A fine farewell to the Trans-Antarctics!
Date = 17/12/2017
Day 27 (Expedition), Day 33 (Antarctica)
Location = California Plateau
Coordinates – S86 35.838, W143 40.107
Altitude = 2062m
Temperature = -15C
Wind speed / direction = 0-18 knot, South, sunny
Windchill = -20C
Distance travelled = 36km
Distance remaining = 1368km
Before I begin – today I saw a bird! I think it was a juvenile Albatross. It came quite close, checking out our kites. The others didn’t see it. I saw a butterfly above 8000m on Everest, a tiny little bird in the door of my tent in a blizzard on the Greenland icecap, a snow petrel on the summit of Ulvetanna and now a huge bird at 86 degrees south, 500miles from the ocean. I take them all as good omens!
Yeah! It worked! An exhausting, but exhilarating day of aggressive upwind kiting. We started in light wind on our biggest 15m2 kites. Immediately it became apparent that it was going to work and work well. Good visibility, open terrain, a hard ice surface, GS race skis and high aspect ratio performance kites came together for a full value day of high octane Antarctic adventure.
Upwind kiting is strange balance of delicacy and aggression. You can literally feel the point at which all the sophisticated equipment and skills come together and you hit the perfect angle of attack into wind. A subtle balance between your body weight, the edges of the skis, their direction and the kites power controlled by gentle but strong arm movements on the control bar.
It’s a full on workout for the quads and the arms to hold a line into the wind, but exhilarating and fast. The loads were hardly noticeable apart from the gut wrenching initial jerk when changing direction on a tack.

The wind strengthened and we soon became overpowered, switching directly to our smallest 9m2. For all the troubles we had with those frisky little beasts on the way in, they really came into their element today for tacking up wind, cutting smoothly across the sky.
We covered 113km of ground and a point to point distance of 36 km. Almost a 3:1 ratio which is fantastic.
We zigged and zagged our way all the way up the Robison glacier and significantly out of the Trans-Antarctic mountains until the wind dropped. We are now camped in glorious sunshine with not a breath of wind, 20km below the Graves Nunatuks where just a couple of weeks ago we were pinned in a storm on our entry into this most inaccessible of mountain ranges.
It has been a privilege and an honour to have travelled and climbed in this desperately remote range and to have behold The Spectre. The hidden jewel of this spectacular region, buried deep and guarded fiercely, as perfect a peak as there ever could be.
Our dream to see this place and climb the Spectre became reality, and it is now behind us. We are about to say goodbye to the Trans-Antarctic mountains for good, as we return to the deep freeze of the high plateau.
No more sublime mountain views as we enter the endless white desert. We are optimistic about kiting the next 50kms. We have the best surface possible, perfect sun, just lacking one key ingredient…
This is the calmest it has been the whole trip. It is so silent, so peaceful, so beautiful.
With a 10 knot southerly wind we can cross the California plateau in a few hours. Or it’s 3 hard days of walking. We will enjoy this splendid spot and wait for wind.
There is a long journey ahead, but our time here in this other world is so limited. We must savour all the amplified experiences and emotions, as soon this will all be a memory. Though one, we will not likely soon forget!
“et que les Dieux et les vents vous soient favorables”
good way boys
bisesss jy
What a joy to read your blog this morning. Your deep appreciation of where you are, in a very special place, is a joy to read.
Thanks for taking the time to share it with us!
It will be sad not to see those beautiful mountains any more, what a skyline they have made in your photos. Crossed fingers and toes for wind.
It will be sad not to see those beautiful mountains any more, what a skyline they have made in your photos. Crossed fingers and toes for wind. Cheers Glenda Downunder
Not sure if you guys read our comments but I’m enjoying this so much due to the great narrative that transport myself into your place. Wonderful to “be” with you guys down there instead of in a city with 20 million people around 😀
*doing the Wind Dance here!
Hi Ronny,
Yes, they read all the comments – they are sent over to them every couple of days. Keep doing the wind dance 🙂
Je lis et relis vos beaux messages. quel bonheur de pouvoir suivre votre aventure.
merci à la technique qui marche !
merci à vous de prendre le temps de partager vos moments d’effort intense et vos moments de bonheur et tous ces détails qui seraient sans cela inimaginables ici
et à vous d’imaginer tout le monde qui vous suit sur la glace
bises
macaule
Congratulations on the successful kiting..
Wonderful narrative, articulate and succinct.
I will turn out house fan here in Carefree AZ in your direction.
Mark
And that looks like a f****ing blast!!
Go team Spectre!!
Loved your blog today. Thank you.So impressive to imagine you all tackingyour way up the glacier in your expansive white world.
Sue
Sounds like you had a brill day out!!! We are up at the cottage going to have dinner with your wife and kids. Still cold here need all that gear plus some extra stuff lad.
So have fun stay safe and hope to see you after we get back from Spain… Yea baby
Such an exciting and welcome blog today! So happy to read about a great day kiting instead of the hard slog you’ve been going through. You paint a great picture Leo 🙂
Great to here you got the kites out, Smashing it !
We follow you from Bretagne. Thanks so much for the news and the pictures. We send you BIG KISSES and can’t wait to drink a fresh beer with you for your success. (Or a hot chocolate)
Reckon these lyrics are particularly pertinent at this point in the expedition….
The wind is the whisper of our mother the earth
The wind is the hand of our father the sky
The wind watches over our struggles and pleasures
The wind is the goddess who first learned to fly
The wind is the bearer of bad and good tidings
The weaver of darkness, the bringer of dawn
The wind gives the rain, then builds us a rainbow
The wind is the singer who sang the first song
The wind is a twister of anger and warning
The wind brings the fragrance of freshly mown hay
The wind is a racer and a wild stallion running
And the sweet taste of love on a slow summer’s day
The wind knows the songs of cities and canyons
Thunder of mountains, roar of the sea
The wind is the taker and giver of mornings
The wind is the symbol of all that is free
So welcome the wind and the wisdom she offers
Follow her summons when she calls again
In your heart and your spirit let the breezes surround you
Lift up your voice then and sing with the wind
– John Denver, Windsong
It is a privilege to follow the expedition, to read the descriptive reports and see the stunning photos.
May The Wind Be With You!
David
A fabulous read, thank you. Wonderful to hear how appreciative and aware you are of all that you are experiencing. It is often said that we don’t know that this will be the last time: the last time our children desire us more than anything else or the last conversation we have with a friend who dies unexpectedly. You seem to be able to identify and appreciate that this is your last moment with these mountains and to make the most of it.