Karen Darke keeps warm during her Norwegian testing
A Paralympic medallist who plans to cross journey to the South Pole under her own steam has had to rethink her plans after a testing week in the Norwegian wilderness.
Karen Darke, who won a silver medal in the 2012 London Paralympics, had hoped to use a special snow handbike to make the journey from the edge of Antarctica to the geographical South Pole.
But the bike proved too difficult to use in soft snow and Ms Darke now faces the prospect of a cross-country sit-ski.
The Berghaus-sponsored athlete, who was paralysed from the chest downwards at the age of 21 in a climbing accident, spent a week on the Hardangervidda Plateau, testing the effectiveness of the special snow-handbike against that of a cross country sit-ski.
If she succeeds in her Pole of Possibility venture she will be the paraplegic to reach the South Pole from the edge of Antarctica under her own power.
Speaking after her Norwegian week, during which the athlete had to endure the snoring of her three male colleagues, she said despite the setback, the experience had left her inspired. She was accompanied by her partner Andy Kirkpatrick, her brother Simon and Mike Christie.
Ms Darke tries out the snowbike
“It’s been amazing to be back in the mountains and witness low winter sun turning white mountains pink, glittering lakes of ice, and huge expanses of virgin snow. And of course, I had my latest adventure with Andy, Simon and Mike.
“I returned feeling a bit tired after a week camping and journeying through snow and ice, and sharing a tent space the size of a double bed with three snoring blokes.
“I also feeling very weird in the chunk of my body I can’t feel – three quarters of me – and am not sure that being squashed up in a sit-ski, tied in with straps, covered with layer after layer to stop the cold biting and working my arms so hard they feel leaden, is the ideal way to feel good.
“Discomfort aside, it was our chance to test ourselves and our kit as we develop our plans for the Pole of Possibility.
“Sadly, the amazing snowbike that I had really struggled in the soft snow – there is a reason why no-one has yet biked to the South Pole and there’s a reason why nobody paralysed has travelled across Antarctica to get there.
“I feel inspired by my week in the wilds, though I realise that I was pinning my hopes on the snowbike.
Karen Darke and her team in Norway
“So now I’m pondering the challenge of crossing Antarctica in a sit-ski that is so demanding on the body, and so dependent on ski glide which in cold, uphill conditions doesn’t happen readily.
“The answer, as it is for so many things in life, is to rest, reflect, learn, re-plan, and then go and try again.
“We certainly learned plenty in Norway to help us do that.”
More details are on the Pole of Possibility website and on Karen Darke’s blog.
