Aussie pair reach South Pole on foot

They’ve reached the South Pole, now Australian adventurers James Castrission and Justin Jones are in a hurry to catch the last flight out of the continent ahead of winter storms.

But first they have to ski 1100 kilometres back to the coast.

The duo, who set out to be the first to trek to the South Pole and back again unsupported, planted an Australian flag at the bottom of the world about 7am (AEST) on Saturday.

The achievement came 61 days after pulling 160 kilograms of gear through 1150km of “incredible white expanses” and “blizzard after blizzard,” Castrission told AAP via a satellite phone on Saturday morning.

The blizzards meant they reached the halfway mark of their journey some 10 days later than anticipated, resulting in a rationing of food supplies and just 28 days to ski another 1100 kilometres back to the coast.

If they don’t make it in time, they’ll miss the last flight of the season out of the icy continent.

“We’ll have to average close to a marathon a day just to get back,” Castrission said.

“It’s a real race against the clock. We don’t know if we are going to make it but we are going to give it everything we’ve got.”

Both men added about 20 kilograms in weight in preparation for the gruelling trip, and were eating the calorie equivalent of 15 beef burgers a day until a delay in reaching the South Pole forced them to ration their food supplies.

“We’re down to half rations so it’s really going to be quite a difficult journey to get back,” Castrission said.

He estimated the pair had lost 15kg each since setting out on the expedition, and their clothes are now loose.

Jones, 28, was constantly complaining of hunger, and wouldn’t stop talking about the decent steak and beer he intended tucking into when he got home, to replace the energy replacement powder and nuts the men were surviving on in the meantime.

He had also endured considerable pain from several toes that had become infected.

In 2008, Castrission and Jones, who have been best mates since attending Sydney’s Knox Grammar, made history by becoming the first people to kayak from Australia to New Zealand.

Castrission may have been pining for warmer conditions when he said the Antarctic expedition had made the Tasman trip seem like “a family holiday” in comparison.

“This place has really ripped us apart,” he said. “It really has been the hardest we’ve ever had to push ourselves.”

Soaking up the sun on a beach back home was often on his mind, and he couldn’t wait to see his fiance, dietitian Mia Ballenden, whom he plans to marry on a beach in Thailand in early 2012.

But there were unexpected rewards associated with being at the bottom of the world.

On Saturday morning the sky was blue and there was “a beautiful circular rainbow” that went “all the way around the sun,” Castrission said.

The illusion made it appear there was a double sun, he added.

“We’re low on food, we’re low on fuel, our bodies are definitely hurting,” he said.

“But there isn’t anywhere in the world I’d prefer to be right now. We’re stoked.”

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