14th January 11;30 pm
I’m as excited about going home as I was in reaching the Pole.
Our plane has landed….
I have spent the last twenty years, seven months of each year traveling the world in search of challenges and adventurers for my teams and I. However when I’m away and finish each expedition, I love this time. It’s over and I know once we reach civilization that within a few days, I’ll be home. Home sweet home.
The eagle has landed.
Here I am sitting on a remote ice runway and I can here the drone of the engines of our aircraft coming, a dot in the distance, getting bigger and bigger and then she appears like a huge eagle coming my way, this plane slowly approaches our position its 16 wheels lowered to land and hits the runway with a thud. Its such an amazing sight,
We are ready to leave Antarctic and leave the cold, katabatic winds, snow the misery and the most beautiful place on this planet.
This continent is a place like no other on this planet. We have been privileged and honoured to have had the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of our sung and un-sung hero’s. I have been delighted to lead an amazing bunch of people to the pole. Clare, Shaun and Jon, I have been so lucky to have had them as team mates.
Here we go…
Well here we go, the Eagle has landed and our final 2800km to the civilized world begins. Then 15,000 km long journey home, at least that will be on scheduled flights.
As I leave the ice behind, I’m excited that tonight, I will sleep in a bed, clean sheets and for the 1st time in 67 days I will have clean underwear and the pleasure of real food.
The hustle and bustle begins and we return to what is, the reality of life.
In a way, its frightening, and yet home life is as challenging as being our here in Antarctic.
We will have 24 hours only to organise all of our equipment to be sent home when we arrive in Punta Arenas, the expedition is over and the journey home begins.
We will be suffering from exhaustion by the time we get to Ireland.
Confirmation has been received they are on board their flight to Chile.
