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 | | Sunday, 7 April, 2002, 15:07 GMT 16:07 UK Blizzards delay women's polar trek  Pom, Caroline and Ann (centre three) at the South Pole The progress of a trio of British women, bidding to set a polar trekking record, has again been delayed because of severe blizzards. With Arctic temperatures plummeting with wind chill to -70C, Ann Daniels, Caroline Hamilton and Pom Oliver were forced to spend 48 hours huddled in their tent on the shifting ice cap. Two weeks ago they were unable to erect their tent because of fierce storms, and had to huddle for two days in a "corral" made from their sledges. So far the M&G Investment sponsored adventurers have covered around 39 miles in 24 days on the ice - giving them about 375 miles to go to the North Pole. Pack ice Expedition spokesman Julian Mills said the latest blizzard blew their tent down and they had to spend half a day putting it up again it again, but remained in good spirits. He said: "They have been looking forward to a nice cup of tea." Calculations show that the polar drift moved them two miles nearer the Pole while they were sheltering in their tent.
The women, bidding to become the first all-woman team to walk all the way to both poles, have pulled their 250lb(113kg) sledges over huge ice ridges. They have already experienced pack ice breaking up under them. The expedition was put together by 37-year-old single mother Ms Daniels, from Whimple, Devon, whose seven-year-old triplets Lucy, Rachel and Joseph are following news of the 60-day trek on the internet. She is joined by Ms Hamilton, 35, from central London, and 50-year-old Ms Oliver from Uckfield, Sussex. The women have been part of two other successful all-woman expeditions to the North and South Poles. Polar guide They were members of a five-woman expedition which reached the South Pole in January 2000, covering 600 miles in 61 days. In 1997 they were in a 20-woman expedition which reached the North Pole in relays, a 600-mile marathon which was a first for an all-woman team. Ms Hamilton and Ms Oliver were on the last leg of the relay which reached the North Pole. Ms Daniels was on the first leg, but she also set foot on the North Pole when last year, as Britain's first female Polar guide, she led eight men there. | | See also:  Internet links: The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites Top England stories now:  Links to more England stories are at the foot of the page. | |||||||||||||||||||
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