SINGAPORE (Team Geared Up) - Antarctic explorers Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton left them here in their way to the South Pole, at the beginning of the last century. I’ve read Scott’s biography (twice, in two different forms) and it is truly amazing that these physical objects are still there since the 1900’s when they left them to return the following year - neither did.

The shelves are still stocked with tins of cabbage, veal or onions. All these objects have been preserved by cold for the last 100 years. This is when ice is you friend!

Unbelievable! You can see lots of photos and some commentary on this blog. Very well worth a visit.

To make this post a double bonus - here’s a picture I’ve been looking to post for some time now, but didn’t merit its own post. This is what Antarctica will look like when we have come to the end of this iceage. This is what the landmass under the ice is actually like.

I wonder has that image taken into account of what height the sea levels will be at due to all the melting ice, or is it done based on our current median sea-level?

-Robin.

(Image Credits: Unknown original sources.)

SINGAPORE - The first scheduled passenger flight to Antarctica landed yesterday. The Australia/Hobart to the Australian Casey Station will fly weekly transporting public and scientists to the base.

The first scheduled Australian passenger flight, Airbus A319, left the Australian city of Hobart the previous evening, destined for the newly built Wilkins ice runway, 70 kilometres from the Australian Antarctic Division’s Casey Station.

Video on Reuters.com

I like the air-stewardess announcement “15 mins to landing - please put on your survival suits.”…. yes there’s no nice warm airport terminal to step into here!

-Robin-

(Image Credit: Reuters video still.)

BANGKOK, THAILAND (Team Geared Up) - Ben Saunders clearly has a love of the cold. An unknown name to me until last week, I found out that Ben was the youngest person to ever ski solo to the North Pole.

Born in 1977, Ben grew up in Devon, was educated at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst and lives in London. He is passionate about the great outdoors and is a record-breaking long-distance skier, with three North Pole expeditions under his belt. He is the youngest to ski solo to the North Pole and holds the record for the longest solo Arctic journey by a Briton. Since 2001, Ben has skied more than 2,500km (1,500 miles) in the high Arctic, which he recently worked out equates to two percent of his entire life living in a tent.

Starting late March, Ben is going on an expedition to the geographic North Pole, with the aim of setting a speed record, less than 36 days, solo, unsupported. Ben is also planning SOUTH (October) which will be the first return journey to the South Pole on foot, and back to the coast again. At 2,900km and four months, SOUTH will be the longest unsupported polar journey in history.

Ben has a book coming out in 2009. Keep your eyes peeled for it! See BenSaunders.com

-Robin-

(Image Credit: bensaunders.com)

LONDON, UK (Team Geared Up) - This pair we previously talked about will try their hands now at skiing. Cracknell & Fogle have entered the South Pole Race.

It’s not fair - I want to go to the pole too! Thanks to Eoin for dropping me the link.

-Robin-

(Image Credit: My signed copy of their transatlantic rowing race log. Highly recommended!)