Arctic trek proves 'anyone can be extraordinary'

A 48-year-old woman is taking on one of the world's most extreme endurance challenges to prove "ordinary people can do extraordinary things".

Rebecca Vials, from Weston-super-Mare in North Somerset, is the only woman within a group of explorers from all over the world attempting to walk 120 miles (193km) across Svalbard in the Arctic over eight days.

Vials, a head of data and analytics at Yeo Valley, has been lugging weighted sleds across the beach in Weston-super-Mare to prepare for the challenge.

"I like to see the strength that I can have," she said. "There's been times in the past where I've struggled with my own mental health and it's about being able to get over that."

From 20 April, Vials will be trekking through the snow for seven hours a day and camping in remote conditions, while dragging a sled with her tent, food and clothing on.

She said temperatures would drop as low as -25C but could feel colder than that "as it's very exposed with strong winds".

"I will be on the glacier so there could be a crevasse here and there, and on coastal areas [there is] sea ice to navigate."

The explorer has been training for the past nine months, dragging 40kg (6.3st) sleds around her waist on sand for up to four hours per day.

"This helps as I will be dragging a sled the whole trip of similar weight," she added.

Vials was inspired to take on the challenge after completing a solo walk from John O'Groats to Lands End in 2024 to raise money for the Samaritans.

She started doing extreme challenges after struggling with her own mental health.

"Maybe about 15 years ago it got to its lowest ebb," she said.

"I learnt you need to take one positive step every day.

"Feel the fear and do it anyway."

Svalbard, which sits halfway between mainland Norway and the North Pole, is home to more polar bears than humans and Vials said someone from the expedition group would be on "bear watch" at all times.

"It's the polar bear's land, it's their territory and we're guests in their territory," she told BBC Radio Bristol.

Vials said she was doing the challenge to gather data on human endurance in extreme environments.

"A lot of data is on athletes or military and mainly men," she added.

"So I wanted to concentrate on testing how the same sort of data capture can be used for a midlife woman.

"Ordinary people can do extraordinary things and everything shouldn't be down to the elite athletes."

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