Trip Across Arctic Ocean By Dogsled Ends - Ice Too Thin, Leads Too Big

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A PHOTOGRAPHER trying to cross the Arctic Ocean by dog-sled to highlight the effects of global warming has been thwarted... because the ice has already melted. Martin Hartley, from Rochdale, embarked on a daring 1,200-mile adventure as part of a mission to highlight the plight of the environment.

As he battled his way across frozen wastes with three fellow adventurers, his images were seen by a global audience on the website, www.adventureecology. com. But Martin and his "Adventure Ecology" team, who had hoped to become the first British team with dogs to cross the Arctic from Russia to Canada, were forced to abandon the attempt because of the effects of global warming.

Temperatures in the region have risen so high the sea ice is no longer thick enough to support the expedition. They were forced to quit 99 days into the trip, 180 miles from the coast. Martin said: "We gave up because it was taking us 11 hours to travel just one mile. The ice was so thin and few and far between and we didn't have enough food to carry on. Throughout the trip the ice could be as thin as 1mm and there could be a corridor of water that went on for hundreds of miles.

"So we would have to wait for it to re-freeze or leapfrog across to another piece of ice if we could. "But towards the end of the trip it became even more dangerous. If we had wanted to carry on we might have had to be rescued by submarine or ship. "We finally came away when another team found a piece of ice thick enough for a plane to land on."

EDIT

http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/220/220527_martins_arctic_mission_is_put_on_ice.html