Frederic Dion meets Lenin: kite skier arrived at South Pole of Inaccessibility
Posted: Dec 15, 2014 10:27 am EST
(By Correne Coetzer) "I want to see the bust,” Frédéric Dion said to Explorersweb before he left for Antarctica. It took him 35 days and 1610 km (in a straight line) to get to see "the bust”, that is Lenin’s bust standing on top of a now snow-covered building built by the Russians a few decades ago.
Fred left ALCI/TAC’s base camp at Novolazarevskaya on November 10 and arrived yesterday evening at the South Pole of Inaccessibility (POI), reported his home team. The position of the POI, as recorded by a December 2011 team, is at S 82° 06.696, E 055° 01.951.
Assisted Supported
(resupply, wind-support)
Kite-ski Novo - South Pole of Inaccessibility
Frédéric Dion (CA)
Fred had a good start out of Novo Base with favorable winds. On the first day he covered 120 km and gain 1800 m in altitude. Although the Canadian kiter was lucky to get wind for kite skiing, his home-modified kayak-sled-tent combination was not so lucky to survive the strong winds and rock hard sastrugi.
After repairing the sled twice, on December 5, Fred picked up Dixie Dansersoer’s sled that was stored at Novo Base and brought to the Fuel Depot at 83 degrees by the Russians. With this supply he unfortunately lost his solo status according to the Rules of Adventure.
Frédéric covered good miles with favorable winds until 100 km before the POI. He had no choice as to man-haul his sled for days at 2.2 to 3 km/h, 3700 m above sea level, until yesterday he reported he was 55 km from the Pole. Next stop was the South Pole of Inaccessibility.
Ed Note: Achieved images of Frederic’s sled on the left.
Links to South Pole of Inaccessibility stories:
ExWeb interview with Frédéric Dion, invention and modification for the South Pole of Inaccessibility
Major damage 500 km out alone on the ice
New sled created alone on the ice
Winds testing the South Pole skiers and kiters
Heads up: Frédéric Dion to kite-ski solo to South Pole of Inaccessibility
Spaniards reach South Pole of Inaccessibility - but where is Lenin?
Spaniards reach the 'second' South Pole of Inaccessibility - still no trace of Lenin
"It so, so very surreal," team n2i meets Lenin at the POI!
AdventureStats and Rules of Adventure
According to the Rules of Adventure, to claim a “solo" achievement, requires an unassisted status - therefore no supplies carried by pilots or car drivers, or anything (food, fuel, etc) received from any person along the way. A solo person may be wind supported (kites/sails). Note that the Polar Rules were compiled by early Norwegian and British Polar explorers (not exclusively ExplorersWeb) and are maintained today by the current community of veteran polar skiers.
LINKS to other teams:
Unassisted Supported
(no resupplies, wind-support)
Solo traverse Novo - GSP- Hercules Inlet
Faysal Hanneche(FR)
Assisted Unsupported
(resupplies, no wind/vehicles)
Traverse Messner - GSP - Hercules Inlet
Jérémie Gicquel (FR)
Are Johansen (NO)
Newall Hunter(UK, Messner to GSP)
Hercules Inlet route
Einar Torfi Finnsson (IS, guide)
Hugh Dougall (CA)
William (Bill) Morrison (UK)
Tim Garrett (AU)
ANI Messner Route team
Robert Smith (guide)
Paula J Reid (UK)
Arabella Slinger (UK)
Julian Thomas (UK)
Vincent Piguot (Switzerland)
PolarExplorers team
Messner route
Keith Heger (CA, guide)
Ian Evans (CA)
Andy Styles (UK)
Bradley Cross (UK)
Assisted Supported
Return Journey
Tractor expedition (Novo - GSP - Novo)
Matty McNair (US, Expedition Lead Guide)
Manon Ossevoort (NL, Lead driver)
Sarah McNair-Landry (CA, Expedition Guide and Audio-Visual Support)
Nicolas Bachelet (Lead Mechanic)
Simon Foster (Creative Director and Audio-Visual Lead)
Arnór Ingólfsson (Expedition Leader and Arctic Truck Driver 1)
Jóhannes Guðmundsson(Arctic Truck Driver 2)
Non-coastal start:
return journey
Polar Plateau South of Novo to GSP and possible return via POI to Novo Base
Kristan Ficher
Charles Werb
Adrian McCallum (leader)
Jon Moody
Follow daily team blogs with RSS feeds in the News Stream at Explorersweb
Previous
South Pole update: Tractor team arrived at the Pole
Natalia Almeida and Ben Weber to cycle and ski Arctic Canada
ExplorersWeb Interviews
PolarExplorers guide, Keith Heger’s Top Tips, Gear, and Menu treats
ExWeb interview with Are Johansen, "snow is the best surface for long journeys”
ExWeb interview with Frédéric Dion, invention and modification for the South Pole of Inaccessibility
ExWeb interview with Ian Evans, skier with PolarExplorers on Messner Route
ExWeb interview with Newall Hunter, solo South Pole skier: "pretty hectic last preparations"
French married couple and Norwegian adventurer for South Pole crossing: ExWeb interview with couple
ExWeb interview with Tractor Girl, Manon Ossevoort: tractor passed tests and arrived in Cape Town
ExWeb post South Pole interview with Fagan couple
Lessons from a yachtswoman: Paula Reid to ski to the South Pole
Geoff Wilson’s Top 5 South Pole Tips
ExWeb interview with Faysal Hanneche, "I learned to be patient on Antarctica"
Rules and Regulations in No-Man's Land: ExWeb interview with ALE's Steve Jones
Mount Sidley, Antarctica’s highest volcano accessible to climbers
Polar Technology
Rules and Regulations in No-Man's Land: ExWeb interview with ALE's Steve Jones
Polar Tech Week Roundup: 2014/2015 Recommendations
Your Smart Phone going Global: Review of Iridium Go
ExWeb Special: 2014 Polar Tech Roundtable Conference
HumanEdgeTech Expedition Technology (e.g.CONTACT software)
Related
Ski North Pole from Russia: Victor Boyarsky talks to Explorersweb
Natalia Almeida and Ben Weber to cycle and ski Arctic Canada
2014-15 South Pole list - Updated
AdventureStats and Rules of Adventure
Ski North Pole from Russia: Victor Boyarsky talks to Explorersweb
Kenn Borek stops supporting North Pole expeditions
“While it is a risk, that is part of the appeal”, Bob Maxwell to sail and skidoo to the South Pole
Mission to Mars: Stage 2 Report
A journey to the South Pole in a wheelchair
Video: Second 2012-13 Ilyushin-76 flight lands at Union Glacier, Antarctica
Current Polar Sea Ice Situation (Sept 2014)
Animated map of global weather conditions
New satellite map of Antarctica freely available
Antarctic ski/climb/pole/science Logistic Operators
Adventure Network International (ANI and ALE)
Antarctic Logistics Centre International (ALCI and TAC)
Gateway port Cape Town, South Africa:
To ALCI /TAC base camp Novolazarevskaya / Novo
70° 46’37”S, 011° 49’26”E
Gateway port Punta Arenas, Chile, South America:
To ALE/ANI base camp, Union Glacier
79° 45'S, 083° 14'W
Hercules Inlet is located at 80°S near Union Glacier, 1130 km from the Geographic South Pole.
The Ronne-Filchner Ice Shelf (Messner) start is 890 km in a straight line from the Pole.
The bottom of the Leverett Glacier, at the Ross Ice Shelf, is located at about 85ºS, a distance of 550 km from the Geographic South Pole.
Axel Heiberg Glacier start is also located at the Ross Ice Shelf and 535 km in a straight line from the South Pole.
Novo Base to South Pole of Inaccessibility (POI) is 1610 km in a straight line.
According to the Rules of Adventure, to claim a “solo" achievement, requires an unassisted status - therefore no supplies carried by pilots or car drivers, or anything (food, fuel, etc) received from any person along the way. A solo person may be wind supported (kites/sails). Note that the Polar Rules were compiled by early Norwegian and British Polar explorers and are maintained today by the current community of veteran polar skiers.
1 nautical mile (nm) = 1.852 km
1 nm = 1.151 miles
1 knot = 1.852 km/h
1 degree of Latitude is 110 km / 60 nm / 70 miles
Sastrugi are hard snow bumps and can be as high as 10 feet
A nunatak is a top of a mountain visible above the snow surface.
South Pole of Inaccessibility (POI)
2011-12 position:
S82°06.696, E055°01.951
Geographic South Pole (GSP): 90 degrees South
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courtesy Frederick Dion, SOURCE
courtesy Frederick Dion, SOURCE
courtesy Frederick Dion, SOURCE
courtesy Frederick Dion, SOURCE
courtesy Frederick Dion, SOURCE
courtesy Frederick Dion, SOURCE
courtesy Map compiled by Explorersweb, SOURCE