Training

Halti sits about 300km north of the Arctic Circle, and in December and January the sun does not come up at all. It was pitch black for about twenty hours a day; for the other three or four the sky went from dark blue to nearly light, depending on how much cloud there was. Most of the skiing was done by head torch.

We stayed in huts each night, all of them off grid — no electricity, so the only light was our head torches, candles and the log fire. Every hut had a fire. Some were cosy and efficient and got really warm. One did not: on the coldest night, New Year’s Eve, it was -40°C outside, and after hours with the fire going the hut had still only reached -5°C inside.

This was my first time on skis apart from a couple of occasions as a teenager and in my early twenties, and I had no technique at all. Even so, we covered more than 27km on the longest day. Temperatures across the week ran from -15°C to -40°C, the sleds were around 25–30kg — against 80kg in Antarctica — and one day we skied to the cairn where Finland, Norway and Sweden meet.

It was good practice at skiing, at dragging a pulk, and at getting used to the cold, before Hannah McKeand’s polar expedition training course in February.

All photographs → · Read the blog post

The first week was based at Finse, sleeping in the comfort of a hut with central heating and two meals a day, learning everything we would need for a polar expedition.

This included how to set up a tent in the snow, how to cook in a tent in the snow, stove repair, polar navigation, navigation in whiteout conditions, kit, what to wear and what not to wear and not to wear too much, what to eat and in what ratios and how many calories we would need, how to prepare food and break it up so we could eat quickly in breaks and on the go if needed, and how to melt water.

We also learnt some skills relevant for anyone planning to go to the Arctic, including setting up a bear fence, swimming in a dry suit, and polar bear habits — including an excellent talk on polar bear behaviour (thankfully we won’t have to worry about bears or swimming in Antarctica) — and some tips on getting up and down hills.

Then seven days on the Hardangervidda putting it into practice, with 37kg sleds, led by Hannah.

I still have Ben and Hannah’s words ringing in my ears — “if you sweat you die” and “be bold, start cold”.

All photographs → · Week one · The expedition

This was our first big test — the first time we had been on an expedition together, to see how we got on and how we worked as a team. It was Ben’s first time in a polar environment for a couple of years, and my first since my polar training expedition with Hannah McKeand.

It went really well. We got into a good routine: 80 minutes of skiing, then 10 minutes to eat and drink. We covered decent distances, around 23–24km on the good days and less when the blizzard, hail and rain closed the visibility down and we pitched the tent early, because carrying on would not have been safe or sensible.

This was also the trip where we worked out how to move heavy sleds on steep ground: both of us harnessed to one pulk at a time, then walking back for the second. My biggest worry, after crevasses, had been that I would not be able to pull my sled up the steepest hills, or that I would be much slower than Ben. Working together made it easier and quicker for both of us — we sweated less, tired less, and going uphill became something to enjoy.

Going down steep slopes we experimented with rope brakes, and tied the sleds to our fronts so they went down ahead of us where we could control them, rather than dragging them behind and being pulled down by them. Tied in front was much better, and much safer.

We had seven days of whiteouts, blizzards and very limited visibility. Then the weather warmed up, and turned to hail and then rain. We got wet through, so we came back to the hotel at Finse a day early and dried everything out in the drying room. The following day was perfect — blue sky and sun — so we went out without the sleds for a lovely day, and made the requisite snow angels.

All photographs → · The hard day · 8 days around the Hardangervidda

We learned ski techniques to make us more efficient, and picked up tips on roller skiing — a way to practise when there is no snow.

They also tested us for strength, stamina, balance and VO2 max, and measured us against polar explorer world record holders (fastest to the South Pole) to see how we compared and how much more we still needed to train (a lot, but we’re not aiming to set any speed records!).

For our 2,000km crossing, every little efficiency gain will make a difference: it will reduce our total number of days on the ice, and make us more likely to succeed.

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We spent two of those days at around 4,000m, just below the summit of Mont Blanc, learning the rope and climbing techniques needed to get out of a crevasse after a fall — and to pull each other out if one of us is injured and cannot climb.

We spent the third day with Simon going through our route, using his data and satellite imagery to see exactly where the crevasses and the main risks lay. As a result, we agreed with Simon to change the route, going up and down less heavily crevassed glaciers while keeping the same start and finish points.

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From the start of the programme, Ben and the team camped out on the sea ice in -40°C (quite a difference from the +30°C of São Paulo where he was living at the time) and they spent the time practicing ski techniques, pulling pulks, navigation, testing different clothing and layering systems, swimming in Arctic waters (an essential skill to know for North Pole expeditions!), and even a week with kite skiing.

Following this, Ben and his then wife, Natalia put their training into practice with their own mini-expedition, a two-week/300km ski journey through the Auyuittuq National Park in Canada, a spectacular wilderness area of the country dominated by tremendous peaks named after Norse gods. The conditions were as harsh as one could expect for the end of the Arctic winter, with gale force winds and brutally cold temperatures. Seven months later and the two embarked on an epic 2,000km cycle and ski journey across Canada from south to north in the middle of winter, from the US border south of Winnipeg up to the north of the Hudson Bay. Coldest temperatures experienced: -53°C; wildlife seen: caribou, Arctic foxes, moose and… a pack of wolves! Thankfully, no polar bears, despite going through the middle of polar bear territory on the Hudson Bay sea ice.

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The course covered movement on snow and ice, including cramponing, step cutting and using an ice axe to climb and descend, self-arrests, winter navigation, planning and preparation, snow pack analysis and avalanche avoidance, emergency procedures, and understanding the winter environment.

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Each week included cold dips in icy Scottish winter water, barefoot walking (including on frost and snow), winter hikes, and breathing exercises and techniques to endure the cold. Two weeks with Allan Brownlie, two with a friend.

Erica signed up to the first one to overcome her fear of being cold. Since then, when cold, she has often remembered Allan’s mantra, ‘I’m cold but I’m ok’.

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Land’s End to John O’Groats is 1,000 miles (1,600km). Erica rode it in eight days, including over two ski passes in Scotland. The North Coast 500 is 565 miles around the north of Scotland.

Most recently she hiked the 780km Camino de Santiago trail from St Jean Pied de Port in France to Santiago de Compostela over 20 days in May 2025.

The South Pole, 2022–23. Ben set off from Hercules Inlet on 13 November 2022 and skied alone to the South Pole, covering more than 1,200km in just over 57 days, with a sled that weighed around 135kg at the start. He picked up a neck injury on the fourth day and spent the rest of the journey managing it. He raised more than £5,000 for Cancer Research in memory of his late mother.

Greenland, 2022. In May 2022, preparing for the South Pole, Ben joined a team of Norwegian and Swedish explorers to cross the Greenland Ice Cap. 550km in around 25 days, and where he picked up most of his skiing technique.

Canada, 2014–15. Ben and his then wife, Natalia, crossed Canada from south to north in the middle of winter, 2,000km by bike and ski from the US border south of Winnipeg to the north of Hudson Bay. The coldest temperature they recorded was −53°C, and the route took them out across the Hudson Bay sea ice, through the middle of polar bear country.

While not a polar expedition, the aim of the journey was to challenge Ben to go well beyond his comfort zone: at those altitudes, the lack of oxygen makes it so much harder to travel, and Ben also has a fear of heights that he had to face, especially as he travelled up the 400m knife-edge ridge to the summit of Huayna Potosi. He had to deal with food poisoning that appeared to affect the entire group, which didn’t help the stomach when climbing up!

They first headed south from Brazil and across Uruguay before eventually reaching Buenos Aires, and from there headed west to cross Argentina and the Andes to Santiago. It was an incredible experience, going through the four different countries, experiencing the different cultures and foods along the way and meeting many new friends with whom they stayed en route. Some days presented challenges like total elevation gains of more than 2,000m, temperatures of over 40C, as well as heavy traffic along the busier roads, and the longest distance travelled in one day was 208km as they raced to get to Buenos Aires in time for events planned for them in the city.

Strangely enough they only experienced two days in really bad conditions – the first as they left Land’s End, and then the final day with just a short 10km ride into John O’Groats with gale force cross winds – fun!