Day 7: So much variety today, I think I'm overstimulated now!
South Pole: Solo but Not Alone
Howard Fairbank
Tue 29 Nov 2011 04:15
I haveen't been mentioning my climbing,but today (see below) reminded me: I'm camped here toniight at 923m, so I've climbed 795m from the start...All on ski's I remind those who thing skis are for going downhill!
Some other stats:
I've come 174 km from my start point. I estimate I have 766 km still to go. I'm still on a SW course not heading directly to the South Pole, as the Thiel Mountains and some crevasse have to be passed before I can turn left and just head South.
After so many days of the same, today produced so much variety, I felt closer to 'you guys'n in normal life with all it's stimulation overload! Not all was good but I'll leave that for last.
Firstly, before leaving I repacked my sled forb better weight distribution, and improved the sled bag tie system, in an attempt to reduce the tipping over problem. A minor job in normal conditions, but on my own in the cold with mittens on it takes a while, fumbling and missing for the finer more precise stuff . Anyway I think it helped as I only had 5 capsizes today.
Soon after the start I hit this pretty smooth, largely sastruggi free zone, so did away with my ski skins, and for the next two hours I hit a new record hourly average of 3.4km an hour. The terrain son changed:
I discovered Sastruggi City, a qyuiite remarkable place: The gentle never catchable horizon climb that has been part of everyday was suddenly a finite reachable horizon, actually the top of the hill that then sloped gently down to a valley that formed the first part of the UNDISCOVERED Sastruggi City! Yeah, I was the fisrt person to discover itt...haha, but it really does feel like nobody has EVER been to these places.
As I approached the bottom of the valley, it became a huge obstacle course with dense an large sastruggi. It's clear that with the slope the ice s all flowing down to the valleybottom, and the flow is the precursor to the vast sastruggi .
The other side of the valley was a pretty steep (relative to what I've had) hill, where the 'rich' sastruggi live, with view back over the valley which was quite special with the sun angle highlighting the expansive white enormity of where I'd come from. This was the first time I had a varied, hill and valley terrain and it quite refreshing, even the hill looked 'interesting'! The sastruggi was amazing sometimes having a h4ight of over 1.6 m, and ts wind caved tail sreetching for 10's of metres long. With this serious obstacle course ahead it was back to skins for traction. As the strain of the hill bit in, my mind ssearched for better ways to tackle it, and as thhe ice hardened it was soon time for skis off completely and I just fittted my small crampons that jus slip over my ski boots ( Richard Weber's good idea. Now ths was fun and fast...It took me back to snowshoeing in the Arctic, I seem to be built more for that than skiing. The change of motion, was refeshing, and the pace awesome...I was hitting 4km/h at times. So now I have a 3rd option for travel, which makes me excited as long as there are not crevasse around! After about an hour the ice go to soft, and I was back on ski's'. Blog Question: Why do we use ski's to walk on ice? I was into the last two hours of the day, confident today will be a record when Mother Nature decideed to teach me a lesson: I slipped on some glass like ice, and I the process of trying to brreak my fall, I put all my weight on the one ski pole which was now caught unnder the sled and snapped! Hmm, I'd looked at fixng the other one, was confident I could with a few options, but decided to wait and see if / how another breaks, because I could maybe use parts of it. Anyway, initially it was a huge feeling of despair, iratonally thinking my solo UNASSISTED status was lost. I soon got all ratinal, there was nothing else but to set up camp early and start repairs. Iv done that, and managed to make what I think is a pretty good repair, using spare tent poles and a hose clamp. We shall see... I have't been as lucky wiith repairing the second one as it's really bowed. I'll havee it fixed by tomorrow vening to, justneed a bitt more thinking time.
Funny, I think today I crossed the capitulation line...!! All this variety hlped, but more importantly I have became 110% taken by the challenge game, and the daily distance goals. I have come 178 km, almost 20% and am now COMITTED. An example of this flip is how I go about marches: I add on time for sled capsizes, clothing change, ski chang, because I want max skiing time, so I can get max daily disance. Initially these stop times were all part of march time, and an opportunity to rest. Now they are time thiefs that prevent me skiing..... So that's all good news.
Last nigh I had a lovely chat with Ruth by satphone. I think that also helped...Solo bu not Alone!
Some have asked if I put up tent during my rests during the day? No, it woud steal too much time. I just rest in the cold and wond, but I try and hide in the wind lee of my sled.
Hold thumbs for my ski poles!
Time to hit my sack!