Geneva - South African adventurer Mike Horn on Thursday became the first man to circumnavigate the Arctic Circle without motorised transport, completing a more than two-year solo odyssey.
The Swiss-based Horn set out in August 2002, travelling on foot and skis, as well as by kayak. He arrived back at the North Cape in Norway, where he was met by his logistics team, wife Cathy and two daughters.
"After two years and three months on the road, it is a great moment," the weary 38-year-old said.
"I'm happy to reach the end and the girls are just as happy to have me back," he said after serving champagne aboard his ice-cutting aluminium sailboat.
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His 20 000km journey took him through Greenland, Canada, Alaska, the Bering Strait and Russia's Siberia. Often dragging a Kevlar sledge carrying 200kg of equipment and food, he faced dangers, including polar bears.
Frostbite forced Horn to abandon a first attempt in April 2002 after he took off his gloves to relace his boots in temperatures of minus 50°C.
He set out again on his expedition, named "Arktos" which means bear in Greek, in August 2002. But it took far longer than the 18 months he had expected.
Horn was also the first man to complete a circumnavigation of the equator without motorised transport in October 2000.
He crossed the Amazon jungle, Pacific Ocean and Africa, by foot, trimaran, bicycle and pirogue (dug-out canoe) over a 17-month period.
"I'm an adventurer, that is the way I make a living. I love what I do," he said. - Reuters
- This article was originally published on page 5 of Cape Times on October 22, 2004
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