Teaching youngsters to endure pain was once a necessary part of an upbringing designed to help them survive the harsh Arctic elements, writes Roger Hall.

The mayor of Vorkuta, 100 miles above the Arctic Circle, says he is looking for an investor to turn an abandoned prison complex into a 'reality' holiday camp for novelty-seeking tourists.

This week, we consummated our pilgrimage to celebrate the discovery of the Americas by following the winding Yukon and reaching the most western extremity of the Americas.