Geographic North Pole

Conrad completed his Polar Trilogy by pulling his 150kg sledge to the Geographic North Pole in partnership with Canadian Richard Weber. Seasoned explorers have described this as the hardest expedition in the world; considerably harder than climbing Everest.

Experiencing temperatures of -50ºC; travelling on the frozen Arctic Ocean, the daunting possibility of Polar Bear attacks, crossing thin ice and negotiating open water. The tide and currents were everyday pushing him back to the coastline and contorting the ice into a building site of ice rubble and thousands of pressure ridges towering 5 metres high. And yet after 52 days of these torturous conditions they reached the Pole. Only 10 people before them had ever achieved this goal via the hardest route; and of course many have died trying.

All of these Polar Expeditions were undertaken unsupported: that is, he physically dragged his sled with all his food, fuel and equipment; with no outside help or assistance. On all of these occasions when Conrad has reached his goal, both the Union Jack and the Northumberland flag have been raised in celebration.

Antarctica: Reaching the South Pole

This incredible expedition involved pulling a 130kg sledge from the edge of the Antarctica continent all the way to the Geographic South Pole. Not content with that, the team of 5 skied all the way back using powerkites.

By doing this he, and his wife Hilary, are the only Brits to ski all the way to the South Pole and back. At the time of the expedition there was only one other recorded expedition to complete this arduous return to the South Pole and this was completed by the great Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen in 1911.

We all know what happened to Captain Scott’s party; who attempted this journey. It is difficult to believe what it is like to spend 75 days camping in such dangerous terrain. The international expedition community dubbed this one of “the cleanest and boldest expeditions ever to take place in Antarctica”.

Siberia: Lake Baikal

The 2007 Northern Spirit expedition was a first for a British Team. Conrad led a team of his native North Easterners to Siberia and were the first British group to traverse the 700 kilometers along the frozen surface of the largest freshwater lake in the world, Lake Baikal. The aim of the expedition was to demonstrate their “Northern Spirit”. That special ingredient for which this region is famous and that helps North Easterners “punch above our weight” compared to the rest of the U.K.