Position: Lat: 80.033 South Long: 80:40 West

Miles covered: 7

Total miles covered: 7

Air temperature: -17 C

Conditions: Weather good, SE wind -15 to 18 Knots

Delayed flights may be an inevitable part of modern life but there can't be many who can claim to have waited 20 days for an aeroplane. Caroline, Ann, Zoe, Pom and Rosie now number amongst those who can, but their patience was rewarded two days ago when, at long last, they climbed aboard a Hercules and took off for Antarctica.

Their first Argos signal was received in the early hours of yesterday morning, giving their location as adjacent to Hercules Inlet - 603 miles to go! - and this morning they made contact using the BT Iridium phone.

Evidently the team haven't wasted any time expending some pent up energy. They have covered about 7 miles during their first day out on the ice, a solid start to their journey. For the most part they walked uphill and they reported passing some small Sastrugi* en route. The weather is sunny but with a strong SE headwind.

Apart from some minor problems with one of the cookers, all is well. The team are in good health and spirits and are gearing themselves up to make a big push over the next couple of days to enable them to reach Patriot Hills (about 20 miles from their current position) by Saturday. There they will pick up some more supplies and replace any kit that is giving them problems.

To reach Patriot Hills in the shortest time possible the team do not intend to stop during the day and will travel for as long as they feel able. We will hear how they're doing tomorrow. Watch this space...

* wavelike irregularities on the surface of the polar snow, caused by winds

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