History
The polar regions, the Arctic and Antarctic, have long called out to explorers and adventurers, despite the forbidding climate. Exploration in the Arctic circle began with the seafaring Vikings, one of whom discovered Iceland in 870 AD. Over 100 years later, another Viking, Erik the Red, was exiled from Iceland and made his way west to discover Greenland. By the 1500s, with sailing ships and methods improved, interest in the Arctic was renewed, as European leaders desired a shorter route to trade with China. For the next 300 years, countless men made dozens of attempts at finding a northwest or northeast passage to the Pacific Ocean from Europe. In 1908, Frederick Cook claimed to reach the North Pole, and in 1909, Robert Peary claimed the same, with both men claiming that the other lied about their location. For sure, Wally Herbert reached the North Pole in 1969, although his journey was supported by airdrops. In 1990, a pair of men skied to the Pole, and it wasn’t until 1994 that the first person made a verified, unsupported journey on foot to the North Pole.