This was towards the end of my series of expeditions and I was now pretty confident in my ability to deal with extreme environments. The was connected to my ski to the South Pole meaning that I was going to be on Antarctica for pretty much a whole month!
The Mountain
Vinson is technically easy mountain and it is not that high either. The main concern is the cold and the arrival of some nasty storms. However, the climb can be done pretty quickly and there is plenty of time to go in between the storms.
Decisions
Quite a few companies will run expeditions here, but they all depend on ALE for support to some degree. ALE has by far the best infrastructure on the mountain.
Route
This starts with a couple of days along a gently rising glacier, before turning sharply right up a headwall. From there it is back along the ridge you have been walking next to and then up the summit mound. Its about 4 or 5 days plus acclimatisation.
Accounts and photos of completing the Explorers Grand Slam - 2 Poles and 7 Summits. By Sebastian Merriman. Aconcagua, Ama Dablam, Carstenz Pyramid, Denali, McKinley, Elbrus, Everest, Kosciusko, Kilimanjaro, North Pole, Arctic, South Pole, Antarctic, Antarctica, Vinson, vertigo, climbing, mountaineering, skiing to the pole, skiing to the poles, seb2poles7summits, seb27, Seb Merriman, seb2poles, mountains, poles