Unsupported 950km Ski to the South Pole via the Messner Route From Nov 12 - Jan 13, I will be attempting to ski unsupported to the South Pole.
I will be following Reinhold Messner's route of 1989. Acommitting, 580 mile (934 km) ski traverse through remote, unexplored terrain, from the Ronne Ice Shelf on the edge of the frozen Antarctic continent to the Geographic South Pole. I previously spent 6 months in Antarctica in 2000-1 whilst serving with the British icebreaker HMS Endurance when I was in the Royal Marines. It was great fun supporting the British Antarctic Survey's operations and also doing the safety diving under the ice with the BBC for a documentary on Adelie Penguins. I also led a small ski expedition to retrace Shackleton's famous route across the Antarctic island of South Georgia, one of the worlds most beautiful and remote islands. I have been keen to get back down to the Antarctic since then and knock off a remaining childhood ambition to ski to the Pole.
This ambition is about to become an exciting reality and experience. As part of the expedition I am also attempting to raise 100,000 pounds for the international children's charity Warchild (www.warchild.org.uk). If anyone sponsors me over 2,000 pounds I will take a (small and light) momento of yours in my sled to the Pole, and assuming I get there, will take a photo of it at the South Pole.
Please donate here:www.justgiving.com/skisouthpole2012 You can follow the ups and downs of my epic on Facebook www.facebook.com/toby.selmanand on twitter twitter.com/tobyselman.