Heroic Age of Antarctica

The heroic age of Antarctic exploration occurred in the early 19^th century and included over a dozen expeditions from countries including Belgium, the UK, Sweden, Norway, Germany, France and Japan.  Most were billed as scientific studies, with a race to the South Pole for many, but they also included the chance to claim some of the continent for their home country.   

The most famous of these were: Amundsen’s Swedish group that were the first to reach the Pole in 1911; Scott from the UK that reached the Pole 33 days after Amundsen and after falling 97 miles short on an earlier trip and sadly all of whom died on the return trip to their base; and Shackleton, made famous by his ship the Endurance whose entire crew was stranded after the ship was crushed by ice, yet they all survived. 

We had a chance to visit several of their “huts”, buildings that these explorers lived in during the winters they were in Antarctica.  They have been faithfully preserved over the years with the original furniture, equipment and many of the supplies they left behind.  Sadly, you can also see the seal blubber that they had stockpiled to use for fuel and remains of many of their work animals.  Walking through them is truly a visit back in time.