In his book The Snow Leopard, Peter Mathiesson encounters budhist monk who is confined to his Tibetan Monestary because he can no longer see or walk. 'Doesn't it frustrate you that you are unable to leave,' Peter asks.

The monk responds, 'I like it all the more because I can't leave.'

Being in Antarctica is a lot like that. Of course, we are choosing to be here, but there are those days (cold, tired, hungry) when we feel slightly otherwise. We are close to pole, however there is still over 100 nautical miles to go. With no other choice, we keep skiing. And therefore enjoy every step all the more. The fact that we are traveling across one of the last great wilderness areas on the planet, is not lost on us.

We had our last rest day today (actually half rest day). From here, we can almost feel the pole. After a very hard day yesterday, we finally reached a modicom of flatness - the polar plateau (platume as Dong calls it). Unfortunately, there are still a few obstacles in our way. It is so dry now that the snow feels more like sand paper and each step brings the anchor-like tug of our sled.

40 days on the trail. 40 nights sleeping inches away from Bill's feet and Dongsheng's snoring. We share nearly every good and bad moment.

'I hate everybody,' jokes Bill. Then more seriously, he adds, 'this is definitely a unique situation being so close to one another for so long; however, we also get a chance to have really nice conversations in the tent and share ideas we've been thinking about while skiing.'

'We are a good team and cooperate very well,' says Dongsheng.

It would be easy for one of us to loose our temper or get frustrated, but we have learned to accept each other's quirks and foibles. We are not perfect, of course, but we know a our success will be derived, in large part, in our ability to work as a team in the face of more hardship in this seemingly unendinding expanse of Antarctica.

Martin Luther King, Jr. said, 'the ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands in moments of controversy.'

I guess today other people are just saying it better than I could.

Image: Yesterday's special visit from Santa Claus a.k.a wild Bill Hanlon.

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

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