Adventure in 60 Seconds: First Americans Complete Unsupported North Pole Ski Trek

Text by Tetsuhiko Endo

America’s heartland is known for its farms, football, and low-key, but friendly folk. With such a humble reputation, it’s easy to forget that the Midwest has also produced some of the most intrepid American arctic explorers of the decade. Case in point, explorer Will Steger, the Minnesota native who got our lifetime achievement award in 2007, has more significant polar "firsts" than just about anyone. 

The world was reminded over the weekend when Tyler Fish of Ely, Minnesota, and John Huston of Chicago, Illinois, became the first Americans to complete an unsupported ski trek to the North Pole. Although the early parts of their expedition went quite smoothly compared other teams making a run for the Pole, their last days were hampered by bad weather, which almost caused them to miss their April 26th evacuation deadline. They arrived at the Pole on the 25th, sleep deprived from 12-hour skiing shifts broken up with one- to two-hour naps—and with only two and a half meals remaining in their cargo sleds.
Joining them at the Pole was fellow Minnesotan Lonnie Dupre, who led the PolarExplorers Peary-Henson 100th Anniversary Commemorative Expedition. His team included Stuart Smith and Maxime Chaya, the first Lebanese person to reach the North Pole.