How to Choose The Right North Pole Expedition
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Skiing to the North Pole is an incredible undertaking that very few people achieve. Being in such a unique, remote and challenging environment, you want to know you’ve got the best logistics and guidance in your corner so you can focus on the goal!
There are numerous operators offering North Pole expeditions and at times this can feel overwhelming and hard to distinguish what the notable differences are between them, especially when they are all offering the same thing.
We encourage you to do your homework whenever you are mountaineering or in this case, polar exploring, so you feel 100% confident in your choice of expedition company. You need to be supported in terms of safety and benefit from the best logistics, which will in turn enable you to focus on your goal while letting them take care of the rest.
Look for quality and experience in your guides and leadership, assess a company’s reputation and their ‘care factor’. When you are skiing across the Arctic you don’t want to feel like just another traveller!
Safety & Success
Your safety and success are the top priorities, in that order.
An expedition company should invest heavily and plan extensively for your safety. Look for safeguards and redundancies and feel free to ask lots of questions about your operators’ safety policies and expedition philosophy.
There are nuances to Polar Expeditions that need to be planned meticulously.
For example, did you know you need to consume on average 5,500-8,000 calories a day whilst skiing to the Pole and you may still lose weight!? (The average adult diet at home 2,000 – 2,500 calories a day) so good quality, high density food isn’t just a nicety, it’s a necessity. BUT it’s also a delicate balancing act that relies on skill and knowledge because you’ll also be hauling everything you and your team needs in your sleds and every ounce of extra weight matters. Food might seem like a basic part of planning any expedition, but an operators’ approach and attention to detail to these finer details will give you clues as to how they strategise and approach your North Pole ski.
Leadership
Your Guide/s need to be seasoned Polar experts with proven track records. Their strategy should be highly detailed, conservative and well planned which will give you the best opportunity for success.
For instance, your Guide should be able to effortlessly navigate the polar expanse, trouble shoot hazards and obstacles like open leads of water in the most efficient way, keep the team moving when the going gets tough, be on top of cold management (for both themselves and you!) at all times. Not to mention be instantly aware, and at the ready, to manage a lost polar bear who may have wandered a bit far from the coast!)
Skills Clinic & Training
To further increase your safety and success, it is important that your chosen operator dedicates ample time in your itinerary to refresh and practice your Polar and skiing skills and techniques before you head out onto the ice.
CTSS schedules a comprehensive skills clinic in Svalbard before you fly to Barneo to ensure you are feeling confident and safe and competent. Of course your Guide/s will continue to be on-hand throughout the entire expedition as you continue to refine your skills and efficiencies and coach you through to the successful completion of your goal.
Marginal Gains - The small things add up!
Have you heard of the “Marginal Gains” philosophy?
The idea is that by capitalising on every little hidden advantage, 1% here, 1% there, gains quickly compound into a huge overall improvement.
CTSS prides itself on this kind of innovation across all of our expeditions including the North Pole Last Degree Ski. We optimize both the big details like guide staff etc, all the way through to the tiny comfort details like food/tents etc
People may dismiss these as ‘soft’ but in fact we invest in them because they are highly strategic.
Does an operator have strong values?
This is sometimes a little harder to identify as it’s more a feeling than a sales pitch, but you should get a feel for a company through their little interactions, their care factor, their attention to detail, their corporate social responsibility, their response to you.
Polar Expeditions can be high risk and stressful so pick an operator who has strong core values and a team mentality that aligns with yours so that when things get challenging you can rely on open lines of communication, knowing they will do what they can to support you and keep you safe.
It is this team cohesiveness that flows through to each individual and helps everyone achieve their goal.
