I kept strictly to my direction South, even while approaching steeper slopes and all of a sudden I was in a zone of crevasses. They weren't big ones but they surprised me as I couldn't see them at all because of the poor visibility.

Here is a photo of me eating my mixed vegetables – very good. You can see I'm not wearing much in the tent. It's so warm I can almost leave the doors open!! Yesterday I heated up so much while I was walking that I needed to stop to take off a layer of clothing!

Another 820 kms to go until I get to the Pole!!", says Mike.

Mike is still hauling his sled at every step, so to advance 24kms under these conditions is quite remarkable.

With yesterday's bad visibility also came the fresh snow so Mike thinks this may slow him down a little today.

"I'm now at around 1'000 meters in altitude" says Mike. "The terrain is slowly leveling out but I guess it would be until another week before the sled will actually start sliding behind me. Today the sky has cleared again so I will be able to advance a little further. I've just had my porridge for breakfast and am ready to move. I'm eating well, feel satisfied and enjoying the ice dried food (Trek'N Eat) that has been kindly supplied to me by Katadyn."

Mike has posted some more photos for us today. The third photo is a picture of an Antarctic white-out!!!

This morning Mike calls from Lat 82°11 S Lon 80°41 W

It's hard work says Mike. "I'm feeling pretty tired and have to force myself get out of the tent each morning. It would be so easy to sleep all day but I cannot! I must get a move on as I have an important meeting on the Pole."

"I am looking forward to being met by my North Pole companion, Borge Ousland, and two young adults that attended the training camp in Switzerland. Clémence and Nicolas must be in training this very moment. They'll meet me just after the New Year at which time it would be great if I could be at the pole. If my timing works out we'll all arrive at the South Pole together. What an appropriate place for Borge and myself to meet up! Until then, there is still quite a bit of route to do so it doesn't help if I sit in my tent. Gotta go!"

Mike continues his ascent, in calm, overcast conditions.

Now that Mike is on skis he is finding it a little easier to pull the sled as he has more traction to pull with. The terrain stays the same with its undulating wave-like surface.

The temperature is around -22°C today, partly cloudly, with virtually no wind at all. Mike is curious because it is so calm. He asks, "Whats cooking?" as he thinks a storm might be brewing, but no, it will continue to stay like this for the next few days.

He can see mountains far in the distance and if he looks back at the Peninsula, he can see heavy cloud and bad weather. He prefers to be where he is and is looking forward to a pleasant day walking.

Mike calls from Lat 81° 47.2' S Lon 80° 39.1' W

Mike was very pleased to get rid of his crampons but said he needed to adjust to using skis again. The technique is quite different.

The sun is out again and there are moderate SW winds. Conditions couldn't be better. The terrain is still rising slightly and is getting a little monotonous. There's not alot happening out there!

We hope today will be another good day for Mike.

In his tent last night, Mike prepared his skis by gluing skins down the entire length. Today he'll try and see if it will help him advance at a faster pace. If this does not work he'll need to continue with his crampons – he thinks at least for another 5-6 days!

Mike is walking on relatively flat terrain but until today he has only climbed up to 900 meters – he still has another 2000 to go!!!

It's 7h45 (Chilean time) when we speak and Mike is eager to get walking. "I should reach the Pole in another 35 days, but enough speaking for now – I better get a move on!!!"

Mike is still walking with crampons and this has lasted a lot longer than he expected. He hopes that in the next few days he can put on his skis.

"My sled is still very heavy and the terrain is irregular. It's impossible for me to put my skis on as I would only slip backwards. It beginning to cloud over. A new weather front is arriving. I hope the winds won't be too voilent. The morning when I get out of my tent, it's cold, but it's a dry cold, quite different to that of the North Pole. Here you can take your gloves off for a few seconds but in the North Pole that is unimaginable!"

Mike has now spent 10 days on the ice and is satisfied with the performance of his equipment. His position when he rang was 81°18.4 S, 80°36.4’W.

He explains that he is starting a new routine as he would like to try and cover more distance each day. This means that he'll walk longer hours and will get into the tent later in the evening.

He remarks that he is comfortable in the tent. Out of the tent however, the temperature is -25°C and is getting colder as he rises in alitude. He continues," The cold is nothing to laugh about and you must act wisely in these conditions. I still have a 1'000 meters to climb so it will get a lot colder yet!"

The sky in blue and with moderate southerly winds. He hopes to cover 25kms today.

Mike's position this morning Lat 81°7.1' S Lon 80°34.4' W

A frustrating day for Mike as he encountered rough terrain and a very steep hill.
He walked further than other days but unfortunately saw no improvement in the distance he covered due to the fact that he needed to zig-zag as he went up in altitude.

The higher Mike gets the colder it becomes. The snow is becoming more like sandpaper and the sled doesn't slide as well as it did.

Mike has now walked 473 kms from the continent edge and has a little less that 1'000 to go until he reaches the pole.

Mike has sent us though a photo on him lying on a sastrugi. A sastrugi is a mushroom like ice formation caused by the wind.
They can get a high as two metres are can create problems for somebody using a kite as they are very well hidden.

The weather is still good, calm winds and temperatures of around -24°C. Lets hope conditions stay like this!

Mike thinks that in one more day he'll be able to put his skis on. Today Mike advanced while walking in constant wave-like motion. The ice would raise steeply then flatten out, raise steeply again then flatten out.
Today his progression was 20kms – a record!

Mike says the temperatures are gradually getting colder. For the first time ice is forming around his face. He still remains surprised that he is warm in the tent when sheltered from the wind. In the North Pole, you remain cold at all times, both inside and outside of the tent. It is of course a welcoming change but next time he'll bring less fuel as he needs less to reheat himslf.

The weather is stable and his spirits are high! His position is Lat 80∞55.4'S and Lon 80∞31.3'W.