Challenge yourself: Arctic explorer Christina Franco on pushing your boundaries

North Pole adventurer on the importance of giving yourself permission to do something mad and ambitious

northpole.jpg
(Image credit: Martin Hartley)

It is something you never forget – the moment when you are given permission for the first time. For me it was a cold and wet spring afternoon in Shropshire. I’d gone to spend the weekend with a friend whose passion and accomplishments had seen him climb over a dozen previously unclimbed peaks over 8,000 ft. The pegs in his boot room proudly hung twists of colourful ropes. Crampons and mountain boots lay alongside muddy wellies and contour maps of unknown mountains were pinned to the wall. I felt as if I had walked through the looking glass and into a land of unimaginable adventures.

We sat by the fire warming up after a drenched morning walk. My friend casually picked a book from the shelf as he walked by and let it fall open. He started reading. It was an account of an Arctic expedition.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us