Globetrotter raises Rotary flag over South Pole

Reaching the South Pole has not been Albert Bosch's only adventure. Son of a past district governor, he has climbed the highest peaks on every continent.

Albert Bosch started his trek to the South Pole on 30 October 2011, hauling food, water, shelter, and a Rotary flag in honor of his late father, Josep Bosch.

“You don’t see a single person, animal, or change of scenery,” he says. “There is no difference between the day before and the day after. Every day is exactly the same.”

On 4 January, after 52 days on foot, pulling everything he needed on his nearly 300-pound sled, Bosch made it to the pole, where this photo was taken.

“I just held the flag for the picture. I always try to leave the environment as I have found it,” he notes. Reaching the South Pole may be his latest accomplishment, but it’s far from his only adventure. Bosch has climbed the highest peaks on every continent, ending with Mount Everest in May 2010, where he also brought a Rotary flag.

“I have a special feeling for Rotary due to its importance in my father’s life,” he says. The elder Bosch founded the Rotary Club of Ripollés, Spain, then joined the Rotary Club of Barcelona-Diagonal; he served as district governor in 1995-96.

Bosch’s next challenge will be trekking from Canada to the North Pole in 2014.

“Of course I will be carrying a Rotary flag,” he says. “It is already in my luggage.”

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