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In mid January, 2008 the slowness of the month was punctuated by the news that a Doctor from Bandon had become the first Irish woman to reach the North Pole.
Dr. Clare O'Leary was the 15th woman overall worldwide to do so and she was part of a four-person expedition team led by Pat Falvey from Cork.
In gloriously West Cork fashion, the then-35-year-old told RTE radio’s Morning Ireland that she felt ‘grand’ after reaching the South Pole.
‘It’s brilliant and amazing to be here after such a long time.’
Clare O'Leary already had a number of impressive milestones to her name before she reached the North Pole in 2008
The expedition team received a congratulatory message from then President of Ireland, Mary McAleese.
‘Occurring one century after fellow Irishman Ernest Shackleton’s first attempt on the pole, the expedition’s achievement is particularly poignant. I congratulate Pat Falvey, Clare O’Leary, Jonathan Bradshaw and Shaun Menzies on their remarkable achievement and send my very best wishes to their many supporters in this mammoth undertaking.'
Clare and her team woke up at 5.45am every morning and trekked for ten hours over 1,100 km of ice in the coldest place on earth for 58 days.
Luckily, she had already built up a considerable amount of endurance.
Dr. O'Leary is the first Irish woman (15th worldwide) to climb Mount Everest, which she did four years previously.
An experienced adventurer, she was also the first Irish woman to climb the seven highest peaks in seven continents and the first Irish woman to cross Greenland.
Clare's achievement in reaching the North Pole was also recognized by the Taoiseach at the time, Bertie Ahern.
‘This is a fantastic personal achievement for all of you. I have been following your adventure through news coverage since you set out and total admiration is perhaps the best way to sum up my thoughts on what you have achieved. You are continuing a proud tradition of Irish adventurers and you should be very proud of your achievement.’
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