All news: April 2013

Lyudmila Korobeshko reports from the Ice Camp Barneo. Today Greenpeace “Save the Arctic” expedition completed a preparation for the ski trip to the Pole. Members were s engaged in a training session, once again learn how to survive in the ice desert, checked equipment. On the same day they say goodbye the group of Fyodor Konyukhov and Victor Simonov. They flew to the North Pole with a large support group and journalists in a helicopter. Automobile expedition lead by Vasily Elagin just the day came at the Pole, after 37 days of travel by ice of theArctic Ocean.

MLAE 2013 Sea ice automobile expedition

April 6, 2013 04:30MOSCOWTIME

Geographical North Pole N 90 ° 00,000'

It is the second time in the history of world automotive industry that cars reached the North Pole from the closest land. And again as well as four years ago these cars are "Yemelya" of Vasily Yelagin's design. This time to reach the North Pole fromSevernaya Zemlyatook 37 days that is only one day less than in 2009. In the MLAE team there are seven people: Vasiliy Elagin, Afanasiy Makovnev, Vladimir Obikhod, Alexey Shkrabkin, Andrey Vankov, Sergey Isayev, Nikolay Kozlov. Today and tomorrow the team will take a rest and also arrange themselves and cars. We have the second not less difficult step before us – to reach the Canadian settlement Resolute 74 degree of north latitude, and we have to do it using fuel that we took on start for the whole route at once.

Afanassi

www.yemelya.ru

Hello! This is Lyudmila Korobeshko from the Expedition Save the Arctic. So, now we are already on Barneo, as planned. This morning we flew here by plane, successfully landed and had been even conduct training outing.

At the moment, the stationBorneois located about 50 kilometers from the North Pole, and continues at a rate of about 5 km a day to approach it. Weather is good, relatively warm. Around minus 15, however, there is wind. Tonight here we are waiting for large group to arrive, in which the main characters are Fyodor Konyukhov and Victor Simonov.

Leila Albogachieva from Ingushetia last year climbedMount Everestin the expedition of 7 Summits Club under the leadership of Alexander Abramov. This year, she decided to try to climb a different route - from the south. 7 Summits-adventure Co has been organizing this climb.

Leila Albogachieva brought with flag Olympics in Sochi, which she was given in the Olympic Committee in Moscow with a request to place it on the summit of Everest. Russian Ambassador to Nepal Sergey Velichkin received a delegation of 7 Summits Club …

In the airport Leila was met by Alex and  Mayla, her partner from last year expedition

Finally, for the first time, Greenpeace organizers showed a magic capsule. Our mission will be to bring it to the North Pole and sink it down to the bottom of ocean. Inside it marked the names of more than 2 million people that supported Greenpeace in the program of protecting theArctic. On the left in the photo, it is a famous American actor Ezra Miller. ...

We still have a couple of hours trying to finally pack the sleigh and deliver them today to load the plane.

Departure is scheduled for tomorrow at 9 a.m.

This morning, Victor Boyarsky briefed our two groups. Eric Phillips had questions :)

In the background, Dmitry Ermakov translates the speech of Boyarsky from English to Russian.

Morning training

Greenpeace team Aurora

Members and guides

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/climate-change/arctic-impacts/Save-The-Arctic-North-Pole-Expedition/The-North-Pole-Expedition-Team/#a0

Ezra Miller

On April 3rd, 2013 together with Victor Simonov, Fedor Konyukhov bid his farewell before setting off to the North Pole - Greenland journey. A farewell ceremony took place in the village Matrosi (30 km off of Petrozavodsk). It was attended by state personnel of the Republic of Karelia, journalists, sponsors’ representatives and of course a large crowd of the people who are interested in this event and came to wish their best to the two explorers.

http://www.konyukhov.ru/eng/

At the ceremony Victor Simonov announced that all 12 dogs are of the Siberian Husky breed and that all of them except one were raised and trained in his kennels, right in the Matrosi village of Karelia.

On April 4th together with the 12 dogs, 2 sleds of 80 kg (when empty) and 25 people of various relations to the expedition, Fedor and Victor will board the An74 aircraft provided by “Utair” Aviation Company. The first stop is Spitsbergen (Longyear settlement), then off to Russian Camp Barneo. Fedor and Victor plan to start the North Pole- Greenland trek on April 6th. While at Camp Barneo (which is pretty close to the North Pole), the two explorers will be flown on a helicopter to the North Pole. Fedor plans to place a Russian Orthodox Church Cross at the North Pole and conduct a service of supplication to honor 1025 years since the Christianization of Kievan Rus'. The expedition has received a blessing from the bishop Kiril, the Patriarch of Moscow and all the Rus'.

In 2006 two Russian explorers Georgiy Karpenko and Artur Chubarkin reached the North Pole on dog sleds. All of the dogs were strictly of Siberian Husky breed. One of the dogs, 9 years old Cherke will run together with Fedor and Victor’s dogs. Once the team reaches Greenland, they will be joined by 14 more dogs of Greenland Husky breed.

It will be Fedor’s 4th arrival at the North Pole: in 1988 he reached the Pole together with the team of Dmitriy Shparo; in 1989 with the expedition “Arctica” under the leadership of Vladimir Chukov; and in 1990 Fedor conquered the Pole solo. This time though, Fedor will be leaving the North Pole heading towards Greenland.

The expedition is planned to take approximately 4 months. This arctic route has never been completed and is considered the most challenging area in the entire Arctic region. Despite the prognosis, both Fedor and Victor are very optimistic and remain with the most positive attitude: “We are eager to begin our adventure. It’s getting quite warm here for our dogs, but at the North Pole the temperature is the most optimal for them- negative 38. As for me and Victor, the harder the frost the better for us,”- remarked Fedor.

Dmitry Ermakov and Lyudmila Korobeshko fly today to Spizbergen. They will de leaders to separate group to reach the north Pole.

Lyudmila will be one of guides of the Greenpeace group.

More about the Save the Arctic campaign

In a less than one year, the Save the Arctic movement has grown to 2.7 million people from all over the world who want a say in what happens to the Arctic.

The Save the Arctic campaign is about protecting the area around the North Pole (where no people live) from resource exploitation (oil drilling and overfishing) and associated conflict. Currently these resources are unreachable under the sea-ice but ad climate change causes this sea-ice to melt in the Arctic summer, countries around the North Pole are staking their claims on the area and its natural resources.

The campaign aims for the area around the North Pole to be declared a global sanctuary so it will not belong to one country but to every person in the world.  Greenpeace already ran a successful campaign to do this in the South Pole so we know it can work!

Find out more and add your name to the Arctic scroll.

Thank you to everyone who entered the Flag for the Future competition. The judges were overwhelmed with the quality and creativity of the entries. You can view a selection of entries here.

Judge Aishah is writing an article about her experience of being a judge which is coming to the website soon.

Alex was met by our Nepal chief Mingma (7 Summits Adventure Co) and his friends Nima and Pemba.

This will be the 10th in a row, that is, the jubilee expedition, it will join a record number of participants. 27 clients and 5 guides will be at the base camp at Rongbuk Glacier. Our subsidiary 7 Summits Adventure Co has been involved in the preparation of the season.

In the expedition of 7 Summits Club 13 members will climb with permits for the summit of Everest, 4 guides will work with them, 7 pax have permits for Changtse, 2 – for North Col (1 guide), 6 persons have the right to go up to camp ABC.

Besides the main ascent, Alexander Abramov plans to re-try a new route: traverse Changtse - Everest.