people around the world, life can be challenging.  Given that 90% of the world’s visually impaired people live in developing countries, life can be especially…

As you may have read yesterday, the team is currently winching back six fuel scoots which had become stranded beyond the reach of the Cats because of severe crevassing blocking their path. Yesterday, they pulled back two scoots, today they did the next two, and if all goes well, all six of the scoots will be alongside the Cats and cabooses by this time tomorrow, ready to head out of this…

Believe it or not I am in ‘the tent’ trying to use the GPR. With me inside the tent is an insulated plastic box which we modified to house the GPR and several hot water bottles to try and keep the unit warm. The tent is trying to shelter me from a 30 knot wind and keep the drifting snow off the GPR unit. It worked to a limited extent but it was pretty uncomfortable and very hard to use the GPR…

The Ice Team are camped in the middle of a hideous crevasse field with seemingly bottomless cracks up to 4m across and big enough to swallow a 25-tonne without it even touching the sides. Needless to say this is a very stressful place to be and it is keeping the Ice Team on their toes at all times. Making matters worse the Ground Penetrating Radar is not working, which effectively means the team…

Whilst the team continues to battle the elements in the south, here’s a chance to make them giggle. The winner will be the answer which makes them laugh the most (and that’s your prize this time too!)…

With the sun having now set on them for the next three months or more, the Ice Team find themselves in an especially inhospitable area of terrain with severe crevassing being exposed in all directions. The team are making extensive use of the ground penetrating radar to help them find these holes and identify the safest route south; however, this is taking a lot of time and they are yet to find a…

This picture by Ian shows the sun as it crept above the horizon for a couple of minutes today. That’s the last the team will be seeing of the sun for the next three months or…