However, he still needs to successfully summit Mount Vinson, Aconcagua in South America, Mount Carstensz in Australasia* and finally Denali, the highest peak in North America and one of the world’s most dangerous and difficult mountains to climb - only then will he complete this world first. On standard routes up Everest you trudge along ropes the Sherpas put out and you need two “ascenders” to attach yourself. When you get to a knot in the rope, you put an ascender above the knot before you disengage the one below. So at all times you are connected.

As preparation to summit Everest, Ranulph climbs the tallest free standing mountain in the world, Mount Kilimanjaro. It was no easy task, the explorer getting angina pains 500ft from the summit. It was to be a sign of the dangers ahead in his attempt on Everest. In 1969 Fiennes led his first expedition: a journey by hovercraft up the White Nile River that began in eastern Sudan and ended at Lake Victoria in southern Uganda. The following year he left the military and married Virginia (“Ginny”) Pepper, whom he had met as a child and who, until her death in 2004, would be the collaborator on many of his subsequent expeditions and adventures. A trip to Jostedals Glacier in Norway (1970) was followed by the first north-south traverse of British Columbia, Canada, via water (1971) and by a northward trek into the Arctic (1977) in preparation for his circumpolar expedition. When he returned home Doctors insisted he wait five months before the frostbitten parts of the fingers could be removed. Ranulph, irritated by the pain and waiting, decided to remove them himself. He spent a couple of days on each finger using an electric fretsaw to take off the top third of his fingers and thumb in his garden shed. Again unsupported and so without new supplies or assistance, Ranulph Fiennes and Mike Stroud broke the existing world record for unsupported north travel. Ranulph and Mike Stroud became the first people to completely cross the Antarctic continent on foot unsupported. At the time, and for years after, this was the longest unsupported (with no assistance of resupplying) polar journey, totalling 97 days.

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This was the first crossing north to south of Canada, inland, over water. Ranulph was again leader of the expedition. The Headless Valley is also known as the Nahanni Valley of Canada’s north-west territories. The only way to get there is by water, air, or a long trek on land from Tungsten village. Even now, much of the area is unexplored. To get there, the team travelled some 290 miles in small rubber boats against the rapids of the South Nahanni River up to the Virginia Falls. For comparison, these rapids are about twice as high as Niagara Falls.

Sir Ranulph is attempting to become the first person to have crossed both polar ice caps (by traversing the Arctic Ocean and crossing the Antarctic continent) and climb the highest peaks on each of the seven continents. He was, in 2009, the first person to cross both ice caps and summit Everest. In 1982 Sir Ranulph circumnavigated the world on its polar axis during a three year trans-globe expedition travelling solely by sea and land on a route that has never been repeated, with Charles Burton. Sir Ranulph Fiennes, (born March 7, 1944, Windsor, Berkshire, England), British adventurer, pioneering polar explorer, and writer, who, among his many exploits, in 1979–82 led the first north-south surface circumnavigation of the world (i.e., along a meridian).His team completed the first recorded descent of the notorious avalanche-riven Jorstedalsbre glacier. Paul Sykes, long time benefactor of Sir Ranulph, is sponsoring the Global Reach Challenge, in aid of Marie Curie.

From 1st July 2021, VAT will be applicable to those EU countries where VAT is applied to books - this additional charge will be collected by Fed Ex (or the Royal Mail) at the time of delivery. Shipments to the USA & Canada: Preparation for what came to be called the Transglobe Expedition began in 1972 and occupied much of Fiennes’s and Ginny’s time during the rest of the decade. The trekking team, led by Fiennes and including fellow Britons Charles Burton and Oliver Shepard, had a support crew of some three dozen people, including Ginny. They departed from Greenwich, England, in September 1979, attempting to stay as close as possible to the Greenwich meridian as they journeyed southward over land and water, until they reached the coast of Antarctica in January 1980. They remained there until October, when Fiennes, Burton, and Shepherd departed on snowmobiles for the South Pole, which they reached on December 15. Setting out again after a short time at the American base there, they arrived at the Scott Base on the west coast of Antarctica in mid-January 1981, having made the continental traverse in a record-setting 67 days. Frederik van Tuyll, CEO, TMF Group who are sponsoring the Global Reach Challenge said: “Sir Ranulph Fiennes is the world’s greatest living explorer. He has inspired many for generations with his perseverance and dedication, and has pushed himself to the extreme to complete some of the world’s most gruelling and difficult challenges. He has shown that to succeed in remote areas requires not only tremendous ambition but also detailed local knowledge and expertise - so he surrounds himself with a strong team, all experts in their field. TMF Group understands this too, and is excited to be part of the Global Reach Challenge team.” If you're coming to Coles by car, why not take advantage of the 2 hours free parking at Sainsbury's Pioneer Square - just follow the signs for Pioneer Square as you drive into Bicester and park in the multi-storey car park above the supermarket. Come down the travelators, exit Sainsbury's, turn right and follow the pedestrianised walkway to Crown Walk and turn right - and Coles will be right in front of you. You don't need to shop in Sainsbury's to get the free parking! Where to Find Us I have sponsored him to raise funds for Marie Cure before which included the Everest, Eiger and Marathon des Sables challenges. The money Sir Ranulph will raise will help Marie Curie reach many more people living with a terminal illness as well as providing vital emotional support for their families.”

What Ranulph will face

Sir Ranulph is using his pursuit of this landmark achievement to raise vital funds for the charity Marie Curie. The money raised will help Marie Curie provide vital care and support to people living with a terminal illness and their families in the UK. This has all been made possible by sponsorship from long-time benefactor Paul Sykes and TMF Group. LEAR Fitness offers a new, unique approach to health and well-being. Its aim is to support clients to achieve their own personal lifestyle goals, following on from major surgery, training for specific sports events, or maintaining their level of health and fitness in a welcoming, supportive environment with fully qualified team. Offering a range of services from physiotherapy and physio-led reformer and mat classes, personal training, nutritional advice, fitness classes, indoor cycling studio, LEAR Fitness clients have access to professionals to help them restore and maintain the level of fitness they need.Currently with two purpose-built centres in Leamington Spa and Harrogate, LEAR Fitness has plans to open its third centre within the next 12 months. Explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes is setting off to climb Mount Vinson, the highest peak in Antarctica, in his pursuit to become the first person to have crossed both polar ice caps and climb the highest mountain on each continent to raise money for Marie Curie. This is one of Ranulph’s most famous expeditions, although not for the reasons he would have hoped. The trip, aiming to walk solo and unsupported (without outside help or new supplies) to the North Pole was unsuccessful when Ranulph’s sled fell through weak ice. His hands got wet when he was freeing it, resulting in severe frostbite, forcing him to abandon the attempt.