I made it!!

I'm very proud to announce that I reached True North - the geographic North Pole - at 1530 BST on April 8th 2009.

Here's the moment I made it captured on film by Doug.



This was without question the toughest challenge of my life. It was also the most rewarding, enriching and profoundly surreal experience I guess I'll ever have the privilege to enjoy. I'm now focussing on writing a book about about the expedition and how it changed me as a person to help inspire other ordinary people to do extraordinary things.

You can check out some audio dispatches by clicking through to iceaxe.tv. There's also loads of other photos and expedition info on the site.

Thanks so much to everyone who has sponsored and supported me throughout what has been an amazing journey which took up every spare minute I had for the last 5 months. I'm truly grateful to Doug for leading me to the Pole and making sure I got there and back in one piece. It was a pleasure to get to know and I wish you every success in the future.

There are plans in the pipeline to take the project further and keep pushing to raise £50,000 for Macmillan.

Last night on dry land

So, here I am. My last night on dry land. My god, this has come out of nowhere. It seems like only 5 minutes ago that I seconded Ollie Reeve to train me back in December. Since then, in only 4 months, I've got engaged, trained so hard I collapsed, raised almost £13k for Macmillan and arrived here, at Longyerabyen, Norway, poised to fly onto the ice and embark on the expedition of a lifetime.

Everything I've ever done in my life so far has brought me to this day, to this point, about to embarque on the adventure of a lifetime in memory of my Dad. All that's ever gone into my body, my mind and soul is about to be laid bare over the next ten days or so. I'll learn more about myself than ever before and find out if I do have what it takes to join a unique group of less than 500 people who have ever achieved what I'm attempting.

I feel like I'm staring over the edge of a precipice that I know I've got to descend. The nerves are playing hell with me tonight. Butterflies wouldn't cut it - it's more like there's a swarm of pterodactyls ripping up my stomach. That said, I'm countering my irrational fears with sensible risk management strategy: I keep reminding myself I'm going with the best guide in the world. We have all we can possibly take with us in sleds behind us. We have contact with the outside world. And we have a rifle that I don't know how to fire yet to tackle any over zealous Polar Bears. I'm sure we'll be fine

So, this is my last post before I go. We'll be updating Doug's website from the ice this is http://expeditions.iceaxe.tv/expeditions/true-north/

We'll be sending a voice note and pictures each day so please stay tuned to iceaxetv.com to keep in check with how we get on.

Video Diary 29/3 - 16 hours to go

Video Diary 28/3 - 48 hours to go

BBC Look North to cover the expedition daily

Thanks so much to BBC Look North who have teamed up with True North to cover the expedition before, during and after. You'll be able to see regular images and voice updates on Look North (weekdays on BBC1 1830) and online, either here on this blog or on another linked website. We may be able to send through some video footage as well but it depends on connection strength. It is pretty remote up there...

Here's the first installment of coverage from Friday night (20th March), edited courtesy of Shenton Creative.

One week to go...yes, I'm a bit nervous!

Its been a while since I last updated and it was a month to go before the off then. How fast 3 weeks disappear. As I type I have litterally 1 week until I take off from Newcastle airport, destination: Longyearbyen, Svalbard, which is an island archipelago right in the Arctic Circle.

There's so much to do in this last week. Final training, although I've had a really bad cold for the last 10 days that's not helping me do much. I did have a few beers on Satuday night so I don't think that helped much. I will be fit and ready to go next Monday.

I have my skis now and almost all my gear. I'll get my hands on my sledge tomorrow. It's such an exciting time but I'm nervous as hell about stepping out of the Russian crago plane and into the frozen unknown of the Arctic ocean on April 2nd.

Fundraising is picking up pace again so I'm chuffed to have raised over £11 grand now. If you haven't yet donated, please do so. Every penny will help spur me on, and I will need all the help I can get. I'm going to print out the whole list of messages from people who have sponsored me and take along it to keep me motivated. I know there's going to times when I find it tough so I'll read all the messages of support to spur me on.

Only 4 weeks to go....

It all of a sudden seems very real. Last week I took time out from training to meet Doug Stoup (my guide and main chance of survival at the Pole) in Leeds. Doug gave me all my equipment and briefed me ont he dos and don'ts of Polar exploration. It was as though having something tangible to hold and feel set the realisation clearly in my mind about what I'm undertaking. I'm so excited about seeing first hand the beauty of the Arctic wilderness, but I'm crapping myself about frostbite, falling through the ice and the shear remoteness of where I'm going.

So, with 4 weeks left before the off I'm going to be working hard to galvanise people into supporting the expedition. If you are reading this and haven't yet got round to sponsoring me - please click here to donate. Justgiving is totally secure but if you are worried about internet theft then you can donate by sending me a cheque or make a cash donation. I can even manage to take a credit/debit card, so there really is no excuse. Unless you are absolutely destitute.

One inspiring gesture tonight came from a woman I met on the beach while I was plodding along, fully laden, pulling my sledge. This lady came over to ask what I was training for and actually repeated the justgiving address 6 times so she could make a donation when she got home. And that from a complete stranger. Then there's the likes of my customers Steve and Mike who are doing a 10K run and donating all the proceeds to True North. Both are true gentlemen to the core. It's gestures like this that remind me why I'm putting myself through all this grief.

So, please keep telling eveyone about what I'm doing. Donate, help out and think about how you can do something extraordinary for charity. That's what it's all about.