The Heroic Age - far, far South

Today we landed on the Antarctic continent – well Ross Island actually, but it is of course attached to the main land mass by the Ross Ice Shelf.  This Ice Shelf should be renamed the “Claytons” Ice Shelf, because for the first time in 20 years, a ship has been able to traverse the Ross Sea down to McMurdo Sound without having to break through miles and miles of pack ice!

4am wake up call, and we were travelling down the gangway to the zodiacs by 5am.  We were at Cape Evans, the site of Scott’s Hut for the ill-fated Terra Nova Expedition 1910-1913, which saw Robert Falcon Scott attempt to be the first to the South Pole, only to arrive and find the Norwegian Amundsen had beaten them to it.  Of course we all know the story how Ross and his 3 companions never made it back.  

The hut has undergone remarkable restoration, and is situated on the shoreline at Cape Evans, beneath the smouldering volcano Mt Erebus.  It was smoking today!  The hut looks like Scott and his men left for a day’s outing and meant to return!  There are approximately 8,500 artifacts in the main building and annexe where the ponies were kept.  I particularly liked the science laboratory and the dark room, and the tins of canned rhubarb!  The layout of the hut was so naval British!

This afternoon we travelled to the furthest point south that we can go, which is probably the furthest south most people on the ship have ever been, and will never repeat again!  We all spent hours up on the bridge photographing three emperor penguins on the ice!

Tomorrow is a big day – we get to visit the US Antarctic Station McMurdo, the New Zealand Antarctic station Davis, and go visit Scott’s Discovery Hut!  In the words of Nathan the Expedition leader – “Tomorrow will be a logistical nightmare!”  Can’t wait!