Harpreet "Polar Preet” Chandi MBE is preparing for a solo, unsupported journey to the North Pole. If successful, she would be the first woman to complete the route without resupplies or external support. Only two men have done so.
On May 4, 1990, after a 58-day trek from Ellesmere Island in Canada, Norwegians Børge Ousland and Erling Kagge completed the first successful, fully unsupported (no resupplies, no dogs, no kites) ski expedition to the North Pole.
Tell us a little more about Harpreet Chandi
Chandi is a four-time Guinness World Record holder. She has completed two remarkable expeditions to Antarctica and, in 2022, became the first woman of colour to complete a solo expedition to the South Pole.
The North Pole, however, presents different problems. Rather than crossing a stable landmass, Chandi will have to travel over sea ice that moves with the wind and the current. Any ground gained can be lost to drifting ice. Open stretches of water, known as leads, may require crossings in an immersion suit, and temperatures can drop to -50 degrees C, which brings a constant risk of frostbite.
"Historically, the North Pole has been a place where hopes and dreams can be lost,” said Chandi. "To take it on solo and unsupported means being entirely self-reliant: no resupplies, no outside help. It's a test of physical endurance, yes, but even more so of mindset and resilience.”
Chandi, a former British Army officer, has spoken about not coming from a traditional "adventure” background. "I'm not what people expect,” she said. "I wasn't born into adventure. People say the outdoors is for everyone, and it is, yet when your community hasn't had that connection, adventure feels like a language that you were never taught, and very few around you speak it.”
"I just started by taking one step. And then another. I want others, especially young people, to see that you don't have to come from a certain background to push boundaries.”
How are preparations going?
Training is already underway. In recent weeks, Chandi has been dragging tyres near her home outside Derby in England to simulate hauling a pulk (a sledge that will carry more than 130kg of food and equipment across the ice).
As part of her preparation, Chandi has partnered with Dacia. The brand's new Bigster will support training and logistics, helping her reach remote locations in the run-up to departure.
With the start window set for March 2026, Chandi's focus is now on conditioning and route planning for what remains one of polar travel's hardest undertakings.