Out of almost 200 applicants, Hollie Woodhouse along with 3 other young explorers were selected to take on the 2018 Antarctic Heritage Trust Inspiring Explorers’ Expedition – a 560-kilometer crossing of the Greenland ice cap on skis in tribute to Fridtjof Nansen, the renowned polar explorer and humanitarian, who completed the first crossing of Greenland 130 years prior.  Their team battled hurricane conditions, heavy snowfalls and illness, but after starting on the west coast on May 4th they arrived in the east coast village of Tasiilaq on June 1st.  Hollie is also the creator of Say Yes To Adventure magazine. It’s filled with inspiring adventure stories and photos.  You can learn more about Hollie and her adventures at holliewoodhouse.com.  Hollie Woodhouse, welcome back to the show.

In 2009, Tyler Fish and John Huston became the first Americans to ski unsupported to the North Pole. It took 55 days to travel more than 500 miles starting from Ward Hunt Island. They pulled and pushed their heavy sleds over sand-like snow, giant ice-rubble fields, and through stretches of open water. To avoid deadly mistakes in the sub-zero temperatures, their motto was slow and steady until the last few days when they had to ski nearly nonstop to make headway against the constantly shifting ice. The expedition is documented in their book Forward and you can learn more at forwardexpeditions.com. Tyler Fish, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

As a polar explorer, Eric Larsen travels in some of the most remote and wild places on earth. In 2010, he became the first person to reach the north and south poles and summit Mt. Everest within 365 days. His most recent 2014 expedition to the North Pole is called Last North. With his teammate Ryan Waters, the two traversed the Arctic Ocean from Northern Ellesmere Island to the geographic North Pole. Unsupported for nearly 500 miles, they traveled across the moving sea ice by skis, snowshoes, and when necessary, swimming through the slush. You can learn about these adventures and others at ericlarsenexplore.com. Eric Larsen, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

Dixie Dansercoer and Eric McNair-Landry kite skied 4,044 km unassisted in 55 days to become the first to complete a circumnavigation of the Greenland Icecap. They called their expedition Greenland ICE and one of their missions was to share their observations about the delicate environment of Greenland with scientists and educators. You can learn more about their adventure at greenlandice.be. Dixie Dansercoer, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

At age 16, Lewis Clarke set a world record for being the youngest person to ski from the Antarctic coast to the South Pole.  It was a 48-day, 702-mile expedition along the Hercules Inlet route.  Lewis and his guide experienced temperatures as low as –40 C and winds up to 60 miles per hour in one of the harshest environments on earth.  You can read more about his adventure at his website youngesttosouthpole.wordpress.com.  Lewis Clarke, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

For Felicity Aston, Antarctica has been a constant thread running through her life.  From time spent as a scientist at the Rothera research station to leading an expedition of eight women on a 38-day ski expedition to the South Pole.  In 2012, Felicity returned to Antarctica to test her mental stamina on a 59-day, 1,744 km expedition across the continent from the Leverett Glacier to Hercules Inlet making her the first women to cross the continent solo.  You can learn more in her book titled Alone in Antarctica and from her website felicityaston.co.uk.  Felicity Aston, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.

In March of 2013, John Huston and Tobias Thorleifsson co-led a team of four that set out to explore Ellesmere Island in the Canadian Arctic as part of their New Land 2013 Expedition.  With the help of four sled dogs, the team skijored over 511 nautical miles on Ellesmere and Axel Heiberg Islands.  The purpose of their 65-day journey, beyond traveling through a remote and beautiful landscape, was to create a documentary film to celebrate the second Fram Expedition led by the Norwegian Arctic explorer Otto Sverdrup and to educate school children about climate change.  You can learn more about their adventure at johnhuston.com.  John Huston, welcome to The Pursuit Zone.