Alaska winter 2006-2007: Cameron McPherson joining the Arctic’s legion of ghosts
In the image, Cameron in Iceland in winter 2004. "The device mounted on my chest is a ship's compass, which I use to stay on course without having to pull out a compass and wait for it to settle." Photo by Halldor Kvaran (click to enlarge).
Cameron training at home in Portland, Oregon. His upcoming Alaska trip is also a training for an eventual solo expedition to the North Pole. All images courtesy of Cameron's website (click to enlarge).
10:19 am CDT Jun 09, 2006
(ThePoles.com) “After months of agonizing (should I go alone, or with a partner this time?) I've decided to stick with my original approach to the Arctic: to go alone - for me, this is the purest way, and the most challenging, and the most rewarding,” reports American Cameron McPherson.
In November-December, 2006 Cameron will set off for the North shore of Alaska to travel roughly 200 miles on foot. Much of the journey will be on sea ice, but always keeping close to the coast – this time at least.
“The expedition will take place on the North Shore of Alaska, starting at America's northernmost village, Barrow,” he said. “From there, I'll pull my supply sledges about 100 miles out, occasionally moving offshore on the sea ice. The return trek will take me another 100 or so miles, and I plan to be out for about a month.”
Beware bears in the dim light
“I’ll trek in nearly winter, so that the sun will be just below the horizon, making for a strange gloom throughout my trek. The conditions will be much colder than those I experienced in my last few Arctic winter expeditions. I'll also have to keep wary of polar bears. Females often den and hibernate during winter, but males don't. My route has been planned to avoid the main bear areas...but I'll still have to carry a handgun, and a rifle.”
First steps on the long way to the North Pole
In fact, Cameron’s real dream is to trek alone to the North Pole, someday. His next Alaska trip and subsequent expeditions are focused to get further out from shore each time, thus training for an eventual solo journey to the NP.
“I'm building the experience that will give me a good chance of surviving a solo trek to the North Pole somewhere in the next few years. For me, the trail to the Pole starts on the sea ice off Alaska, this coming winter.”
Why the North Pole
“In going to the Pole you step into the footsteps of a legion of ghosts, men and women who tried that task, and came back (well, most of them) and told us about what it was like. Seeing how i'll do up there is significant to me. What's not significant to me are records, or speeds. I'm not much for contests of speed, starting-lines and finishing-lines outdoors."
"I want to go because it will be very hard, perhaps the hardest thing I ever attempt, and because I love the history I've read about the Pole, and because I love to be alone and challenged in the Arctic, the most beautiful place I know.”
Cameron McPherson Smith is an archaeologist at Portland State University (PhD, Simon Fraser University, 2004), and a freelance writer. He has traveled extensively around the world for the past 15 years. In winter 2004 the trekked across Iceland’s largest icecap. Cameron is currently planning a series of expeditions in the Arctic to build experience for a solo trek to the North Pole in the next few years.
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