Adventurous Sam McNeill says she was not academic at school and craved the outdoor life as a career, writes Guy Boswell.

In February in the New Year she will have her ambitions fulfilled a little late in life when she has the adventure of a life time — braving the melting ice of the Arctic Ocean on a journey to the Northern Pole of Inaccessibility.

Sam will be pulling a sled across the Arctic with her new husband Jim, the renowned polar explorer, having retired early from a relatively humdrum, yet important, office job.

Her humble beginnings in exploration lay in the acclaimed annual schools’ Ten Tors expedition on Dartmoor and later her role in the Dartmoor Search and Rescue.

The Princetown-based couple are due to lead an environmentally critical expedition, called Last Pole, to the Northern Pole of Inaccessibility, the last great unexplored destination in the polar region.

They are taking a team of so-called citizen scientists on the potentially perilous venture to collect data on changes in the landscape, the sea, the ice, the air, plants, wildlife and about the sometimes aggressive polar bears.

The data will be sent to NASA scientists to build an instant picture of what is widely believed to be the rapid affects of climate change.

Sam, who has spent her adult life in the hills and mountains of Britain and Western Europe is a keen skier and climber said: ‘We’re taking ordinary people and asking them to do extraordinary things. They’re are all adventurous people who also want to do some good in the world.

‘They’ve all been trained on Dartmoor in the harsh environment and rugged terrain right on our doorstep. They’ve also been to the ice and snow of Svalbard in Norway, so, they should be prepared for anything that the Arctic can throw at them.

‘I’m so looking forward to the trip, it suits me to the ground and what I’m built for. I love the outdoors and leading expeditions and motivating people who want the same thing.

‘Especially because it’s really important for mankind to understand fully what we are doing to the natural world and what we’re losing.’

The ice will be literally melting under their feet as they trek across the wilderness, due to climate change and have special flotation devices enabling their sleds to float if they fall through.

‘I must admit to being a little jealous of our team because of the opportunity they’re having. I would have liked to have had a career in outdoor education or exploration.

‘I have some what made up for it with my hobbies and qualifications. But it was Ten Tors which really awakened my personal belief in myself as a youngster. Like Jim I was not an academic person at school and that led to teachers and careers advisers not taking me seriously and me not believing in myself.

‘I was advised to learn to type if I wanted a career, because I’m a girl and I was encouraged to join a “typing hut” in Ivybridge Community College, which I did not. I’m pleased to say that sexism has largely gone.

‘While on Ten Tors I lacked the grit and application to continue when things were getting tough. But I was inspired by the leaders who showed what could be achieved if I put effort in and persevered through some pain.

‘Once in the sixth form I trained younger girls for the Ten Tors and was selected to be their team leader, which showed me I could motivate others. I pushed them hard on a 35-mile exped and they hated me for it.

‘But I showed them this reduced the distance they had to go the next day to finish. I was thanked by their parents for getting them back safely and sooner. That achievement stayed with me and led to me overcoming a huge mental barrier in my sef-belief and confidence.’

She left school at 17 amd joined the Land Registry in Plymouth, but continued her other life as an outdoor addict, including completing the Ten Tors again as a Venture Scout and taking up mountain biking, climbing and skiing.

Aged 19 she joined Dartmoor Search and Rescue Tavistock Group, as only the second call-out woman.

She said: ‘But that didn’t last long as more women took part. ‘The boom of outdoor leisure jobs has also led to women beng accepted for what they can do.

‘So, I took the risky leap from my safe job and joined Jim in his business. It’s been a steep learning curve. But I’m going on a full expedition and it’s my dream come true. Jim and I are a team in all senses.’