Judging by this picture, It's hard to say exactly how I've weathered the past 39 years. Behind the hat, face mask and frost, its still the same old Eric. Considering some of my recent adventures, I am surprised to be here. (Here, as in alive). However, after four successful geographic pole expeditions, I'm a little tougher than I used to be. But I'm a bit more sensitive, too. (Don't tell anyone). There are lines and creases around my eyes and even some gray hair now.

I've lived in more places than I can count, but I'll always be from Wisconsin. Hey what can I say? I love cheese! Still, I consider myself a Minnesotan even though I've been in Boulder, Colorado for over a year now. (Don't worry Maria, that will change). We all look at life through the filter of our experiences. If I close my eyes, I can still see vivid images of biking across the the US, making maple syrup and skiing to the North Pole. I am a jumbled accumulation of people, places and things.

I know a lot more than I used to as well. I have come to believe whole-heartedly in the fundamental principles of science, but sometimes rely on gut instincts and feelings in many decisions I make. Still, I know enough to also know what I don't know.

Of things that I am unsure of, Global Warming is not one of them. Thin ice and open water in the Arctic. The unusual shut down of Katabatic winds in the Antarctic. In most regions, an increasing number of extreme weather events. I have been a first person witness to these events.

After completing two of the three legs of my world record breaking Save the Poles expedition, I am left with one nagging question. Why? Not necessarily the obvious why - as in why go to these remote places spend weeks and months in tent - but the why are we still debating the science behind climate change and why are we not doing more (myself included).

Ultimately the conversation needs to be focused on energy conservation and efficiency as well as implementing wide spread use of renewable energy. I like many other Americans and part of the problem. We need to act now.

In September, I will leave for Nepal and ultimately the summit of Mt. Everest. Over the next weeks and months, I hope to continue to tell my story and the story of these places. My goal, to entertain, educate and inspire.

There is a lot to be amazed about in this world of ours.

The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by bing and Terramar with major support from Goal0, MSR, Scream Agency, Sierra Designs, Stanley, Optic Nerve and Clif Bar.

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

For more information, please visit www.ericlarsenexplore.com. For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com. For technical inquires, please contact webexpeditions.net. For lecture inquires, please contact smakmaria@yahoo.com.

I feel like that part of the Indiana Jones movie where the little white line traces Indy's route across the globe. Maria commented that getting back was a long adventure within itself. She's right too. Our white line covers a substantial portion of the northern hemisphere - the geographic North Pole to Borneo Ice Base to Svalbard to Oslo to London (sorry Doug, not to call) to Ottawa to Thunder Bay, Ontario.

In London, we lost AJ. Here is where Darcy and I separate. While we are all excited for home, it is unusually hard to be now sitting alone. For two months, we traveled together through some of the most inhospitable terrain (and water) on the planet. We saw each other's best, and a few times, worst. Tired, happy, sad, noncommital, overwhelmed and every other emmotion was experienced as a team.

From Ottawa Darcy and I drove his truck through the night. We had talked about this mant times on the trail - one person driving, the other lying in the back seat surrounded by chips, pizza, hamburgers aand broasted chickens. Surprisingly, we spent much of our time talking about our journey. We compared and contrasted perspectives on different situations during the trip trying to gleen new bits of understanding, knowledge and lessons learned.

The butterflies in my stomach right now only confirm what I already know. I have never really liked the end of anything - especially expeditions. Neither Darcy and I were eager to part ways.

'Want to get some lunch?' Darcy suggested.

With his family eager waiting for Darcy's return, it was best for him to keep driving. Still, we found ourselves smelling flowers in the Super Stores garden center, admiring the quantity of water melons and oggling weird looking fish in the sea food department.

Of course, this is not the end for any of us.

Image: Darcy and Eric saying goodbye. Why are we smiling?

The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by bing with major support froque m 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

The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by bing and Terramar with major support from Goal0, MSR, Scream Agency, Sierra Designs, Stanley, Optic Nerve and Clif Bar.

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

For more information, please visit www.ericlarsenexplore.com. For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com. For technical inquires, please contact webexpeditions.net. For lecture inquires, please contact smakmaria@yahoo.com.

Flying into Oslo International we were happy to see trees for the first time in two months. We are going home.

We were able to change our flights out of Svalbard and left early this morning. It's always hard for me to say goodbye to the ice and snow, but I know I will be back. I love camping and winter, but for me, four of the last six months have been spent on polar ice caps. Time for a little green. I'm looking forward to shorts and my Scarpa flip flops.

AJ will have a substantially shorter trip as his final destination is England where his parents will be waiting to take him back to Plymouth, and I'm sure some will be some hearty celebrations. Darcy and I have a few more legs until home. We'll overnight in London, then to Ottawa, then the drive through Canada to Thunder Bay (hopefully no speeding tickets). There our paths will diverge. I will head south to Minnesota (and then Colorado) and Darcy will continue on to Winnipeg.

I've never really liked the end of anything and I feel a little down. However, this is not really the end but only the middle. Two down; one to go. The Save the Poles expedition is a journey to the South Pole, North Pole and Mt. Everest in one year. Stay tuned as there will be more information, exciting web posts (from this summer's training and more), pictures, video and most importantly information on climate change.

The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by bing with major support from terramar and project support from Atlas, madshus, Goal0, Sierra Designs, Optic Nerve and Seventh Generation.


The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by bing and Terramar with major support from Goal0, MSR, Scream Agency, Sierra Designs, Stanley, Optic Nerve and Clif Bar.

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

For more information, please visit www.ericlarsenexplore.com. For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com. For technical inquires, please contact webexpeditions.net. For lecture inquires, please contact smakmaria@yahoo.com.

The day we thought would be spent sitting in the tent at the North Pole relaxing was quite different. Leave it to the Arctic Ocean to once again reverse our expectations. This latest change, however, had little to do with the forces of Nature. Instead, the Russians seemed to be holding all the cards which in this case was a good thing.

During our nightly call in with the Russian ice base Borneo, we learned that we would most likely be picked up in the morning by helicopter. 'Call back at six your time,' Victor said. So much for sleeping in. It didn't matter about the alarm I was awake at quarter to six anyway (just like the past 51 days had conditioned me to).

'They are coming to get you in 30 minutes,' the heavy russian accent announced through the iridium satellite phone. 'Then, you get on plane right away and fly to Svalbard. And so it was.

The helicopter took a bit longer and so we huddled behind a snow wall for warmth and waited, sleds packed, drifting North Pole farther and farther away due to increasing winds.

'Glad we don't have to ski today,' AJ added.

A plane was waiting upon reaching Borneo that was quickly loaded and within 45 minutes we were airborne again. During the flight, we drank mineral water from a can and ate sandwiches wrapped in plastic. Four hours after that, a warm room, showers, and three big pizzas delivered to our door step. Surreal.

A couple days ago I had turned around to AJ and Darcy and said, 'look around boys and soak it all in. This moment is fleeting and too soon it will be gone. We will have the rest of our lives to be inside. Before boarding the plane I turned to look one more time at the ice and snow. Remember this always I thought.

Special thanks goes to Lora at Scream Agency who is in charge of Save the Poles PR. After coordinating all sorts of interviews for today, rescheduled them to fit our crazy schedule. Thank Lora and Scream - the best PR and marketing team in the world!

Image: Eating pizza!?!

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

The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by bing and Terramar with major support from Goal0, MSR, Scream Agency, Sierra Designs, Stanley, Optic Nerve and Clif Bar.

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

For more information, please visit www.ericlarsenexplore.com. For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com. For technical inquires, please contact webexpeditions.net. For lecture inquires, please contact smakmaria@yahoo.com.

That the lead we camped next to closed overnight could only be a good omen we thought. But the Arctic Ocean, had other ideas. For starters, we drifted two and a half miles south while we slept. The first shift found us floundering through drifts, pressure ridges and small fractured pans.

Later, Darcy asked that I navigate the last few miles to the Pole in honor of my efforts in organizing and leading the expedition. Personally, I would have prefered to ski in the back and take pictures but my hands were frozen so I agreed. For a while, I regretted my decision but my legs felt good and energy was high. After some thin ice, open water and moving ice, I skied out onto a massive vast stretch of flat ice. Before me, about a half mile farther was the North Pole. I smiled quietly to myself.

I looked back at AJ and Darcy. 'Almost,' I said. We would ski the last few feet together.

Achieving the North Pole on Earth Day is not only the realization of a dream but also a reinforcement of a basic philosophy. The quality of our lives is directly linked to the air we breathe and the water we drink. At the North Pole, lines of longitude begin, grow and extend until they reach everyone one the entire planet. In spite of its remoteness, this is the one place that connects us all.

Nearly four months ago, I was at the opposite end of the world, the South Pole (another of Earth's connecting points). Today, the North Pole. In another four months, the summit of Mt. Everest. Standing here now is the culmination of three and a half years of preparation and planning as well as the efforts of many people. While I may be personally involved in these adventures, the Save the Poles expedition is not about me. My importance in any of this stems only in my ability to share my experiences with others.

On this expedition, we often traveled within a narrow margin of safety. We had limited resources and had to conserve and meter food and fuel. There is no question that now, the 21st century, we need to use resources to ensure our health and survival. But which resources we use, how we use them (and in what quantities) and if they are renewable are cornerstone to preserving our planet for future generations. Ultimately, when we view ourselves part of a whole, we can begin to understand how our actions affect other people and the planet.

After all, we are all explorers in one fashion or another, but the job of explorers in the 21st century is not to conquer but to protect.

Thank you for following and thanks to our great partners listed below.

Major Sponsor - bing, University of Plymouth Project Sponsors - terramar, Goal0, Atlas, madshus, Sierra Designs, Optic Nerve Environmental Partners - Seventh Generation, Center for Biological Diversity, Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center, Environmental Law and Policy Center Science Partners - Nat'l Snow and Ice Data Center, Univ Plymouth PR - Scream Technology - Web Expeditions Equipment - Madshus, Cliff, stanley-pmi.com/" target="_blank">Stanley, ACR, Atwater Carey, Thermarest, MSR, granite gear, Surley, Potable Aqua, Princeton Tech, wigwam, Action Wipes, Scarpa, iridium, NorthWest Co, Tap Logic, Sobeys, Wintergreen, Mountain House, Neve

We will do other important Thank You's tomorrow.

Image: Antony Jinman, Eric Larsen and Darcy St-Laurent standing at the Geographic North Pole.

The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by Bing with major support froque m 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

The Save the Poles expedition is sponsored by bing and Terramar with major support from Goal0, MSR, Scream Agency, Sierra Designs, Stanley, Optic Nerve and Clif Bar.

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

For more information, please visit www.ericlarsenexplore.com. For media inquiries, please contact lora@screamagency.com. For technical inquires, please contact webexpeditions.net. For lecture inquires, please contact smakmaria@yahoo.com.