Pole of inaccessibility to reach this false northern pole of inaccessibility was made by Sir Hubert Wilkins, who flew by aircraft in 1927. In 1941, the first Soviet expedition using an airplane landed 350 kilometers north of the false northern pole, thus actually becoming the first expedition to reach the real pole. Ignoring Soviet results, Sir Wally Herbert claimed to be the first to reach what was then considered to be the northern pole of inaccessibility on foot, arriving by dogsled in 1968. Explorer Jim McNeill claimed in 2006 that Herbert did not quite make the pole, and launched his own unsuccessful attempt
Pole to Pole was to follow the 30 degree east line of longitude, which would cover the most land. A last-minute diversion to Chile included South America in the series. Using aircraft as little as possible, the whole trip lasted 5½ months. The programme has been sold to many television stations around the world. It was also released on video tape and later on DVD. Following the trip Michael Palin wrote "Pole to Pole" describing the trip. The book contains many pictures from the trip, almost all taken by Basil Pao, the stills photographer on the team. Palin begins at the North Pole,