Kenn Borek scoops up polar trekker

SIKU CIRCUMPOLAR NEWS SERVICE

Ben Saunders, 26, became the youngest man to reach the North Pole last week, but decided to call off his attempt to ski solo from northern Russia to Canada.

Saunders had planned to set off from Russia’s northernmost Arctic islands in March but instead of ice, he discovered a 70 km open stretch of water. He had to be flown to the closest pack ice.

Before a Kenn Borek plane picked him up last Friday about 30 kilometers past the North Pole, Saunders covered a total of 965 km in 71 days.

Saunders said the average daily temperature was -5 to -7 degrees Celsius.

“I saw open water every single day of the expedition, which is not what I was expecting,” Saunders told Reuters news service.