A new remote audio post has been added to the blog...

A new remote audio post has been added to the blog...

Scrambling up a 15-foot tall block of ice changes my perspective just enough to help with navigation. Yesterday AJ described the ice as a puzzle, but looking at the wide panorama below, I think maze.

For as far as I can see there are large 20-30 foot ice blocks scattered sporadically. In between, snow drifts roll, taper, begin and end with equal randomness. Some are rock hard. Others are soft. Massive winding jumbles of ice slabs diagnol forming the only recognizeable pattern. Somewhere in all that a few flat pans exist even though I can't seem them right now. I wish there were more. A couple of frozen flat lead means the difference between two hours struggle versus 30 minutes of leisurely travel.

We've had to remind ourselves several times that we are choosing to be here

We lost only 350 feet due to southward drift last night. After the usual freezing wake up and frost management chores, we were off - darcy's feet being unbearbly cold for only an hour. We spent much of the day meandering (if you can call back-breaking work that) back and forth, up and over drifts and ridges. Despite coming face to face with numerous ridges, we always seem to find some way through.

We spent most of the day deep in our own thoughts. Breaks are few and short as our margin of safety is unnervingly thin.

'When we first started, it was 90% survival and 10% travel,' commented Darcy. We are slowly pushing the odds in our favor.'

Because of our desire to stay warm, we lengthed our travel shift to two hours. Nearing the last few minutes, we were dangerously cold and tired. Luckily, it was our 'soup' break complete with three pieces of bacon. We all benefited from the additional energy. Our best mileage to date and bacon saved our bacon.

The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by Bing with major support from the University of Plymouth, Terramar, Seventh Generation, Goal0, Atlas, Sierra Designs and Optic Nerve.

Remember, it's cool to be cold. Save the Poles. Save the planet.

For more information, please visit www.ericlarsenexplore.com

For information about guided Antarctic expeditions, please visit http://www.antarctic-logistics.com/

For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com

For technical inquires, please contact webexpeditions.net

A new remote audio post has been added to the blog...

We seem to be slowly finding a our rhythm. It has not been easy. The extreme cold is unforgiving and small mistakes have big consequences. We have learned to cope and modify because we have no other choice.

Despite a chilly morning, the calm air made traveling manageable - if not a little too warm. At -40 any moisture leaving your body quickly turns to a thick coating of frost. So much in fact that we have to brush the ice off the inside of our parkas and pants at each day's end.

AJ described the day like, 'figuring out a puzzle. There are so many different ice conditions to contend with that we are constantly reassesing our route.'

We managed to wiggle our way through several tight jams. Scouting our route in the afternoon, we stood where three enormous ice pans collided and ground up against one another. Car-sized blocks of ice seemingly blocked our path. Luckily, we found a narrow rift to the west that eventually (after 30 minutes of hard work) led us to another pan. By all accounts, it was a good day.

Image: Darcy and AJ in the rift.

The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by Bing with major support from the University of Plymouth, Terramar, Seventh Generation, Goal0, Atlas, Sierra Designs and Optic Nerve.

Remember, it's cool to be cold. Save the Poles. Save the planet.

For more information, please visit www.ericlarsenexplore.com

For information about guided Antarctic expeditions, please visit http://www.antarctic-logistics.com/

For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com

For technical inquires, please contact webexpeditions.net