We left this morning with a noticeable skip in our stride. We felt well rested, well fed and optimistic about the upcoming day as well as our chances at making it to the pole (we are over half way). Today seemed a little like going back to work after a long vacation. All those things that used to get you down, don't seem like much of problem anymore.

Then, it all came flooding back - the wind, the cold, whiteouts. There's a reason we're not skiing to the pole with hundreds of others. Still, our route today would take us between to Nunatuks of the Thiel mountains and the opportunity to experience different terrain was too great a draw.

Of course, as soon as we started skiing, clouds moved in and the great panorama we were hoping to ski into disappeared. Oh well. The snow was hard and we made good progress. Unfortunately, the light changed and drifting increased. A while later we were skidding across blue ice - desperately clinging from one meandering patchwork of snow to another.

For lunch, we managed to find a small island of snow just big enough for our three sleds. We shivered and ate quickly simultaneously marveling at the pearl blue ice and wondering what obstacle might come next.

The sun poked through in a few spots as we clawed our way up toward the snow line. Sleds pull easily on the glare ice, but it is equally easy to slip. At the same time our footing became more stable, the angle of the slope increased and we began climbing in earnest. When we finally crested the ridge, we were able treated to an usual (for us) number of sights - sun poking through the clouds, a large swath of blue ice, ice glazed snow and sastrugi, several mountain peaks, rock slides and even a lateral moraine at the base of westerly slope.

We would spent the rest of the afternoon skiing in whiteout.

Image: Bill on the scalloped surface of blue ice.

Remember, it's cool to be cold. Save the Poles. Save the planet.

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