My friend Nat Taylor – Major Natalie Taylor, to give you her full name – is a British Army GP based at Fort George, near Inverness in the Scottish Highlands. Earlier this month, she succeeded in skiing to the South Pole for the second time.
Nat was part of a science research expedition, Inspire 22, which crossed the polar plateau from the Messner Start on the Ross Ice Shelf, on Antarctica’s coast.
It took 47 days – skiing seven hours daily with just two days off – for the 11-strong team to cover 944km to the heart of the continent. They arrived at at the South Pole at mid-day on January 9.
The group included three other members from Scotland, Army Lance Corporal Stephanie Innes-Smith, of Alford, Aberdeenshire, Army Captain Pat Harper, of Penicuik, Midlothian, and Dr Roger Alcock, from Edinburgh.
Read about Nat’s ultra race win in 2022.
Tough challenge – ski to the South Pole
The challenges of the Inspire22 expedition included temperatures that dipped to -40C and an unforgiving terrain of wind-eroded snow and ice. Each team member needed to pull a pouk (sledge) of food and supplies weighing between 60kg and 79kg. There were only three supply points during the journey.
The biggest dangers were frostbite and muscular injuries, as well as a loss of energy. Although the team members required 6000 to 10,000 calories each day, most were only able to consume between 4000 and 6000 calories.
Nat, who was both the expedition and research leader, said: “We needed to keep a close eye on each other to make sure we were all coping okay with the exertion and conditions.
“It was challenging physically, as well as mentally. Many in the team spoke of the monotony of views and doing the same thing hour after hour. It was also extremely cold most of the time.”
Nat sets South Pole record
The first time Nat, regimental medical officer of The Black Watch, reached the South Pole was in January 2018.
She was part of the first all-female team to ski across Antarctica using muscle power alone. The six UK women crossed the continent coast to coast and also became the largest team to ski the longer 1704km route.
Records set by Inspire22
A number of records were also set as part of the Inspire 22 expedition, which included three civilians and six members of the British Army, Royal Navy and RAF, as well as two Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions (ALE) guides.
It is the largest team to complete the route, while Dr Nadja Albertsen became the first Danish woman to reach the South Pole. Expedition guide Devon McDiarmid, from Canada, has now skied to the pole six times, the most times anyone has done this journey.
The youngest on the expedition was Royal Navy Surgeon Lieutenant Stefano Capella aged 30. At 63, it’ is thought Professor Chris Imray, a vascular/renal transplant surgeon, could be the oldest to have reached the South Pole on the Messner route.
It’s also believed Flight Lieutenant Mike Eager is the first member of the RAF to ski to the South Pole.
However, the main aim of the Inspire22 expedition was to research metabolism. The team carried out human tests throughout the journey.
Nat explained: “Our research is focused on healthy people during a long and arduous expedition, which shows how the body works when people are consuming a lot of energy but not eating enough.
“This is the same as people who are very poorly in intensive care. The information gained from our scientific project has the potential to help medics to try different ways to treat and care for people who are very unwell. The results will be produced in due course.“
The idea for the trip came from Nat after her Ice Maiden crossing, in conjunction with Professor Imray and Dr Alcock.
Patrons of Inspire 22 include Major General Tim Hodgetts CBE, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Professor Mike Stroud OBE, Professor Mike Grocott. The expedition was supported TeamForces and AlleyCorp, among many others.
History of skiing to the South Pole
The journey from the Ross Ice Shelf to the South Pole was first completed on December 14, 1911, by Roald Amundsen’s team. On January 17, 1912, Captain Scott’s team also arrived at the pole, although they all died of hypothermia and malnutrition on the return journey.
Over a century later, the expedition to the South Pole remains an enormous challenge physically, mentally and nutritionally. While it has successfully been completed many times both by teams and solo expeditions, the number of medical research expeditions can be counted on one hand.
* See www.inspire22.co.uk.