Gareth Brauteseth

I have said quite a bit about the Ilyusion IL 76 that is the mainstay of what happens in our corner of Antarctica, but that isn’t the only little machine that makes all the projects tick.

There are a few more vehicles that, for the lack of a better explanation, are larger than life.

The Perfect Parking Lot

Modified “Hilux for the Ice” is my natural favourite.

This incredible vehicle was made famous the world over when Jeremy Clarkson and his mates raced to the North Pole in a red one. Orders apparently started streaming in and now even you can buy one. For 100 000 euro you can drive one wherever you want because to be absolutely honest there is not much stopping you.

The Dashboard

One only needs to look at the accessory panel to realize what a crazy car this is. Compressors, heaters, winches, auxillary pumps, other pumps, fuel tank isolators and the list goes on.

A real collection of accesories

The modifications for the ice are actually crucial because without them they would just slide around and look like toys. One of the major aspects of the conversion is obviously the size of the tyres and the raised suspension. Each tyre has 437 metal studs that get drilled into them which have the same effect as crampons on ice.

The pilots are all Icelandic and if they are representative of the whole of Iceland, well then I think Iceland has the most helpful, friendliest nation on earth. Yeah, sure, they have volcanoes that mess up flight patterns in Europe, but they are awesome.

Arctic trucks are a team we will never forget. They winched our man out of a crevasse, they fixed our skidoos, they started our heaters, they fixed our skidoos again, they supplied Vodka and they did it all with a smile on their face. Big thanks to Gisli, Ayo, Frere, Gisli , Hlynar and Ghumi

Steph Husson climbing in Antarctica

So, I am finally back from a long stint on the ice.

Wow, an amazing experience of sheer vastness. If anyone asks me to describe Antarctica that would be it- VAST!!!

Everything is just impressive down there.

The Nunatak across the glacier from our camp was VAST, the high Polar Plateau was Vast, the view from the South Pole was VAST, the emperor penguins were VAST and the drinking ability of our neighbours in Queen Maud land was also vast.

It was an experience that will never be forgotten and over the next few weeks I will be bringing a few of the characters to life here on my blog.

The picture I have included above is just a quick sneak peak of our surroundings. Steph Husson climbing a pitch over a frozen lake with a 300m icefall in the background.

This was our playground!!!

Adventure Chef Jenna Viney

I am a lucky member of a crew that is hosting guests down on the ice of Antarctica during the summer season of 2010/2011.

The opportunity to get down to the White Desert does not come around too often in ones life and I have been blessed with the opportunity that I have no doubt pounced upon.

“Whichaways” camp is based on the ice shelf and plays home base to White Desert. White Desert (www.white-desert.com) is the latest in adventure tourism and if you have the time, the money and the nerve I suggest you make a plan to get down, the waiting list is getting pretty long.

Besides the Ice climbing, the penguins, the leopard seals, the South pole and the Kite Skiing you will be spoilt by some of the most amazing food that adventure has to offer.
Jenna Viney (www.jennamayfood.com) is the award winning chef who splits her time between Antarctica in the European winter, Russia in the European Summer and Greece just for a good time. I had coffee with Jenna yesterday and it was a sign of good things to come. The team is going to be phenomenal and I can’t wait to meet the rest of the guys as they arrive in Cape Town to get ready for the Desert.