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Updated December 27th, 2018 at 10:05 IST

American adventurer completes solo trek across Antarctica

An American adventurer has become the first person to complete a solo trek across Antarctica without the assistance of any kind.

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An American adventurer has become the first person to complete a solo trek across Antarctica without the assistance of any kind. Colin O'Brady, 33, took 54 days to complete the nearly 1,000-mile (1,600-kilometer) crossing of the frozen continent from north to south.

"I accomplished my goal: to become the first person in history to traverse the continent of Antarctica coast to coast solo, unsupported and unaided," O'Brady wrote in an Instagram post after covering the final 77.5 miles in 32 hours.

"While the last 32 hours were some of the most challenging hours of my life, they have quite honestly been some of the best moments I have ever experienced," he wrote.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Day 54: FINISH LINE!!! I did it! The Impossible First ✅. 32 hours and 30 minutes after leaving my last camp early Christmas morning, I covered the remaining ~80 miles in one continuous “Antarctica Ultramarathon” push to the finish line. The wooden post in the background of this picture marks the edge of the Ross Ice Shelf, where Antarctica’s land mass ends and the sea ice begins. As I pulled my sled over this invisible line, I accomplished my goal: to become the first person in history to traverse the continent of Antarctica coast to coast solo, unsupported and unaided. While the last 32 hours were some of the most challenging hours of my life, they have quite honestly been some of the best moments I have ever experienced. I was locked in a deep flow state the entire time, equally focused on the end goal, while allowing my mind to recount the profound lessons of this journey. I’m delirious writing this as I haven’t slept yet. There is so much to process and integrate and there will be many more posts to acknowledge the incredible group of people who supported this project. But for now, I want to simply recognize my #1 who I, of course, called immediately upon finishing. I burst into tears making this call. I was never alone out there. @jennabesaw you walked every step with me and guided me with your courage and strength. WE DID IT!! We turned our dream into reality and proved that The Impossible First is indeed possible. “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” - Nelson Mandela. #TheImpossibleFirst #BePossible

A post shared by Colin O'Brady (@colinobrady) on

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"I was locked in a deep flow state the entire time, equally focused on the end goal, while allowing my mind to recount the profound lessons of this journey. I'm delirious writing this as I haven't slept yet." His voyage was tracked by GPS, and live updates of the trip were provided daily on his website colinobrady.com.

O'Brady and an Englishman, Army Captain Louis Rudd, 49, set off individually on November 3 from Union Glacier in a bid to be the first to complete a solo, unassisted crossing of Antarctica.

In 1996-97, a Norwegian polar explorer, Borge Ousland, made the first solo crossing of Antarctica but he was wind-aided by kites on his voyage. O'Brady and Rudd set off on cross-country skis dragging sleds called pulks which weighed nearly 400 pounds (180 kilograms).

O'Brady reached the South Pole on December 12, the 40th day of his journey. He arrived at the finish point on the Ross Ice Shelf on the Pacific Ocean on Wednesday after covering a total of 921 miles.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Day 52: SAVOR AND FOCUS. Somehow I am still going uphill 🤦‍♂️. I spent the first 6 hours of the day climbing up again to 8300ft (only 1000ft net lower than the Pole). I feel like I am stuck in an M.C. Echer drawing where every direction leads up, a never ending staircase. In this photo I finally crested the big hill looking out on the mountains that lead to my finish line at sea level. Perhaps now I really am going down for good. In these final days I’m reminding myself of two things: First - savor these moments. I’m very eager to finish, but before I know it, I’ll be reflecting on this adventure with nostalgia. So while I’m still out here, I’m trying to enjoy it as much as possible. The second thing is - I need to stay hyper focused on execution. It’s not over until it’s over. Henry Worsely, who was a huge inspiration of mine, tragically lost his life less than 100 miles from completing this traverse. When I was crossing Greenland earlier this year on my very last night, I decided to relax my usual evening routine and didn’t check my campsite well enough and fell waist deep into a crevasse that was 200ft deep. If I’d fallen all the way to the bottom, it could have been game over. It’s often at the end when we are tired that mistakes happen. So for that reason I’m ensuring that I stay hyper focused on all of the details. Merry Christmas Eve everyone. Dear Santa🎅, All I want for Christmas is a stable high pressure weather system to bring 🌞 and no wind. Sincerely, Colin #TheImpossibleFirst #BePossible

A post shared by Colin O'Brady (@colinobrady) on

O'Brady said he made the decision over breakfast to finish his journey in one continuous push.

"As I was boiling water for my morning oatmeal, a seemingly impossible question popped into my head," O'Brady wrote on Instagram. "I wonder, would (it) be possible to do one straight continuous push all the way to the end? "By the time I was lacing up my boots the impossible plan had become a solidified goal," he said. "I'm going to push on and try to finish all 80 miles to the end in one go." The New York Times described O'Brady's effort as among the "most remarkable feats in polar history," ranking alongside the 1911 "Race to the South Pole" between Norway's Roald Amundsen and England's Robert Falcon Scott.

 

"To complete the final 77.54 miles in one shot -- essentially tacking an ultra marathon onto the 53rd day of an already unprecedented journey -- set an even higher bar for anyone who tries to surpass it," the Times wrote.

In 2016, an English army officer, Lieutenant Colonel Henry Worsley, died while trying to complete an unassisted solo crossing of Antarctica

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Published December 27th, 2018 at 10:05 IST

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