Victorinox North Pole Expedition

John Huston explains how they reached the North Pole unassisted, with proper planning and preparation being the key factors in their success.

Imagine being dropped off in the middle of nowhere in -35 degree temperatures to fend for yourself . While it may seem like the start of an expedition, it was actually the final leg of many months of research and preparation that brought John Huston and Tyler Fish to the point in which they would trek 475 miles to the North Pole. Huston and Fish began their expedition on March 2nd from Ellesmere Island, located at the northern tip of Canada. They received no additional food, supplies or assistance until they reached the North Pole, where they would be picked up by helicopter.

“We approached this difficult expedition humbly,” says Huston, as we spoke with him at the 2009 Outdoor Retailer Summer Market place in Salt Lake City, Utah. “We asked many experts and people who have gone to the North Pole, to give us as much advice and technical information as possible. We wanted to prepare ourselves physically and mentally for what we were about to face.”

Huston explained that the polar region environment is extremely rugged, punishing and harsh, which is why unassisted expeditions to the North Pole aren’t common. “One mistake could mean the difference between life and death in these types of conditions,” says Huston, whose daily routine seemed simple when he explained they just had to walk, navigate, eat and sleep. But on the ice, carrying out simple routines in that difficult terrain wouldn’t be so easy. Add in the constant threat of hypothermia, frost bite, and the mentally exhausting  effects of 24 hours of sunlight, and little things like checking the time on their Victorinox watches was indeed difficult to do.  

Nevertheless, each day involved a strict schedule of eating 8,000 calories, walking /skiing for a fixed amount of time, then sleeping at regular intervals without missing a beat.  At times they had to put on wet suits and swim across open leads of water where the ice had cracked, all while pulling sleds filled with 650 pounds of gear. “It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” says Huston while shaking his head in disbelief. “I’m glad that we did it, but I probably wouldn’t do it again.”

But even with all the right preparation and a strong determination to succeed, their expediton didn’t go perfectly.  “At one point I fell through the ice,” he says. “It was definitely scarry. Fortunately we both had rehearsed on what to do and I got through it.” 

But the ice had another obstacle that the two-man team wasn’t prepared for. “We were moving along very well at first,” says Huston. “We maintained our regiment of walking, sleeping and eating extremely well, even to the point of being ahead of schedule. Then the wind picked up and it was difficult to see for a while. When it finally stopped, we realized the wind had pushed the entire ice pack south. So it was like walking on a treadmill.”  Almost instantly, the team found themselves pushed so far back they were well behind schedule and in jeopardy of not reaching the North Pole in time for their evacuation.  To compensate, Fish and Huston had to limit their sleeping times to only one hour and increased their pace by skiing for 12  hour intervals. 

Their efforts paid off. After a race-like pace for 72 hours, and with less than six hours of sleep, they reached the North Pole on  April 25th at 5:30 pm CST. Their trip lasted two months and was mentally and physically draining. “I lost 30 lbs. and had a difficult time readjusting back to a normal time and schedule,” Huston explained.

So why would two guys put themselves through an extremely dangerous expedition that would exhaust their mental and physical capabilities? The answer is that both Huston and Fish, former wilderness expedition leaders at Outward Bound, wanted to be the first Americans to trek to the North Pole unassisted. They began training for this type of expedition more than two years ago and undertook the challenge to raise awareness and donations for CaringBridge, a non-profit organization based out of Minnesota. The company creates online communities for people who are facing serious medical conditions to connect with others and their families for support. So far CaringBridge has netted nearly $10,000 in donations from the North Pole Expedition, but it is far below the organization’s goal of $100,000.  Huston and Fish continue to try and gather donations while at the same time, they started a company of their own called Forward Expeditions LLC . Their goal is to use ambitious wilderness expeditions to inspire people to embrace challenge with optimism, humility and responsible action.

To find out more about CaringBridge, visit firstgiving.com/northpole09. Both Huston and Fish carried Victorinox Swiss Army knives and time pieces that they  relied heavily on for their survival. You can find out more info on these products by visiting www.swissarmy.com

By Dan Sanchez, Photos courtesy Forward Expeditions LLC.