Braving the Arctic on the back of a dog-sled
A mongrel-powered journey across the frozen north turns from white-knuckle ride into triumph for Kate Humble
I knew the knuckles of my hands beneath the thick gloves were white. As I gripped the birchwood handle in front of me, every muscle in my body tensed and I wondered if everyone else was feeling like me.
I was terrified, but at the same time elated, delighted and, like the 200 or so dogs straining at their tethers and barking loudly in anticipation, eager to get going. During our two days of training, we had familiarised ourselves with our kit, put up our tents and learnt how to mitigate for the worst of the weather.
We had packed and repacked our rucksacks, loaded up with shovels and axes, stoves and knives, hunks of frozen meat and ration packs. And now we were here, in the Scandinavian Arctic, as the pale sun began to break through the cloud and light up a landscape swathed in snow...
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