BRECON-based explorer Lou Rudd spent most of Christmas Day skiing as he closed in on his aim of being the first person to cross Antarctica unaided.

Lou, who is an Army captain based at the Dering Lines Infantry Battle School, set off on his solo mission on November 1 this year.

His route – starting from the Hercules Inlet on the Ronne Ice Shelf to the finish point on the Ross Ice Shelf – has already taken him to the South Pole.

Lou is hoping to complete the 1,500km journey on January 19. He is skiing solo the whole way, dragging all the supplies he needs for the entire 75-day expedition.

On his Day 52 blog he wished his supporters a "very Merry Christmas". He said Christmas Eve had been a difficult day as he pushed on through "heavy winds and whiteout".

He said: "Merry Christmas to everyone. For myself, it’ll be another full day’s skiing – obviously keen now to get this journey cracked. I’ll be heading out to get a full 12-13 hour day in. And hopefully get myself pretty close to the Leverett Glacier. Which’ll be great – then I can start the descent down there over the last few days of the expedition."

The expedition is known as ’The Spirit of Endurance’, named in memory of the ship lost during the ill-fated Imperial Trans-Antarctic expedition of 1914-17 led by the great explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton.

In 2016-17 Capt Rudd led Spear 17, a six-man team from the British Army Reserves on a successful full traverse of Antarctica. It came just a year after Lou’s friend and fellow explorer Henry Worsley died while attempting a full solo and unaided crossing of the Antarctic. Lou is carrying "Henry’s flag" during his journey in tribute to his friend.

Capt Rudd’s achievement of leading the British Army Reserves team across Antarctica unsupported earned him recognition from the Queen with an MBE in the 2018 New Year’s Honours List.

Lou, who travels to work in Brecon every day from Hereford, began his Christmas Day blog by wishing a Merry Christmas to all his supporters, "particularly my wife Lucy, and my three children (Amy, Sophie and Luke)".

In his Day 51 blog, filed on December 23, he reported: "Quite a big day for me. Around about lunchtime, I crossed 87 degrees South (latitude), which is a great milestone. And I punched quite a way into 86 as well, so I got a few miles into there. From 87 down to 86 is my final full degree, and once I reach 86 itself, that’ll be right at the top of the Leverett Glacier. I’ve got then just over half a degree descent down there onto the Ross Ice Shelf to complete the journey. Great to reach that."

Another big day was his December 13 blog which reported that he had reached the South Pole. He wrote: "I was on the move just after Five. Absolutely atrocious conditions unfortunately, total whiteout, driving snow, almost like a blizzard, which was a shame, with 11 miles to do to get into Pole. So I ploughed on, and literally I saw nothing, until about a mile and a half out, conditions were that bad. Constantly scanning the horizon through the mist trying to look for something and, finally, in the gloom, and outline of a radar instillation, which is on the outskirts of the Pole. Incredible feeling to finally see something, and realise I was getting there. From there, you have to aim for the final way point, which is a sign, a big sign that ALE have positioned. It says ‘congratulations, you’re almost at the South Pole.’ You get to there and you stop and you phone in and check in, let them know that you’re there and then confirm you can proceed. You then head to the ALE camp, which is a small tented camp just down from the South Pole itself. So headed there. There are only three ALE staff there; the main man Devon, a Polar guide, came out to meet me as I skied towards the tent. That was amazing. We’d last met in Punta a couple of months ago, right at the start of the expedition. So big hugs and then straightaway we skied down to the actual South Pole itself."