The Turner Twins have a bond most siblings could only dream of. After breaking his neck aged 17, Hugo Turner's perspective on life changed and he and his brother Ross decided to undertake a life of adventure.
Once Hugo was well again, the Englishmen set out on a 4,300km row across the Atlantic Ocean. Not content with being punished by 12m waves, they then attempted to traverse Greenland's polar ice cap using the same clothing as Sir Ernest Shackleton over 100 years ago. They then did the same thing – donning the clothing of a century ago – to climb the 5,642m Mount Elbrus in Russia.
Now, the twins are in the process of finding the world's eight Poles of Inaccessibility – the points farthest inland on every continent. With three down and five to go, Ross Turner reveals the highs and lows of the mission so far.
The Red Pole (2016)
Start/finish: Adelaide coast to Mt Zeil, Australia.
Destination: First Pole of Inaccessibility.
Distance: 1,600km by paramotor, averaging two-and-a-half hours of flying per day. Maximum altitude of 3,048m and speed of up to 100kph, flying over 12 deserts, chasing camels and kangaroos.
Body: 4kg lost each.
Temperature: 40°C to 0°C.
Dangers: The thermal currents in Australia are notoriously bad, which can make flying difficult. We often did three hours in the morning, had a break and then carried on in the afternoon. It was difficult to tell how high up you were, so we had to dip down to find cattle for perspective.
Toughest moment: We knew roughly where the pole was and came in to land, but we realised that the grass we were seeing was 1m tall with broken trees in, so taking-off again would be impossible. We pushed the limits. Then it took us an hour to find the pole. Our aerial support guy had a plane with smaller wings, so he could take-off to look for assistance and we were left in the bush for three hours. Thankfully, everything worked out fine.
Lessons learned: Say 'yes' to something that you're not used to doing. We had no real experience of flying long distances. People think they need to be competent before they commit to something, but it's better to jump-in. Naivety is bliss with us. If you go in with too much caution, you'll never do anything.
The Green Pole (2017)
Start/finish: Arica coast to Mato Grosso State, South America.
Destination: Second Pole of Inaccessibility.
Distance: 2,700km cycled, averaging 60km per day.
Climb: 34km of ascent.
Science: Studied our blood and weight as we travelled.
Temperature: 49°C to -8°C
Dangers: Much of the trip was proper bush-bashing through totally untouched forest. We were warned that jaguars would attack us, because, in that part of the world, they've never seen humans before. Oddly, that was nice to hear, actually, that there are still untouched parts of the world.
Toughest moment: The heat was pretty intense going through the Atacama desert. Carrying enough water between small villages on a bicycle was difficult and we got stuck in a canyon during the midday heat. We'd cycled 30km uphill and the heat was about 50°C, so we stopped. A military truck eventually came and gave us a lift.
Lessons learned: There’s a fine line between dumbass and badass. Had we carried on in that canyon, we would have been in a lot of trouble. It's important to remember that the most flexible tree in the forest is the strongest. You have to adapt, as anything can affect your plans day-to-day, from politics to geography.
The Bad Pole (2018)
Start/finish: Santa Monica, Los Angeles to Badlands National Park,South Dakota, USA.
Destination: Third Pole of Inaccessibility.
Distance: 2,600km cycled, averaging 110km per day
Climb: 28km of ascent.
Science: Studied our blood and glucose 24/7 as we travelled.
Body: 8kg lost each.
Temperature: 54°C to -5°C.
Dangers: The Mojave desert was the hottest part of the trip and the hottest part of the world we've been to. It was 53°C in the open – very unpleasant. With the timeline we had, we had to get support to travel through that area.
Toughest moment: We had to cycle over the Rockies and everyone had said it would be the toughest part, but having cycled over the Andes, we found the Rockies to be much more subtle and smooth. The Rockies didn't really seem that steep. It was a lovely surprise.
Lessons learned: Share your equipment and do as much as you can to help others. People had left water bottles all along the trails in America. We helped out where we could. I met one woman who'd been travelling across the country for 10 years. It hit me that we're only passing through, with all the gear and no idea.
The Iberian Pole (2019)
Start/finish: London Transport Museum, Covent Garden, London.
Destination: Otero (North west of Toledo), Spain.
Distance: 2,500 km on electric motorcycles.
Body loss/gain: None.
Temperatures: 10°C – 32°C.
Dangers: Trucks on the motorways at night, particularly when it was raining and huge spray would impair our vision considerably. Then there was the tiredness that came with spending all day on the electric motorbikes.
Toughest moment: Driving from London to France's Etretat Cliffs was only 380km, but it took 22 hours to get there, including the ferry. It rained all night and after many hours on the road, it became pretty miserable. We were super-tired and didn't know where we were going, as our GPS died and we only had three percent charge on the bikes. We always did our best to keep ourselves as upbeat as possible, though it helps when you're riding a bike wearing a Belstaff jacket.
Lessons learnt: Electric vehicles are more than capable of travel outside the city and long distance travel using electric vehicles is certainly feasible. You'll also need to download about 16 different apps in order to use all the charge points.
The challenges for 2020 and beyond
The True Pole - Eurasian Pole of Inaccessibility
This is the furthest inland [away from the coast] you can get on Earth. It's a journey of over 3,500km across the whole of China. Starting in Tianjin on China's South East coast, we'll make our way through Beijing and then head west across the deserts, until we get to a city called Urumqi. From there, we head north and into the unknown.
The main worry will be if something goes wrong – we'll be far too isolated for help. Travelling across the vast Gobi Desert with little water and carrying enough food for a week at a time will prove problematic as well.
The Ice Pole
We plan to cross the Greenland ice cap from South to North. This will be a journey of 2,500km.
The Island Pole
This would be travelling from the east coast of Madagascar, through the rainforest and up into the mountains. At 400km, this will be the shortest expeditions in the series to find the poIes.
The White Pole
A trans-continental crossing of Antarctica, via Lenin’s Bust. It's a journey of 2,600km.
The Roaring Pole
Finally, sailing around the world through Point Nemo, the furthest point away from land on the planet. It's a trip of 76,000km in total.