» Polar explorer Tom Avery interview
Polar explorer Tom Avery told Rachel Pegg why he attempted one of history’s most dangerous journeys
Tom Avery, who attended school in Sussex, has conquered both the North and South Poles. His new book To The End of The Earth: Our Epic Journey to the North Pole and the Legend of Peary and Henson tells how he and his teammates answered a historical conundrum – how did Robert Peary reach the North Pole in 1909 in just 37 days, faster than any subsequent attempt?
What you do is really tough, why do you do it?
I know it’s strange: I enjoy it. |t’s my passion. Snowy icy landscapes are the most spectacular landscapes on Earth and there‘s so much you can do in them, skiing, or climbing, or driving dog teams or pulling a sled. You feel that connection with history as well, all those amazing explorers who were doing this.
Why was it important for you to prove Peary was telling the truth?
As kids we grow up on stories of adventurers and characters from history. I felt in this case there had been mistruths told and I wanted to set the record straight, find out for myself and also to rewrite the history books. The first people who stood on the summit of this rock of ours that‘s whizzing around the solar system should have their names put up in bright lights forever more. It‘s an extraordinary achievement and I wanted to draw attention to their feat.
“On the trail it is very solitary and it‘s very cold and windy”
How did you manage to do it so much faster than other attempts?
Well because we replicated Peary. You know in my mind Peary spent 23 years up there, he figured out the most efficient way to travel to the North Pole was to use dog teams and lightweight sleds. That‘s the key. He had this huge caravan that laid down depots along the route for him and it enabled him to travel with sleds that never weighed more than 600 pounds, whereas modern dog sledding expeditions have sleds that weigh double that amount. So we created that part by having aerial re-supplies put in at each of the four points that Peary’s support parties re-provisioned him. So that‘s how we were able to match his sled weights throughout the journey. Lightweight dog sleds is the most efficient way to travel in the Arctic.
It seems quite solitary; you can‘t sit for more than five minutes because of the cold, do you get much chance to talk to each other?
On the trail it is very solitary and it‘s very cold and windy, you‘ve got this fur hood and face mask, so there‘s not a lot of conversation, but of course when you‘re in the tent in the evening, that‘s the time to catch up with your teammates and find out how they got on during the day and maybe readjust travel strategies and try and increase the speed going forward.
What‘s the hardest part?
Dealing with the cold, particularly in the early stages of the expedition when it‘s still winter time and temperatures are in the minus 40s. Your body just shuts down; it‘s just a case of survival. You‘re constantly having to blink to stop your eyes freezing shut, you‘re running up and down on the spot to stop toes freezing and doing these great big windmills with your arms to get the blood circulating into your fingers again.
Do you think you‘ll return to the North Pole?
I‘ll definitely return to the Arctic but not the North Pole, just because it‘s getting so difficult to get there. We might find that we are that last dog sled team to make it through the full journey because of climate change, which is frightening. It is such a magical place.
You have talked about the rubbish and buildings at the South Pole, do explorers have an environmental impact?
In the grand scheme of things a handful of explorers on the ice for 36 days have negligible impact. We did our bit, we took minimal amounts of packaging and what we did use we took back with us. We take a stove which produces tiny amounts of carbon – the impact is minimal, but the benefits we can bring in terms of raising awareness for the problems out there and educating people far outweighs the carbon footprint we leave behind.
Sussex explorers Rob Gauntlett and James Atkinson sadly died in the Alps recently. Is it worth those high risks?
I knew Rob and James well. What befell them is absolutely tragic but they like us were aware of the dangers. I think we do need a bit of risk in our lives, because otherwise there‘s a danger of just wrapping ourselves in cotton wool. It‘s by getting out there and experiencing Mother Nature at her most raw that you feel at your most alive and you really see what this planet of ours is all about and the challenges facing it. So yes you need to be aware of the dangers and do everything you can to minimise them, you can’t take away all the risks, but these expeditions are like a drug and the danger isn’t going to suddenly stop people climbing or skiing or dog sledding or man hauling sleds to the Pole.
