SOUTH African explorer Mike Horn set off on Tuesday from Northern Russia’s desolate Severnaya Zemlya archipelago on a solo attempt across the frozen waters of the Arctic, support staff said. Horn (35) is scheduled to reach the North Pole in about two months before carrying on with the second leg of his journey towards Canada, they added. He left Cape Arktichevsky, at the northernmost tip of Severnaya Zemlya, braving temperatures of minus 31 degrees centigrade, with winds reaching minus 50 degrees centigrade. ”My sleigh is heavier than I thought and the weather is colder than I thought, but it should be all right,” Horn said just before setting off. He initially hopes to cover seven kilometres each day and then to increase his daily distance to 15 kilometres once he has got used to the harsh environment, his supporters said. – Sapa-AFP