When was the North Pole first reached?

Cook also traveled on his own to the Antarctic and made two attempts to scale Alaska's Mount McKinley, claiming to be the first to succeed in 1906. Peary, for his part, made another attempt to reach the North Pole in 1905-06, his sixth Arctic expedition. By then, he had come to think of the pole as his birthright. read more

The first verifiable expedition to reach the North Pole was that of Roald Amundsen (who also led the first successful mission to the South Pole in 1911). Amundsen and American Lincoln Ellsworth flew over the Pole in an airship on 12 May 1926. read more

First unsupported solo trek from Canada to the North Pole: Pen Hadow reached the Pole May 19, 2003. First persons to reach the North Pole during the Arctic winter: Børge Ousland and Mike Horn. March 23, 2006; First expedition to reach the North Pole on snowshoes exclusively: April 26, 2006 North Pole Classic. read more

The North Pole was one of the last remaining laurels of earthly exploration, a prize for which countless explorers from many nations had suffered and died for 300 years. And here was the American explorer Robert E. Peary sending word from Indian Harbour, Labrador, that he had reached the pole in April 1909, one hundred years ago this month. read more