10 Facts About Geoff Somers

Geoffrey Usher Somers is a British explorer, particularly of the polar regions.

Geoff Somers was the first Briton to cross Antarctica on foot, and has an Antarctic peak named in his honour, Somers Nunatak.

Geoff Somers was born in 1950 in Khartoum, where his father was working as a doctor.

Geoff Somers was then selected to work as a mountaineer and field guide for the British Antarctic Survey.

Geoff Somers travelled some 4,000 miles by dog sled or snowmobile, mainly during the winter months, sledging amongst mountains and the frozen sea in the fjords and around the accessible islands.

Geoff Somers was then invited to join the 1990 International Trans-Antarctica Expedition, representing the United Kingdom, in charge of logistics and dogs.

In 1993 with a companion Craig Hetherington and little knowledge of desert travel, Geoff Somers set off to trek 1,400 miles across Western Australia from Perth to Uluru, in the continent's centre.

Geoff Somers set up an Outward Bound school in Borneo, and with three companions traversed Sabah, through much uncharted and perhaps unseen rainforest via the Maliau Basin, now a notable tourist area.

Geoff Somers has continued his polar journeys, with several notable pioneering firsts.

In 1997 Geoff Somers ran all the polar training in Resolute Bay, Canada for the McVities Penguin Polar Relay, the first Women's expedition to the North Pole.