It's called the Explorer's Grand Slam—you climb the tallest peak on each of the seven continents, known as the Seven Summits, and you reach both arctic poles. It has been done before, but 72-year-old Sir Ranulph Fiennes—called "the world's greatest living explorer" in 1984 by the Guinness Book of World Records—wants to go futher. He seeks to achieve a Grand Slam that involves crossing the entire polar ice caps.
The British explorer has already skied across both of the polar ice caps, making him the only person to have done that and summited Mount Everest. He was also the first person to cross Antarctica on foot. In 2000, Fiennes had to abandon an attempt to walk solo and unsupported to the North Pole when his sleds fell through the ice. He had to pull his gear out by hand, resulting in severe frostbite in all the fingertips of his left hand, which he cut off himself with a fretsaw against doctor's orders upon returning to England.
Of the Seven Summits, Fiennes has already climbed three: Everest, Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, and Mount Elbrus in Southern Russia. The remaining peaks for the Brit to conquer are Carstensz Pyramid in New Guinea, Denali in Alaska, Aconcagua in Argentina, and Mount Vinson in Antarctica. He plans to tackle Carstensz Pyramid first, with an expedition scheduled to begin in the coming weeks.
Aconcagua, the highest peak outside the Himalayas, and Denali, notorious for technical difficulty and inclement weather, will both provide significant challenges for the veteran explorer. Fiennes summited Everest in May 2009 at the age of 65, so he understands the challenges that wait in the highest alpine peaks in the world. He will have to wait until December, the austral summer, to attempt Antarctica's Mount Vinson. The adventurer's plan is two wrap up the seven with Denali next summer.
The expedition is part of the Global Reach Challenge to raise money for Marie Curie, a charitable organization that provides aid to people with terminal illnesses and their families. Fiennes has already raised close to $400,000 for the nonprofit.
Source: The Adventure Blog