Welcome to Rowing The Arctic
The Crew Of The Ice Boat
In Rowing The Arctic a team of six led by Jock Wishart on an expedition to row across the Canadian Arctic, from Resolute Bay to the 1996 position of the Magnetic North Pole on .
Adventurer Mark Beaumont is in the team, filming the experience and sending back reports on their progress.
Learn more about the expedition and programmes:
Rowing The Arctic on BBC One
15 December 2011
Don't miss Rowing The Arctic the full documentary on BBC One, 1930, 21 December. Exclusive clips from the programme are below.
We've Made It!
After a gruelling finale to the expedition, Mark and the team finally make it to the '96 Magnetic Pole. Boat hauling footage courtesy of fellow crew member Billy Gammon.
The End Of The Journey
6 September 2011, by Mark Beaumont
In many ways, the final week of the expedition was by far the toughest. The Arctic definitely kept the best for last. Throughout the journey north, we were surprised how few serious ice fields we had met and how quickly we could make progress when the weather allowed. Then, just as we started to celebrate being able to reach the '96 North Magnetic Pole, we hit an impenetrable wall of ice. The final few miles of the journey were by far the slowest as we levered, pushed and pulled our one tonne Ice Boat over broken and bumpy ice. Even once we reached the finishing point, our celebrations were half-hearted, partly as everyone was so exhausted and also because we were still a long way from the safety of land. It felt almost the same as when you summit a mountain, yet don't feel the true elation until you actually climb safely back down.
The crew take to the ice to get the boat to safety.
The quickly dropping temperature and thickening ice during our final week was a constant reminder of time ticking away - winter comes early to the Arctic and we had made it just in time. Another week and we could have been frozen out. We were now in Deer Bay, Ellef Ringnes Island and it was another 15 miles around the coast to the nearest airstrip - Isachsen is an old US Cold War radar station, which at one time was part of the Distant Early Warning or 'DEW' Line that ran from Alaska to Iceland. Abandoned since 1977, the derelict buildings and huge dirt runway still remain.
Isachsen Radar Station abandoned in 1977.
Back Home And Chatting With Fred MacAulay
6 September 2011
The Latest From Thor Island
Cramped in their tents for a few days the team are keen to get going on the last 50 miles. Jock Wishart and his crew are attempting to row over 450 miles of the Arctic Ocean. A journey only possible due to the changes in polar sea ice in recent years.
Mark and Jock on BBC Breakfast
Jock Reports On The Route
Expedition leader Jock Wishart reports the latest on the route ahead for the team. Sea ice at the North Pole is melting and Jock Wishart is attempting to row the Arctic. Joining him is cyclist Mark Beaumont, on board the tiny boat to film the audacious attempt.
Back From The Wild
31 August 2011
The crew have made it back to Resolute Bay after 33 days on expedition. After rowing almost all of the 450 miles the Ice Boat has been stripped down and the team were taken off Isachsen by plane last night. Well done all! Time for a shower and a shave.
The crew back in Resolute
Off The Ice But Not Out The Woods
30 August 2011
Audio Update From Napier Bay
After a failed attempt to cross a large ice field the team have had to head back to the north of Devon Island and make plans and preparations to take the section on once more.
We've Made It!
26 August 2011
450 miles across the Canadian Arctic, battling with the strong freezing winds and impassable ice, the six-man team have finally made it to the 1996 position of the Magnetic North Pole.
Grinnell Peninsula at 77 Degrees North
In superb weather for rowing Mark updates the progress of the Ice Boat on the route North. Sea ice at the North Pole is melting and a team is attempting to row the Arctic. Mark Beaumont is on board the tiny boat to film the audacious attempt.
A break in the weather allowed the team to make a final push towards the finish line. With 50 miles ahead of them, 48 were covered by boat before the ice prevented any further progress and the remaining two miles were hard-won by man-hauling the boat on its special runners over the ice.
The gruelling final part of the journey took close to ten hours as the crew hauled the 1.3 ton boat to its final destination, arriving at 0130BST.
The Final Push
25 August 2011
After a few days cornered by high winds and ice at Thor Island the epic journey to the 1996 position of the North Magnetic Pole is almost reaching an end, as the team have the finishing line in sight.
The team are approaching the end of journey
Video, The Latest From Thor Island
24 August 2011
Audio Update From Mark Delstanche
Day 7 out in the arctic wilderness and fellow crew member and expert rower Mark Delstanche updates the progress. Sea ice at the North Pole is melting and Jock Wishart is attempting to row the Arctic. Joining him is cyclist Mark Beaumont, on board the tiny boat to film the audacious attempt.
Billy playing golf on Cornwall island
So Near Yet So Far
22 August 2011
We are now within 50 miles of our goal - the 1996 location of the North Magnetic Pole. Yet we can't get any closer for a number of days, as the ice and forecasted high winds keep us pinned to our spot on Thor Island.
This week, our fourth since leaving Resolute, has been by far the toughest yet. The temperatures have dropped and we have been covering big miles, rowing through days and nights to get as far north as possible whilst the weather allows.
The Ice Boat At Sea
36 Hours Straight From Devon To Ellef Ringnes
19 August 2011
The crew have completed a monster row that takes them all the way to the Southern tip of Ellef Ringnes island.
Mark Beaumont was able to send a few tweets while the team were rowing.
Jock Reports On The Route
16 August 2011
Audio Update From Devon Island
Day five of the Arctic Row and Mark has called in this update of the action since they left Resolute Bay. Sea ice at the North Pole is melting and Jock Wishart is attempting to row the Arctic. Joining him is cyclist Mark Beaumont, on board the tiny boat to film the audacious attempt.
A walrus relaxes on an iceberg
The Waiting Game In The Arctic Chill
15 August 2011
Until a few days ago the crew had been amazed at the conditions - mainly clear skies, little wind, relatively warm and making much faster progress than expected.
Apart from the first day leaving Resolute, we had barely seen any ice and spent much of the time rowing in t-shirts. It didn't feel very Arctic! However, that weather and great progress has quickly changed.
Audio Update From Napier Bay
12 August 2011
After a failed attempt to cross a large ice field the team have had to head back to the north of Devon Island and make plans and preparations to take the section on once more.
Mark Beaumont: Rowing the Arctic - Part 5
Producer Lindsay Gillies chats with Mark Beaumont who's currently 50 miles from the Magnetic North Pole on Thor Island. MacAulay and Co - Mark Beaumont Challenge for Children in Need 2009. Life coach Gillian Brown gives some motivational tips.
The Grinnell Peninsula
08 August 2011
In superb weather for rowing Mark updates the progress of the Ice Boat on the route North.
Lots of Progress and Videos
05 August 2011
Mark has sent back two updates and the crew have made good progress up Devon Island.
Polar bear at Mark's tent
Close Encounter With A Polar Bear
04 August 2011, by Mark Beaumont
I was hoping for a glimpse a polar bear in the Arctic - I have seen six already, and last night one got a bit too close for comfort!
Due to the very cramped sleeping space onboard, Dave Mans and myself decided to take a tent ashore for the second night. I fell asleep at about 9.30pm, only to wake an hour later with Billy calling out from the boat (anchored 20 meters away) 'whoa bear!'
Cramped in the cabin
Pinned Down By The Wind
03 August 2011, by Mark Beaumont
We are stuck... for the time being. It's day 5 and the winds are howling from the North East at about 30mph which means that we are hiding out in a relatively sheltered bay. It is only 6 miles to the next bay up the coast but it's not worth beating ourselves up for little progress.
Mark Calling From Devon Island
02 August 2011, by Mark Beaumont
Mark and Mark at the oars
The Hard Work Has Really Started
01 Aug 2011, by Graham Gillies
What a busy weekend the team had. We've had a look over the tweets and this is how the last few days have gone on board The Ice Boat.
Resolute from the air
Week 1: First week in the Arctic
28 July 2011, by Mark Beaumont
Nearly a week after flying out from the UK, I am just starting to adapt to life in the Arctic. I was expecting the 24 hour daylight but was less prepared for such an arid, lunar landscape.
The MacAulay and Co Interviews
Each week, probably on a Tuesday, Mark will be live on Fred's show on Radio Scotland. Listen to the latest catch up and the rest of the archive below.
More About Rowing The Arctic and Mark Beaumont
Leaving Resolute at the end of July, it will be a race against the clock as the team must reach their destination before the sea begins to re-freeze in early September. Rowing this route is only possible because of the dramatic reductions in sea ice at the North Pole over recent years. In 1996 expedition leader Jock Wishart reached the expedition's destination on foot, to certify the position of the Magnetic North Pole that year.
Join the adventure online. The specially made ice boat is equipped with a satellite communications that will let Mark send back pictures and video and update the progress that the team make everyday. We'll also be using the BBC Scotland Facebook and Twitter accounts to update everyone with the journey's progress.
Expedition starting point: Resolute Bay
Having cycled round the world and then the length of the American continent, for the BBC series The Man Who Cycled the Americas, Mark is now turning his hand to ocean rowing in one of the world's most remote and challenging environments.
The six-man crew, led by polar veteran Jock Wishart, will spend up to six weeks on the nine metre-long rowing boat, under constant threat from sea ice and polar bears.
