The Story

On 5 March, Ben Saunders set out to ski solo more than 1,200 miles across the Arctic from the Russian edge of the arctic ice pack to Canada via the North Geographic Pole.

In the weeks that followed Ben experienced what NASA called 'the worst conditions on record'. Of the four solo expeditions that started out that year, one died and two were rescued suffering from frostbite and injuries. Ben was the only solo expedition to make it to the North Pole and in doing so set a world record; he is by far the youngest person to reach the North Pole solo.

Ben continued on towards Canada, but conditions worsened and he was told by his expedition team that he would have to be picked up. Despite not being able to reach Canada, Ben set another British record for the longest solo arctic trek, skiing more than 1,000km in treacherous conditions.

This website tells the story of the expedition. If you would like to keep up with what Ben is doing now, check out www.bensaunders.com.

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Ben's profile

Ben Saunders

Ben Saunders is a long-distance skier, with two record-breaking North Pole expeditions under his belt.

Born in the long hot summer of 1977, he grew up in Devon, and is currently based in London.

Ben's passion is the outdoors: he spent four months walking and climbing in the Nepalese Himalayas aged 19, and went on to work as an instructor at the John Ridgway School of Adventure in Scotland (once billed as the UK's toughest management training school). John was (and is) a role model and mentor of the highest calibre - in 1966 he (along with Chay Blyth) became the first to row the Atlantic, and went on to break records in non-stop round the world sailing.

“The Serco TransArctic Expedition is all about exploring human, rather than geographical limits. I hope it will be a message to others worldwide that with enough self belief and determination, anything is possible”.

Dispatches Archive

The following dispatches are an archive spanning the 4-5 months that Ben spent prior to the expedition, the expedition itself, and the returning home period.

The war on weight

The war on weight - Saturday, 14th February 2004

It's one week to go and I'm starting to feel like getting out on the Ice will be a relaxing break. During the day, there are Russian visas, film crew itineraries and kit deliveries to deal with. At night we lock ourselves away with scissors, drills, ...read more

Sleepless nights

Sleepless nights - Friday, 20th February 2004

I wouldn't say I've quite reached a state of outright panic, but things are getting more surreal by the minute. Tony (my expedition manager) and the incredible Babs Powell worked through the entire night, weighing, sorting & packing food. I feel ...read more

"Six hours, if we live..."

"Six hours, if we live..." - Monday, 23rd February 2004

I remember telling a reporter at Heathrow airport on Saturday morning that I felt 'stressed out' as we waited to board our flight to Moscow. My concept of what could be considered high levels of stress changed rapidly over the ensuing day. After ...read more

The pressure's on!

The pressure's on! - Wednesday, 25th February 2004

Apparently 4,500 people live in Khatanga, the frozen fishing town where we have been based for the last 48 hours, but you wouldn't know it. The whole place seems in hibernation, except for three children dressed in oversize coats kicking a football ...read more

ANOTHER day in paradise

ANOTHER day in paradise - Saturday, 28th February 2004

I'm starting to wonder if we'll ever leave Khatanga. One of the joys of being solo on the ice (if I ever get there!) is that I'm entirely in charge of my own destiny. Right now, that couldn't be further from the case - our stay in the frozen town ...read more

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“Everest is very dangerous, but crossing the North Pole, which I attempted to do...is ten times more dangerous” - Reinhold Messner