In some of my quiet moments, I think about all the time Ive spent not just on expeditions (which is years) but also the minutes, hours and days Ive spent delayed by weather, ice, politics, dragons and who knows what else. Our short Last Degree North Pole expedition seems to be shaping up similarly.

For a bit of backstory, the logistics to reach the Pole are crazy. Full stop. First we fly to a temporary ice base on the Arctic Ocean at roughly 88-89 degrees North latitude. The construction of this temporary base is a whole other story but the result of this frenetic few days of activity is a one thousand meter runway of cleared sea ice stable enough to land a small jet. Yes, I said jet. After that we fly in helicopters to the 89th parallel at roughly the 130th meridian (longitude). Once there, we ski on a shifting surface of sea ice for about a week to the Geographic North Pole. Then its helicopters back to the ice camp and runway and another jet plane ride back to land.

So there are more than a few moving pieces in this Rub Goldbergesque chain of polar machines and weather windows. Each has to align perfectly for us to be able to reach the pole. Any shift in one of the links and the whole thing stops.

Which is why we are waiting now.

But honestly itâ??s not that bad. As of right now we are just a couple of days behind schedule. In previous years Ive waited for nearly two whole weeks for good weather permits and ice conditions.

Ive heard it said you must first have a lot of patience to learn patience.

Despite the inconvenience of being (slightly) behind schedule I feel lucky to be here. Three years ago when I was diagnosed with cancer I didnt think I would see another winter let alone the North Pole ever again.

Waiting for a flight doesnt seem so bad.