Intrepid explorers Ann Bancroft and Liv Arneson left to much press pomp and circumstance a few weeks ago for their latest attempt at a North Pole expedition:
They are scheduled to leave the Twin Cities on Wednesday and start their 530-plus-mile trip from Canada's Ward Hunt Island on March 4. While their previous treks have focused on inspiring students to live their dreams, the two women are making the journey this time to draw attention to global warming.
This time, the two explorers decided they had an opportunity to show kids the effects of climate change in real time in an area "that's in real crisis," as Bancroft put it. They'll call in regular updates on satellite phone and will try to send photos to be posted on the Web, she said.
Sadly, their global warming odyssey was cut short today because of this inconvenient truth:
World-renowned polar explorers and educators, Ann Bancroft and Liv Arnesen, today suspended their historic expedition to the North Pole seven days in, citing severe safety concerns due to a combination of damaged gear, frostbite and extreme cold.
No photos of this up on the web site yet. Probably not the crisis they were hoping to document for the kids.
We of course hope no one is seriously injured, and that appears to be the case. I guess we'll have to thank Global Warming that the frostbite wasn't even worse.
You may recall, the last time we saw Ann Bancroft in the news was when she was involved with another hoped-for climate change, endorsing a DFL candidate for State Auditor. Indeed, Rebecca Otto did warm hearts across the state and swept to victory last November, ousting the Republican incumbent Pat Anderson. In the world of weather and political prognostication, that's the way it goes; you win some, you lose some.
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