These amazing Arctic Trucks F-150 builds are incredibly capable.
Epic Journey
The amazing Ford F-150s built by a company called Arctic Trucks have gotten their fair share of press in recent years, mainly because they look awesome. But as it turns out, there are folks that actually drive them across some of the harshest winter conditions on earth, including a group called Transglobal Car Expedition. Recently, those folks took a fleet of F-150s and Yemelya amphibious vehicles to Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories of Canada and drove 2,200 kilometers (1,367 miles) to Resolute Bay in what was a truly epic journey.
Photos: Transglobal Car Expedition
Few Challenges
The journey across that tundra is ripe with challenges, as one might expect. "We arrived at 9 p.m. in zero visibility so the only people who met us were the guide and fixer, and he couldn’t even find us for a while," Andrew Comrie-Picard, a professional driver from California, told Nunatsiaq News. "People said, 'Can you see the lights of Cam Bay,' and we ran into it before we could see it."
Photos: Transglobal Car Expedition
World First
The 16-member group is made up of people from all across the globe, as well as a local guide who's knowledgable when it comes to things like ice, polar bears, and how to navigate massive snow drifts. Regardless, one vehicle was lost after it fell through the ice on this particular journey, which was reportedly the first of its kind from the continental shelf to the High Arctic.
Photos: Transglobal Car Expedition
Test Trip
Still, this particular route is just part of the complete vertical circumnavigation of the globe that the team plans to embark on next year, though it's one of the most difficult stretches of that particular trip. "The reason we are on this trip now is to confirm if it's possible to drive from Yellowknife to Resolute because the rest of the route various members have already done," Comrie-Picard said.
Photos: Transglobal Car Expedition
Massive Ice Formations
The trip wasn't without peril, however, as the team was forced to navigate some pretty unpredictable and tough terrain along the way. "We couldn’t see past the closest pack ice blocks (some 15 feet tall!) and despite valiant efforts at breaking them up, we had to make a principled decision and call it off for the night," one member said.
Photos: Transglobal Car Expedition
One Casualty
When the group was headed back to Cambridge Bay, one of the group's F-150s fell through the ice at the Tasmania Islands in Franklin Strait, but thankfully, no one was hurt. The team will be able to locate and rescue the truck later, though it's a lost cause after sinking into the frigid waters.
Photos: Transglobal Car Expedition
Right Tool
Regardless of that little snafu, the Transglobal Car Expedition group is forging ahead with its plans for next year's broader journey, and this smaller trip taught them that crossing this particularly tough part of the world is indeed possible. So long as you have the right truck to do it in, that is.
Photos: Transglobal Car Expedition
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