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Two things hit you hard after being on the continent for a few days. First, is its absolute pristine and untouched beauty. You know the song, “Like a Virgin”.  Second, is that you have a whole new respect for anyone that has ever dared to cross the continent in any way, shape or form. I walked out of camp for a few hours and couldn’t tell what time it was or the direction I was going (in December the Sun circles above your head in a very tight circle, so that the difference between noon and midnight is negligible) or where the horizon ended and the sky started.

 

 

 

 

 

What a collection of diverse people. Climbers from four different continents were there with the same goal in mind. It also happened to coincide with the second annual Antarctica Marathon. A few of the climbers took on the grueling challenge only to find that they did not have enough strength to climb Mt. Vinson: a very costly and foolish mistake indeed. One must keep your eye on the prize at all times.

 

 

 

 

 

The weather was your absolute worst enemy. How bad was it? The entire adventure took 26 days to complete. Twenty bad weather days and six days of climbing. Even on the good days the average temperature was -15 F to -25 F without the wind chill.   

Of course, for us good old boys from Minnesota this is Spring weather made for swimming and sled-riding.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What a phenomenal summit day. I could see for miles and miles and miles. It was a reward worth waiting for. Unfortunately we could only enjoy it for a few minutes as the weather was already starting to deteriorate. Thinking back on all of the climbs this one was the most humbling and left me with a feeling of being truly insignificant.

 

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Vinson Massif

The highest peak in Antarctica.
16,067’
12-18-06

There is only one airplane and one company that will fly private parties back and forth to the continent of Antarctica. I would venture to guess that it’s the most expensive round trip ticket on the planet (somewhere North of $20,000 USD). You’ll be happy to know that they do serve Coke products and a variety of snack items. You can even go into the cockpit and speak with the pilots if you’re fluent in Russian. Who else would be crazy enough to land a jet almost as large as a 747 on a patch of blue ice using the reverse engine thrusters as brakes?