Never believe your own propaganda
The idea for Row to the Pole first came about when Jock was at Resolute Bay in the former North West Territories of Canada.
Having just completed The Polar Race he had taken a rowing machine out on to the ice. A friend seeing him, joked, “What are you going to do next Jock? Row to the Pole!”
From that moment the idea of the challenge alongside the chance to highlight climate change in the region took root in Jock’s mind. Not a man to lose sight of a challenge he has worked tirelessly to make this expedition a reality.
A group of adventures who are hoping to row a boat to the North Pole get briefly trapped in a ice field.
The Old Pulteney Row To The Pole is an expedition by six oarsmen in an effort to complete a 450 mile voyage in an open rowing boat from Resolute Bay to the position of the Geomagnetic Pole (1996). It's only conceivable because the sea ice has receded to such an extent that areas once covered in ice are open water in summer. At the very end of summer there is a narrow two week 'window' when a navigable route may be found by the crew. If they complete the voyage, the crew will become the first to have rowed to any Pole position. The expedition is the first since Ernest Shackleton ordered his crew to take to rowing boats to save their lives in 1916. Either way, it is a huge adventure and a unique ocean rowing challenge.
A quick note here they are aiming to reach the “magnetic” north pole a spot that moves from year to year and at one point it was even on land.
In fact, they set their goal for the magnetic north pole as it was recorded in 1996, the pole is moving to the northwest by about 37 miles a year meaning they will be about 500 miles short of actually rowing to the pole… the location is (78°35.7N 104°11.9W) right in the famous North West Passage first crossed in 1906 in an attempt to find a way to avoid the long trips around South America and is surrounded by islands
Update: I corrected the date of the first crossing of the northwest passage.
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