Hedvig (28) from Bergen will become the youngest woman to go alone to the South Pole – news Vestland

She has cut off washcloths from her clothes to reduce the weight of the sled she will take with her for 50 days on the way to the South Pole. Hedvig Hjertaker (28) from Bergen should not carry one gram of things that are not absolutely necessary. But apart from all the vital things, a colorful little Pippi doll gets to join the 1,130-kilometre trip, which no woman so young has ever walked alone. – Pippi Longstocking is the world’s strongest girl. A bit mischievous and silly like me. Her expression that “I’ve never done this before, so I’ll definitely be able to do it” gives me strength on a bad day. Pippi has been a good role model for me for many years, says Hedvig. The polar explorer recently made a quick trip home to Bergen to pack the last things. According to the plan, she will take the first pole vault on skis with the around 100 kilo sled on Saturday 19 November. Hedvig Hjertaker has been strict about what she takes with her in the sled, but her hero Pippi Longstocking is allowed to join as inspiration. Photo: Åge Algerøy / news Knocked out by kissing sickness The big question for those of us who are not going to celebrate both Christmas and New Year completely alone in a tent in Antarctica is, of course, why she wants to do this. The former competitive swimmer was severely affected by kissing disease when she was 19 years old. She was put out of action for a whole year, and couldn’t do anything. – Then I lost part of my identity with being active, having goals and training hard. Life was quite difficult. The way to get out of it was that I went for very short walks on the Fjellveien. First five minutes, later ten minutes. Then it got longer and longer as I got better. The following year she had become much better, and traveled across Spain. – That trip gave me an incredible amount. Later, I have constantly tried to push the limits of what I think is possible, and that gives me an incredible amount of joy in life. Hedvig (28) goes alone to South Pole The expedition itself starts as planned on 18 or 19 November. She will walk for around 50 days and cover 1,130 kilometers on skis with a sled. The starting point is Hercules Inlet. The expedition costs NOK 1.2 million, and is financed with Spleis fundraising, sponsors and a considerable amount of their own money. The goal is to become the youngest woman to go alone to the South Pole without bringing in supplies. The current record is held by Mollie Hughes from Scotland, who was 29 when she made the trip. The menu consists of extra energy-rich oatmeal for breakfast, noodle soup for lunch and freeze-dried dinners. In between, she should eat as much as possible of biscuits, nuts, chocolate, sausage and cheese to get enough nutrition. In total, she has calculated around one kilo of food each day, a total of around 50 kilos for the whole trip. She expects about eight hours of day marching at the start, and perhaps up to twelve hours at the end. She has a satellite phone and another phone that can be used to send messages to her family back home in Norway, as well as a gadget that can send email via satellite. Time doesn’t last forever, and we have to do what we think is fun while we can, says Hedvig. She learned a lot about time perspective on life when her mother died of cancer aged just 57. Photo: Åge Algerøy / news Mum died of cancer Two years ago she happened to come across an ad on Instagram, featuring Scottish Mollie Hughes. She went to the South Pole alone when she was 29 years old. The competitive instinct awakened. Hedvig googled her age, and found that this was a record she had a chance of breaking. But then it had to happen before she turned 29. An hour later it was decided. – This was something I could beat. But it is also about having to do it now. This cannot be postponed, because next year it will be too late. The time when she discovered Hughes’ record also recorded. – Mum died of cancer just two months before, and I was probably looking for a goal and something that could give me meaning in life, she says. Mora was only 57 years old. It gave Hedvig a new perspective on time, and how long or short a life can be. – People in their 20s may think that they will live forever, and have plenty of time to do what they want. Mum probably had many dreams and wishes that she was not able to fulfill. It has helped me to understand that time does not last forever, and that we have to do what we think is fun while we can. The best training for being able to pull a hundred kilo sled day after day, week after week, is to pull on car tyres. Hedvig has received that advice from experienced polar explorers. She has been a common sight in Isdalen in Bergen. Photo: Privat Bildeckk and demanding trips Hedvig has received good advice from other Norwegian polar explorers about how she can best prepare for the expedition. – To train the muscles to pull a heavy sled, the advice was to pull car tyres. So I have dragged both two, three and four tires behind me on the mountains around Bergen. Else, she is involved in both running, swimming and strength training. And the list of this year’s tours is impressive: Climb Aconcagua, the highest mountain in America, which is almost 7,000 m.s.l. Cross the Finnmarksvidda Cross the Jotunheimen Cross the ice in Greenland – The very best training is to be out there in the cold with skis and sleds, I think ho. Through a research project she is participating in, it has been documented that the form has become increasingly better. – I feel completely ready, and it’s so wonderful to be able to say that. I feel strong and mentally ready. The jacket is extra long to protect more of the body against the icy wind. Photo: Åge Algerøy / news Fearing the cold On the first days of the expedition, the goal is to get into the daily routine: Getting up in the morning, melting snow for water, making oatmeal for breakfast, getting dressed, taking down the tent, packing everything in the sled and recover from guard. – I will go into survival mode where everything is about not getting too cold and not too hot, moving from A to B, getting food and water in my body and sleeping. But by doing something so monotonous, I know from experience that the thoughts can flow at a completely different pace than here at home. For me, this is the closest I get to meditation. The cold is what she fears most on the trip. The temperature in the area is on average 36 degrees below zero, but wind causes the effective temperature to be much lower. Small frostbite can go well. She experienced that in Greenland. But if it becomes more serious, at worst she may have to cancel the expedition. – The face will always be completely covered by a mask. If I have to take the mitten off, I always have to wear another mitten underneath, so that the cold never gets directly on the skin. Compass, GPS and satellite phones are some of the safety equipment Hedvig must have on the expedition. Photo: Åge Algerøy / news Double up with safety equipment She has thought a lot about the dangers she may be exposed to on the expedition, and that very serious situations may arise. But the 28-year-old is still not afraid of walking alone under such tough conditions. – There are crazy many more people who die on Mount Everest than on the South Pole. In addition, I have equipment that means I can ask for help if the need arises. I have prepared a risk assessment for everything that can happen, and exactly how I will solve every single challenge. Every day she has to call a base with a satellite phone and report where she is from and how things are going. Part of the communication equipment she has to have double up, because she goes alone, to be absolutely sure if any of it should fail. Getting ready in Chile For the past week, Hedvig has been in the city of Punta Arenas in the very south of Chile. Here she has packed the food rations exactly, gone through the equipment list and otherwise made herself completely ready. On Friday 18 November, she flew on to a base in Antarctica called Union Glacier. If the weather is good, she quickly flies on to the starting point Hercules Inlet. But weather and wind can affect both the flight conditions and what time it is advisable to start. She wrote in an SMS to news that the plan is to go to the South Pole on Saturday. But she doesn’t know until the day is here whether she can start walking that day or not. – It is very important to get off to a good start. So if the weather is bad, it might be better to wait a little. Here I want to rely on good advice from local experts, says Hedvig. The trip across Greenland in May was the dress rehearsal before the expedition to the South Pole. She will celebrate both Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve alone in the tent, and in total she is scheduled to spend 50 days until the pole point. Photo: Private



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