There is a quote I like (by Norman Peal I think) that goes, 'throw your heart over the fence and the rest will follow.' In our effort to reach the pole, we have been throwing our hearts, guts, feet, boots, tent, stove, sleds and anything else we've been lugging for the past 43 days over the fence as well.

My apologies for no update yesterday. Time and cold have taken their toll and I was up late splicing cables for the solar panel. The upshot today... Mostly charged. I'm still working on a camera battery.

The snow has flattened out considerablely and we were able to make some really good mileage. Our sunny morning turned overcast. Then, the wind picked up chasing away any illusions of a casual ski day. As Dongsheng has so eloquently phrased it in the past, it was, 'damn cold.' We skied, ate Clif bars, skied some more... The template is fairly simple.

Later in the afternoon, the sky completely cleared in just a half hour. Sunny and instantly warm, we pushed hard the last mile. The hoar frost crystals that have been slowing our progress looked like sparkling diamonds as we passed.

We have crossed the tracks of several expeditions and followed Hannah's (the other ALE/ANI guide for Messner Route) trail as well. It's surprising to see evidence of other people after so many days of complete isolation. After encountering the old tent site of the common wealth team, we felt a bit like Robbinson Crusoe seeing a foot print in the sand.

A sight which prompted us to simultaneously ask, 'Friday?'

Image: Bill and the plateau.

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

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