But the curator of a National Museum of Wales exhibition to mark the centenary of Scott reaching the South Pole, believes that the Welsh obsession with polar exploration had very little to do with the nation's pioneering spirit, or even the charismatic Robert Falcon Scott.

BBC: Scott of Antarctic 'propaganda created Welsh obsession'

Still, he concludes that America, with its idealistic search for racial equality and its pioneering spirit, is home.

CNN: In Search Of A Definition

But at the heart of this unpicturesque village 200 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, with its trailer parks and mining-town architecture, burns the pioneering spirit of mountain adventure that far predates the cookie-cutter chalets and sophisticated lift systems that have come to define the modern mainstream ski holiday.

WSJ: New Heights: Winter Sports Holidays With a Difference | Carving Fresh Ski Tracks