AN ABERDYFI adventurer is celebrating after becoming the first Scout to ski to the South Pole and kite ski back.

Joe Doherty, 24, battled extreme weather and treacherous conditions to complete an epic self-powered trip to the South Pole and return to base.

The challenge took the learning and adventure manager in the Outward Bound Centre in Aber­dyfi 61 days in total, travelling 2,045km in the process.

Speaking after returning to Union Glacier Camp, Joe said: “Antarctica has thrown up all it can at me, extreme cold, horrendous winds, complete white outs and horrible terrain.

“But it has kindly allowed me to complete this expedition with shear determination and grit.

“We actually ended the expedition at 79.8955S 81.1173W which was on Plumar glacier which is next to Union Glacier. The crevasse risk combined with the wrong wind direction meant we stopped 17km away from Union Glacier.”

He also to thank everyone involved in making the expedition a reality, especially his girlfriend Jo Thomas and family and friends.

Joe added thanks to his expidition colleague, Christian Iversen Styve, who has been my guide. Joe said thanks to Christian for “having to put up with my stinky feet and very patient with my kite crashing, he’s become a very close friend”.

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